The SN8200 enables simple serial-to-Wi-Fi connectivity to the Internet, making it well suited for manufacturers looking to add wireless communications to home appliances, healthcare equipment, and industrial control and monitoring systems.
Murata Wireless Solutions (MWS) announced the introduction of its SN8200 Wi-Fi network controller module.
The SN8200 is a small, low-power, self-contained, certified Wi-Fi network controller module that provides simple serial-to-Wi-Fi connectivity to the Internet. It is an ideal solution for manufacturers who are looking to add wireless connectivity to home appliances or other devices for the healthcare equipment and industrial control and monitoring markets.
The SN8200 is enabled with Broadcom Corporation’s Wireless Internet Connectivity for Embedded Devices (WICED) architecture and SDK. It hosts 11n Wi-Fi, TCP/IP network stack, security supplicant, and other network application features, such as web server, all integrated within the module. It provides Murata’s Simple Network Interface Card (SNIC) serial-to-Wi-Fi interface protocol that treats the Wi-Fi module as a simple serial port. This significantly reduces the development and integration effort for design engineers and shortens time to market.
Additionally, the SN8200 module is FCC- and IC-certified. It is also compliant with ETSI standards EN 300 328 and EN 301 489. The module is capable of extended operating temperature and life-time expectancy that helps to support a variety of applications and environments.
The SN8200 includes the latest and most advanced IEEE 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi system-on-chip from Broadcom and an STM32 32-bit ARM Cortex M3 microcontroller from STMicroelectronics that hosts the networking application and provides the network stack and Wi-Fi API. The module also combines a diversity-enabled RF front end, PMU, and onboard antenna.
The SN8200 is the first module from MWS’s network controller module product line. The family is comprised of footprint-compatible modules, with flexible software personalities and hardware configurations to match customer needs. Variants include antenna diversity, microcontroller speed, flash memory size, peripheral interfaces, and advanced software feature options like access point mode, Wi-Fi Direct, Smart Energy Profile 2.0, and IPv6.
Mehul Udani, General Manager of Murata Wireless Solutions, said:
“The SN8200 is a game-changer in design. It provides a rich feature set and easy-to-use, turnkey solution for any application. This will definitely shorten the customer design cycle and greatly enable rapid development of next-generation wireless products”.
“Murata’s SN8200 is the first production ready module that embraces Broadcom’s WICED platform, featuring the BCM43362 Wi-Fi device. Our breakthrough self-hosted Wi-Fi and networking software stack eliminates the impact on host processors in resource-constrained devices. Murata’s combination of Broadcom’s WICED software architecture and SNIC protocol delivers an ideal solution for emerging markets, such as connected appliances, smart energy systems, and cloud-based health and home management services,” said Brian Bedrosian, Product Line Director, Embedded Wireless Local Area Networks, Broadcom.
“The STM32 microcontroller provides a very flexible architecture for the SN8200 and allows for the scalability needed to meet broad market requirements. Our collaboration with Murata will help them serve the emerging M2M market with the most up-to-date wireless connectivity solutions,” said Tony Keirouz, Vice President of Marketing and Applications at STMicroelectronics.
“Wi-Fi has become ubiquitous, with 1.1 billion enabled devices shipped in 2011. An easy-to-integrate, low-power Wi-Fi module that leverages features such as advanced security and network stacks can help manufacturers connect smart devices and sensors in the home, office, or industrial environments. The SN8200 product from Murata addresses this market,” said Alex West, Research Director of IMS Research.
The SN8200 Serial-to-Wi-Fi Network Controller development kits are available now from Avnet for $199. The SN8200 module is priced in the mid to high teens.