The proliferation of electronics, from personal devices to automotive dashboards, has led to many frustrated consumers who can't make their devices interact. For example, even a tech savvy consumer can find it difficult to pair their Bluetooth device in their car. The authentication process may differ from one car to another and also from one phone to another. The targets for their potential connections can have a low signal-to-noise ratio amid a potential sea of transmitting devices. Once found, pairing their devices requires navigating many obstacles including clunky, often voice-operated instructions and password identification. NFC functionality simplifies this interaction.
In this post we'll explore a solution from Texas Instruments (TI) that helps designers implement tap-based NFC interaction for electronic devices.
Beyond the more popular use of NFC in pairing applications are some additional examples:
Medical:
- Bio-medical patches that pass data collected from skin patches via NFC to smartphones
- Monitoring devices that transfer data to smartphones
Automotive:
- Car access and security
- Pairing with automotive infotainment systems
- Driver preferences
- Sharing points of interest via Google maps
Consumer Electronics:
- Pairing
- Transferring diagnostic information to smart phones
- Firmware updates over the air using smartphones
- Interactive Gaming
Industrial:
- Wireless sensors
- Access control
- Diagnostic data
- Equipment Configuration
The list goes on. With the abundance of smartphones that have NFC capabilities, new and more sophisticated NFC applications and use cases can be identified.
In that context, TI's NFC product line offers innovative solutions for applications ranging from authentication, Bluetooth pairing to wireless sensors in a variety of end equipment such as printers, routers, sensor hubs, smart plugs, smart thermostats, health and fitness monitors.
The TI RF430CL330H dynamic near field communications (NFC) transponder simplifies pairing your devices with Bluetooth® and Wi-Fi. The tool is designed to pair things like cellphones, printers, speakers, headsets, remote controls, wireless mice, keyboards, switches, and sensors. As seen in the video below, connecting and transferring files between your NFC devices is as easy as "tapping" the devices together to start a cryptographic handshake, or NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF).
The RF430CL330H's RF NFC and synchronous low pin count SPI/I2C wired communications interfaces make it unique in its ability to transfer NFC data in more than just wireless modes. This also allows for the application transfer to continue on alternate carriers after the NFC transfer is completed and the devices have been paired.
For less than a dollar a piece, your device can interface using the ISO 14443B compliant RF430CL330H at RF data transfer rates of 848 kbps.
Head of the NFC Stollman E+V GmbH business unit, Christian Andresen said, "as demand for NFC devices continues to proliferate, we are excited to work with TI to offer NFCLink to ease this development for designers… This unique and market-leading software library is a crucial offering in easing NFC adoption."
This complete solution allows designers to quickly build a battery-operated NFC application based on the industry's lowest standby power current for extended battery life. Minimal components are required to support an I2C-based design as demonstrated in the reference design schematic below and outlined in the Bluetooth whitepaper. Additionally, the RF wakeup and passive NFC interface allow for low power draw conserving battery life even further.
Development is further streamlined with TI's RF430CL330HTB breakout board. The boards are able to easily connect to MSP430 development boards thanks to detailed design documents and design code examples.
TI provides a family of NFC devices and software to meet the varying needs of customer designs. The NFCLink software is based on industry tried and tested design. Additionally, the RF430CL330H's modularity makes it useful across all TI processors. Distributors like Digi-Key are able to deliver the RF430CL330HTB breakout in various quantities so that you can quickly pair with your Bluetooth designs.
Other benefits of the solution include:
- 3-hByte SRAM messages for NDEF
- Checks for NDEF automatically
- Auto update of data content supports and pairing parameters
- RF wake up for low power standby draw
- Combining SPI/I2C and NFC Interface
Texas Instruments has sponsored promotion of their industrial communications solutions on ENGINEERING.com. They have no editorial input to this post - all opinions are mine. Bruce Schreiner