Fresh breed of wireless sensor developers inspires new tools

Veterans in the semiconductor industry address the requirements of developers with no MCU background.

Semiconductor companies supplying the hardware and software building blocks for embedded wireless machine-to-machine and Internet of Things apps face a new breed of developers. Totally different from the experienced designers of past years, many have no background in MCU development or in any of the numerous wireless protocols. The only thing they have in common with veteran counterparts is the desire to participate in a new wave of IoT designs and get their ideas to market as fast as possible. The latter companies include TI, Silicon Labs and Freescale, each with its own view of what tools a developer needs and how best to provide them.

Inexperienced developers have always been there, demanding tools that are easier to use, TI system applications manager Jarle Boe told EE Times. But as the excitement about IoT and wireless sensors grows, they have increased in number. "At TI-sponsored events on such topics in the past, we would get 50 to 100 developers on average. Now, depending on the venue, we are seeing more than that. Many of the newcomers are inexperienced with hardware development on MCUs and want simpler and quicker ways to develop code.

To meet this need and accelerate the adoption of its latest SimpleLink family of Arm-based CC2650 wireless microcontrollers, TI introduced the SimpleLink Multi-Standard SensorTag IoT kit. The product is a complement to the company's Launchpad platform for experienced MCU developers.

Initially, the kit includes wireless connectivity tools for Bluetooth low energy, 6LoWPAN and ZigBee apps on the CC2650 MCU. Planned for later addition to the kit is a Wi-Fi SensorTag for the SimpleLink CC3200 wireless MCU.

To read the full article, please go to EETimes.

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