Connected Devices
What is a Connected Device?
At the root of everything we do at Cloud2GND is a passion for Connected Devices. We define a Connected Device as any product that uses networking or wireless connectivity to interact and connect to the outside world or with other devices. Connectivity greatly expands the possibilities for devices and continues to revolutionize our world with the introduction of new use cases and device classes.
Wireless connectivity allows devices to communicate without the need for physical connections, such as cables or wires. This has enabled the development of new use cases and applications, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), that were not previously possible.
Wireless connectivity has also made it easier to update and maintain embedded systems, as it allows for remote monitoring and control without costly wiring infrastructure. This has increased the flexibility and adaptability of embedded systems, allowing them to be easily reconfigured or upgraded without the need for physical access.
Supported Network Topologies
At Cloud2GND, we can help customers envision, design, build, test, deploy, and maintain cutting-edge Connected Devices and other embedded systems. Although our main specialty is Bluetooth wireless software, we have worked on a wide range of other wireless connectivity solutions such as 802.15.4/Zigbee, Matter, Thread, Cellular, Wi-Fi, various proprietary wireless systems, and even some wired technologies such as Ethernet and USB that are used as control or configuration interfaces for many devices.
Firmware for Connected Devices
Our primary speciality is writing firmware, protocol stacks, and applications for Connected Devices.
Firmware is a type of software that is used to control the low-level hardware functions of a device. In wireless devices, firmware is what controls the radio frequency (RF) transceiver and manages communication between a device and other wireless devices.
When developing firmware for wireless chipsets, it is important to consider the specific requirements of the device and its intended use. This may include factors such as power consumption, wireless range, and data transfer rate. Additionally, it is important to ensure that the firmware is optimized for performance and reliability. Cloud2GND can help recommend the right connectivity technologies and solutions for your project requirements.
Power Optimization
Connected Devices are often battery-powered devices, making power efficiency a critical factor in their design. At the same time, they have performance and reliability requirements that can drive power needs higher. Successful optimization requires experience at multiple levels of system design and implementation.
There are different approaches that can be used to optimize the power consumption of an embedded design: system, hardware, and software optimization. The advent of practical energy harvesting subsystems that convert light, heat, motion, or vibration into usable energy provides even more opportunities for highly efficient deployment and maintenance models.
Hardware-level optimization involves designing the hardware components of the system to be as power-efficient as possible. This may include using low-power microcontrollers, power-efficient memory and storage devices, and efficient power management circuits.
Software-level optimization involves optimizing the software and firmware running on the system to reduce its power consumption. This may include techniques such as power-aware scheduling, power gating, and dynamic voltage and frequency scaling. The selected wireless protocols and their use and configuration also play a critical role in the power consumption of a connected device.
Wireless protocols can offer many adjustment points in the protocol to balance the performance versus power trade-off. The savings at the protocol level remain theoretical if the hardware and/or software designs can not take advantage of the optimized protocol. Cloud2GND has a wide range of experience and the core understanding to achieve the aggressive requirements of power-constrained systems.
Let’s Get Connected
Cloud2GND can make your next Bluetooth project successful. Contact us today to learn how.