Out-of-the-box FCC-certified Solution Offers Easy Connectivity and Low-Power Consumption for Devices Running on Sigfox’s Dedicated IoT Network
CHANDLER, Ariz., LABEGE, France – Oct. 26, 2016 – Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP), a leading provider of microcontroller (MCU), mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions, and Sigfox, the world’s leading provider of global solutions for the Internet of Things (IoT), today launched the industry’s first FCC-certified, fully integrated RF transceiver and kits for developing IoT solutions for use on the Sigfox network.
Powered by Microchip’s highly integrated ATA8520E, a low-power RF transceiver with an integrated AVR® microcontroller, the new kits contain the first FCC-certified board that allows developers to easily connect to Sigfox’s long-range, two-way global IoT network – resulting in a low-cost, low-power device-to-cloud connectivity solution.
This is ideal for IoT applications in the US, ranging from logistics, to agriculture, smart cities and other Machine-to-Machine (M2M) sectors. The ATA8520E is also the first fully Sigfox-certified chip suitable for both North America and Europe.
The solution is available in two versions. Customers can either purchase Microchip’s Sigfox-certified ATA8520E as a standalone kit, designed primarily to test the technology, or as a kit combined with an Xplained Pro board, a solution for system-design purposes. Both are dedicated for Sigfox’s IoT network in the license-free ISM bands. The solutions come complete with the Sigfox library, modulation, ID and PAC code, and a security key enabling IoT developers to quickly get their designs to market.
Currently operating in 24 countries, Sigfox is on its way to establishing one global, seamless network that provides simple, ubiquitous, energy-efficient connectivity for billions of devices that periodically will send small quantities of data over long distances. Sigfox and Microchip are teaming together to drive down IoT device costs, operational costs and power consumption, ultimately resulting in substantially longer battery life compared to traditional cellular, Bluetooth® or Wi-Fi® connectivity.
“The applications for the rapidly growing IoT market are endless,” said Matthias Kaestner, vice president of Microchip’s Radio Frequency and Automotive business unit. “With this new FCC-certified solution combining the best of Microchip and Sigfox offerings, the possibilities are unlimited for the billions of IoT connections. Our Sigfox solution gives any IoT application the secure, long-range wireless connectivity required to get these ‘smart’ things ‘connected’ – at a fraction of the cost and power consumption of a cellular connection.”
“We are excited with Microchip’s long-range wireless solution as it is compelling, reliable and out-of-the-box ready,” said Tony Francesca, Sigfox vice president of Global Ecosystem Partners. “With its FCC certification, we look forward in partnering with Microchip to enable many IoT use cases and billions of devices to be connected to Sigfox’s network in the US and other countries that are based on FCC type approvals.”
About the ATA8520E Wireless Sigfox Solutions
The ATA8520x family features the industry’s highest-performance, lowest-power sub-GHz Systems-on-Chip (SoC) transceiver designed to maximize range and battery life for power-sensitive wireless systems. Offering frequency coverage for 868 MHz in Europe and 902 MHz in North America, the ATA8520x transceivers offer industry-leading RF performance resulting in extended wireless range and compliance with the industry’s most stringent narrowband regulatory standards. The ATA8520x transceivers provide exceptional power efficiency resulting in fewer battery replacements and/or reduced battery size.
Availability
There are currently four types of development kits available today for both US and European networks. For additional information and to purchase the kits, contact any Microchip sales representative or authorized worldwide distributor. Kits are also available on the Sigfox Partner Network.
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About Microchip Technology
Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP) is a leading provider of microcontroller, mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions, providing low-risk product development, lower total system cost and faster time to market for thousands of diverse customer applications worldwide. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, Microchip offers outstanding technical support along with dependable delivery and quality. For more information, visit the Microchip website at www.microchip.com.
About Atmel
Atmel is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Microchip Technology Inc.
About Sigfox
Sigfox provides global, simple, cost-effective and energy-efficient solutions to power the Internet of Things (IoT). Today, its worldwide network and broad ecosystem of partners are already enabling companies to accelerate digital transformation, develop new services and value. The Sigfox network has been designed to act like a huge radio telescope capturing signals from billions of objects all over the planet. Soon we will be able to give up batteries so as to use energy harvesting solutions to power data transmission. The vision of the company is to “Make Things Come Alive”, by giving a voice to the physical world we live in – allowing these objects to play a role in economic development, optimization of industrial processes and safeguarding of species of our planet, amongst the exciting opportunities in today’s new digital era. Currently present in 24 countries, and on track to reach over 60 by 2018, the Sigfox global network today covers 1,43 million square kilometers with a population of 397 million people. Millions of connected objects are already registered on the network across all five continents. Founded in 2010 by entrepreneurs Ludovic Le Moan and Christophe Fourtet, the French company is headquartered in Labège near Toulouse, France’s “IoT Valley”. Sigfox also has offices worldwide in Paris, Madrid, Munich, Boston, San Francisco, Dubai and Singapore. For more information, visit https://www.sigfox.com and follow us on Twitter at @SIGFOX.
Note: The Microchip name and logo, the Microchip logo, AVR and the Atmel name and logo are registered trademarks of Microchip Technology Incorporated in the U.S.A. and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective companies.
