8 Experts on Overcoming Challenges of RF Solution Design 28
"Choosing a radio technology is the first and most important
aspect of a wireless design because that decision has a huge
impact on the characteristics of the device you are building."
Sabin Banuleasa
IoT Software Engineer
Oerlikon Metco AG
Sabin Banuleasa is an IoT software engineer
at Oerlikon Metco in Switzerland, where
he works in the Equipment Business Line
organization. He is responsible for the
digitalization of Oerlikon's products and
services. Sabin is a pioneer and has co-
founded four startup initiatives. A former
Microsoft employee, he also publishes PhD
research articles about IoT wearable medical
devices.
Choosing a radio technology is the first and most important aspect of a wireless design
because that decision has a huge impact on the characteristics of the device you are
building. You must choose between licensed technologies, such as narrowband Internet
of Things and Long-Term Evolution for Machines, or unlicensed technologies, such
as LoRaWAN, Sigfox, and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). The technology you choose
depends mostly on the use case and on the operational requirements of the device
you are designing, coverage requirements, the regions in which it will operate, and data
transmission specifics.
BLE is a popular choice, benefiting from low power consumption and offerings from a
variety of component providers. Because it has a range limitation of tens of meters, it
must rely on a gateway to relay information to a server over the internet, which is why
many BLE devices leverage smartphone connectivity. That is the reason we see a lot of
wearable devices using this wireless technology.
Once you settle on a radio technology, the next challenge is antenna design. The antenna
must provide the best signal while having the smallest form factor and lowest price. For
instance, some industrial devices cannot have external antennas because they break
Optimizing IoT Devices for Maximum Performance
at the Lowest Cost
