TIG Releases Bluetera II Open Source IoT Motion-Sensing Development Board

The Tensor Iotera Group (TIG) has launched its new Bluetera II open source full-stack development board, which the company states uses Google’s Protocol Buffer technology for motion-based IoT applications.

According to TIG, Bluetera II is the second generation module. Equipped with the latest Nordic nRF52840 SoC, it can function as a BLE Central and a BLE peripheral. The hub can be connected to a Linux or a Windows-based USB port as a BLE dongle. It can then become a master of the Bluetera LAN interacting with multiple Bluetera hub modules.

As mentioned earlier, the Bluetera II packs Nordic’s nRF52840, which features an Arm Cortex-M4 FPU, with 1MB of Flash, and 256KB of RAM. A BLE 5.0 controller is integrated with the MCU for wireless communications, but the company offers BLE add-on modules for short, long, and ultra-long applications. The Bluetera II also sports a pair of 13-pin headers, each with PWM, SWD, and GPIOs that can be configured as UART, I²C, ADC, etc. An InvenSense ICM-45605 6-axis sensor, plus an IMU ST LIS3MDL 3-axis magnetometer, provides accurate motion sensing using the Madgwick Algorithm.

Rounding out the board’s specs are a micro USB port, JST power connector, RGB user LED, red charger LED, Li-IoN battery charger, 32.48 kHz xtal for RTC. TIG has an SDK that links to all system elements, making it easy for hardware and software developers to utilize for their IoT projects. It’s even compatible with most major desktop and mobile operating systems, including Windows, Linux, Android, and iOS.

TIG is currently crowdfunding the Bluetera II on Crowd Supply starting at $50 for the development board with options for add-ons, such as the BLE modules mentioned earlier, and optional antenna configurations. They also offer a developer edition for $70, which includes a debug expansion board, complete with headers and connectors.