Avnet announced the availability of the AT&T IoT Starter Kit (LTE-M, STM32L4), the latest in a series of AT&T IoT Starter Kits engineered by Avnet in collaboration with AT&T. This LTE-M iteration of the AT&T IoT Starter Kit, with IoT Discovery board from STMicroelectronics, reduces the complexity of LTE-M device development by bringing together all the elements required to develop and prototype highly secure, cost-effective and reliable IoT devices connected to AT&T’s 4G LTE-M network. Avnet will be demonstrating the new Kit at today’s ST Technology Tour event in San Diego, as well as at upcoming Technology Tour stops across the U.S. through October 2018.
“With an end-to-end suite of IoT products and services, coupled with the best available technologies, Avnet can design, develop and deploy customized connectivity solutions for every customer. From capturing data at the edge and securely connecting the data to the cloud, we then work with customers on the development of applications and analytics that drives action. This ‘edge to app’ IoT capability is helping customers take the complexity out of IoT thereby maximizing their ROI,” said Jim Fusaro, senior vice president, IoT and global design solutions, Avnet. “Avnet’s ongoing collaboration with industry leaders like AT&T, ST, Arm and WNC are fundamental to developing and deploying world-class IoT solutions for our customers.”
The new two-board LTE-M solution is comprised of the STM32L475 IoT Discovery board and a cellular connectivity daughter card from Avnet, as well as a modem module from WNC, configured for LTE-M operation, and access to lower-cost licensing options for Arm Keil MDK microcontroller software development tools.
“Leveraging AT&T’s LTE-M network, this Starter Kit, with its extensive set of onboard sensors and wireless connectivity capabilities, offers an excellent resource for developers to prototype connected IoT devices for even the most hard-to-reach, challenging environments,” said Peter Fenn, wireless connectivity specialist in Avnet’s engineering and technology team. “The hardware and software enablement also addresses key areas such as security and low-power consumption to cost-effectively implement IoT device applications.”
Tony Keirouz, vice president, IoT strategy, ecosystem and partnerships, STMicroelectronics noted that in addition to a wide array of sensors on the IoT Discovery board, this new IoT Starter Kit from Avnet brings power-efficient LTE-M cellular connectivity along with enablement via user-friendly software tools. “Together with Arm’s class-leading Keil IDE, this offering speeds up the development and prototyping of innovative connected IoT devices,” he stated.
“Arm has a vision of a trillion connected devices by 2035, and we’re working closely with partners to provide the tools and technology to enable the rapid development of secure IoT products,” said Reinhard Keil, senior director of embedded tools, Arm. “The level of hardware and software enablement provided by the combination of this highly capable hardware platform and Arm Keil development tools will allow developers to significantly accelerate the development of innovative, connected IoT devices.”
Technical Specifications:
The Avnet 4G LTE-M cellular modem board features an M14A2A modem module from WNC, configured for LTE-M operation, as well as an onboard temperature and humidity sensor, multiple interfaces with the host microcontroller, SMA-connected external antenna and USB-connected AC/DC 5V power supply. This board stacks onto the ST Discovery board via Arduino Shield connectors to form a compact two-board assembly. A 3FF micro SIM connector accommodates the provided AT&T Starter SIM for easy connection to the Internet.
The IoT Discovery board is an “out-of-the-box” cloud-ready connectivity board for IoT nodes featuring the ultra-low-power Arm Cortex-M4 processor-based MCU (clocked at 80 MHz, with 1MB Flash memory, 128 KB RAM). The microcontroller-based carrier board functions as a low-power host processor that integrates onboard environmental sensors, motion, gesture and time-of-flight sensors, digital microphones, Bluetooth low-energy, a sub-GHz transceiver and Wi-Fi, as well as Pmod and Arduino Uno V3-compatible expansion connector interfaces.
Designing with cloud-based services is facilitated via AT&T’s M2X Data Services and Flow Designer. In addition, a free 90-day license and reduced-cost, 6-month license are available for Arm Keil MDK software development tools, which enable rapid development and advanced debugging capabilities.
