Feature: Medical IoT
focus on clinical value and user experience instead of the wireless maze, in many cases achieving up to 75% faster integration and a much smoother path to regulatory approval. For medical IoT applications based around
Bluetooth, designing a custom Bluetooth LE stack, GATT (Generic Attribute Profi le), pairing logic and mobile app integration oſt en stretches past a year. Devices must be small, comfortable and safe, with a tight energy budget on a single coin cell or compact LiPo battery. Continuous or near-continuous data streaming drains small batteries quickly, and, yet, multi-day run times are mandatory for user acceptance. T en there are the engineering challenges
associated with multiple sensors on SPI/I²C buses, timing constraints and real-time data handling adding soſt ware complexity on the host microcontroller, connectivity issues and potential security weaknesses. In addition, engineering teams must also grapple with regulation and certifi cation based around the RF parts, as well as with medical approvals that require repeatable test setups, stable fi rmware and clear documentation. All these factors result in increased risk
and prolonged development, and can delay or even block regulatory submissions.
Pragmatic solutions: Proteus-IV and Ophelia-IV radio modules Würth Elektronik is addressing these challenges with two module families: Ophelia-IV and Proteus-IV; see Figure 1. Ophelia-IV is a highly integrated Nordic Semiconductor nRF54L15- based module for those who want to develop their own fi rmware using nRF Connect SDK and Zephyr RTOS. T is module targets advanced applications and allows customisation. Proteus-IV, on the other hand, is a BLE 6.0 module with pre-installed, pre-qualifi ed SPP-like fi rmware that exposes a simple UART- based interface to the host MCU. With this module no Bluetooth fi rmware development is required. Both modules fi t in a WLCSP package (12 x 8mm2
Figure 1: The BT-LE modules Proteus-IV und Ophelia-IV are based on the same BT-LE-Chip nRF54L15 from Nordic Semiconductor
Figure 2: Typical wearable health application with two sensors, controlled by the host MCU
Figure 3: Using a pre-certifi ed module with SPP-like BLE fi rmware has a measurable impact on both engineering and business metrics
), with output power of 8dBm,
1.5MB Flash and 256KB RAM. Supported data rates include Bluetooth 6.0 (2Mbps, 1Mbps, 50kbps and 125kbps), IEEE 802.15.4- 2020 (250kbps) and proprietary 2.4GHz
(4Mbps, 2Mbps and 1Mbps). T ey also feature options for integrated or external antennas and qualifi cation for CE, FCC, IC and Bluetooth. Proteus-IV in particular is designed as a plug-in communications layer: the host MCU sends data over UART, and the module transparently handles the connection, pairing, encryption and data transport. For new medical and health wearables that need robust, secure and effi cient data streaming to a mobile app or
gateway, Proteus-IV is usually the fastest and lowest risk route to a market-ready design.
System Integration with Proteus-IV A typical sensor architecture for a wearable patch or wrist device is shown in Figure 2. T ere are could be one or more medical sensors (ECG, PPG, temperature, IMU, etc.), which connect via SPI or I²C to a host microcontroller that handles sensor confi guration, basic pre-processing and
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