As digital transformation and intelligent upgrading become the key to social and economic growth, the Internet of Things (IoT) is at the center, which is accelerating the integration of the physical and virtual worlds, automatic probe station thereby empowering the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries and promoting the development of the digital industry.

As a small computing component in embedded devices, wireless communication module is one of the most critical components in the solution. The wireless communication module integrates the chip, memory, power amplifier and other functional modules on the PCB board, provides standardized interfaces, and matches with the specific package form and software design to meet the wireless communication needs of intelligent terminal devices in different application scenarios. With the rapid development of the Internet of Things, how to choose the best wireless communication module products will be the core of the success of the Internet of Things deployment.

What are the types of wireless communication modules?

Wireless network communication system modules can be divided into information communication modules and positioning analysis modules according to their functions. Communication control modules are managed according to communication standards into different cellular mobile communication and modules (2/3/4/5G/NB-IoT, etc.) private 5g and non-cellular communication modules (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LoRa, etc.). From the perspective of data transmission rate, the wireless technology communication module structure can be divided into high-rate modules represented by 5G and 4G, medium-rate modules represented by 3G and eMTC, and low-rate modules represented by 2G and NB-IoT.

How do I choose a wireless communication module for an iot project

5G module

5G technology will bring revolutionary changes to the whole society. With ultra-high-speed data transmission and ultra-low latency, 5G modules are ideal for terminal devices and scenarios that require real-time interaction with the cloud and other intelligent terminals. private lte According to the characteristics of different scenarios, 5G defines three application scenarios :eMBB(Enhanced mobile broadband), URLLC(ultra-reliable and ultra-low delay communication), and mMTC(massive machine communication).

4G LTE module

4 g module supports FDD and LTE TDD mode, 2 g / 3 g down, td-scdma/WCDMA/Edge/GPRS/GSM/CDMA1X/EVDO model. In terms of data transfer, downstream speeds can reach 100 megabits per second, while upstream speeds can reach 50 megabits per second. In addition to providing high-speed data transmission, it also provides voice, SMS, address book and other functions.

Until 5G technology is fully mature, 4G LTE modules remain the best choice for high-bandwidth applications. Technically, we can classify 4G modules above LTE Cat4 as high-speed communication solutions. LTE Cat4-LTE Cat20 can provide customers with more options for different downlink and uplink speeds, and can be widely used in high-speed scenarios such as monitoring systems, smart payments, and smart homes.

Wide connection module

The wide connection module structure can be connected through a wide range of low power, small size modules, the main content includes LTE Cat1 module, LTE CatM module and NB-IoT module. This series of modules is cost-effective, and there is a great need for iot smart terminals that are suitable for enterprises with low cost, less data and information transfer and long battery life, and often operate in locations that are difficult for us to develop and reach. NB-IoT module technology supports ultra-low power standby and battery life of up to ten years, while LTE CatM module also supports student voice teaching services. Compared with the former two, LTE Cat1 can not only support voice and simple display company business, but also play a greater impact on mobile application scenarios such as smart city logistics and smart management law enforcement.

2G/3G modules are also part of this family, but 2G/3G has begun to withdraw from networks worldwide, and LTE CAT1, LTE CATM, and NB-IoT modules will take over all low - and medium-speed applications.

Intelligent module

As the form of iot products continues to increase, the modules of iot are also increasingly diversified to meet the functional needs of more and more different types of devices. More and more solutions began to directly use mobile phones or tablet solutions to design products, but also put forward intelligent requirements for communication module manufacturers. More and more chips and functions will be integrated into iot modules.