eSIM with boostrap profile provides immediate link in IoT Discovery kit
Developers of cellular IoT devices that connect to the internet through LTE-Cat M and NB-IoT networks can now call on STMIcroelectronics B-L462E-CELL1 Discovery kit which includes GSMA-certified embedded SIM (eSIM).
The kit features an ultra-small size all-in-one cellular module from Murata which, as well as the ST4SIM-200M GSMA-certified embedded eSIM, embeds ST’s ultra-low-power STM32L462 microcontroller and an LTE-M/NB-IOT chipset. The eSIM is pre-programmed with a bootstrap connectivity profile from Truphone, one of ST’s authorised partners. The kit leverages out-of-the-box data connectivity and enables remote SIM provisioning and SIM over-the-air updates. The user can immediately start the board by connecting to a power supply using a USB cable or inserting three AAA batteries in the connector provided before activating the eSIM to let the board connect to a cellular network to begin developing the application.
The B-L462E-CELL1 kit is designed to resist cellular connectivity attacks owing to the ST4SIM-200M eSIM solution based on the ST33 Arm SecurCore SC300 secure element, which is CC EAL5+ and GSMA SGP.02 v3.2 certified. The ST4SIM is ready to host a Root-of-Trust applet for enhanced protection against cyber-attacks.
A set of on-board sensors helps simplify development of motion- and environmental-monitoring solutions. They comprise ST’s LSM303AGR accelerometer-magnetometer, HTS221 relative humidity and temperature sensor, and LPS22HH pressure sensor. There is also a 0.96-inch OLED display, indicator LEDs and a USB connection.
The STM32Cube software expansion package, X-Cube-Cellular drives the Discovery kit and supports the Berkeley (BSD) sockets application programming interface. BSD’s standardised function-calls for Internet communication let users connect their prototypes to the internet without needing to develop an AT-command driver to control the modem. X-Cube-Cellular includes a demonstration application and cellular framework in source code, which ST says is easily imported and configured using the powerful, free STM32Cube software toolset.
With ST’s ultra-low-power technologies in the STM32L4, which draws about 2-microA in Stop 2 mode, and a cellular chipset drawing less than 1.4-microA in power saving mode, the B-L462E-CELL1 Discovery kit provides a platform to develop equipment with battery life of up to 10 years for smart-city, smart-industry, smart-agriculture, smart-metering, and wearable applications.
