Murata Power Solutions announced the availability of its new Type ABR Wi-Fi 11b/g/n+MCU module with PCB antenna. Based on NXP Semiconductor’s 88MW320 wireless microcontroller, the product supports Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n up to 72.2Mbps PHY data rate with an integrated 200MHz Arm Cortex-M4F MCU for host-side applications. The module offers a complete network controller solution via a simple UART interface. The Wi-Fi, TCP/IP, security supplicant, and other network application features are hosted directly on the module. Its small form factor (22mm x 19mm x 2.4mm) eases integration into size- and power-sensitive applications such as Industrial Internet of Things, IIoT, smart homes, sensor networks, and gateways.
With the rapid growth of IoT, the speed at which products and services go to market has become increasingly critical. However, providing products with wireless communication functionality has historically required a level of Wi-Fi and other wireless communication technologies expertise. In response to this need, Murata developed the Type ABR as a solution to enable Wi-Fi functionality just by entering simple commands. It is compliant with the Radio Act, so there is no need to obtain separate certifications. It also contains a built-in NXP MCU, allowing it to be used with software development tools (EZ-Connect, WMSDKA) that leverage the NXP framework for simplifying application development. This reduces the number of resources spent on design, allowing IoT devices to be developed and launched more efficiently.