The Nordic Thingy:91 is a battery-operated prototyping platform for cellular IoT, certified for global operation. It is ideal for rapid development of prototypes for cellular IoT systems and is especially suited for asset tracking applications and environmental monitoring.
Nordic Thingy:91 includes a set of sensors to gather data about its own movements and the surrounding environment. Temperature, humidity, air quality, air pressure, color, and light data can easily be extracted for local or remote analysis. For input, the Nordic Thingy:91 offers a user-programmable button. Visual output is achieved with user-programmable RGB LEDs, while a buzzer can provide audible output. The standard application firmware on Nordic Thingy:91 extracts the data from the different sensors and relays it securely to the nRF Connect for Cloud, where it is displayed in a user-friendly interface. The LEDs can be controlled remotely through the same interface.
The firmware supports concurrent operation with LTE Link Monitor, a tool providing an AT command interface enabling link and network testing. The firmware has been developed using the nRF Connect Software Development Kit (SDK). It is open source and can be leveraged and modified to suit your specific needs. The firmware can be updated and debugged by using an external programmer/debugger, for example with the one on the nRF9160 DK (Development Kit).
Nordic Thingy:91 integrates the nRF9160 System in Package (SiP), supporting LTE-M, NB-IoT and Global Positioning System (GPS), and the nRF52840 System on Chip (SoC), supporting Bluetooth Low Energy and Near Field Communication (NFC). Source code for firmware, hardware layout, and schematics are all available for free.
Nordic Thingy:91 has an antenna supporting GPS, LTE-M, and NB-IoT that enables it to support a global range of LTE bands. It has two antennas connected to the nRF52840: a 2.4 GHz antenna for Bluetooth LE and an NFC antenna. To connect to cellular network out of the box, Nordic Thingy:91 has a nano/4FF SIM card slot and is bundled with an eSIM card from iBasis that comes preloaded with 10 MB.
A 1400 mAh rechargeable Li-Po battery is also part of this prototyping platform giving a smooth transition into prototype field-testing.
Key Features
- 700-960 MHz + 1710-2200 MHz LTE band support1
- Certifications: CE, FCC
- LTE-M/NB-IoT/GPS, Bluetooth LE and NFC antennas
- Nano/4FF Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card slot
- User-programmable button and RGB LEDs
- Environmental sensor for temperature, humidity, air quality, and air pressure
- Color and light sensor
- Low-power and high-G accelerometer
- Buzzer
- 4 x N-MOS transistor for external DC motors or LEDs
- Rechargeable Li-Po battery with 1400 mAh capacity
- Charging through USB
- PC connection through USB
- Bundled with a eSIM card from iBasis preloaded with 10 MB
nRF9160
Multimode LTE-M/NB-IoT modem
• GCF certified for global operation
• 23 dBm output power
• GPS
• Power saving features: DRX, eDRX, PSM
• Coverage enhancement modes
• Single pin 50 Ω antenna interface
• Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) interface
Application processor
• 64 MHz ARM Cortex-M33 CPU
• ARM TrustZone for trusted execution
• ARM CryptoCell 310 for application layer security
• 1 MB flash and 256 kB RAM
• 4 x SPI/UART/TWI, PDM, I2S, PWM, ADC
nRF52840 WLCSP
• Bluetooth LE and NFC support
• 64 MHz ARM Cortex-M4F CPU
• 1 MB flash and 256 kB RAM
• USB
Resources
FAQs:
Q: What is the Nordic Thingy:91 used for?
A: Prototyping cellular IoT applications like asset tracking and environmental monitoring.
Q: What connectivity options does it have?
A: LTE-M, NB-IoT, GPS, Bluetooth LE, Bluetooth mesh, NFC, and Thread.
Q: Does it come with sensors?
A: Yes, it has environmental, motion, and impact detection sensors.
Q: Is it certified for global use?
A: Yes, it's certified for global operation.
Q: What software tools are available?
A: The nRF Connect SDK with libraries and examples for cellular IoT development.
