Internet of Things

The Internet of Things (IoT) is an umbrella term that covers many groups of related concepts, but in essence, these concepts share the following features: distributed intelligence, multiple interconnected sensors/actuators and decentralized control. In practice, IoT means that certain spaces, environments or objects can be made “smart” by incorporating sensors that can communicate to make them behave intelligently. IoT examples include offices that adjust themselves to ambient light levels or to human presence, machines that monitor their own health or homes that learn our daily routines to automatically save energy without compromising on our comfort.

All of this new technology needs power: either highly efficient, low standby consumption AC/DC power supplies that can be used in a smart office with hundreds of intelligent sensor nodes, energy harvesting solutions, or cost effective, space saving DC/DC power modules. Not every power supply is suitable for an Internet of Things application. They must be highly efficient at both low load and full load, they must be able to handle fast transient and dynamic load currents, they must be physically compact, they must be reliable and, above all, they must be affordable as they will be as ubiquitous as the sensors, processors, radios and actuators that they supply. This is why RECOM have developed next generation 3DPP^® DC/DC power modules such as the RPMx, RPX or RPL – miniature low-profile SMD power supplies that can deliver up to 17W but fit into 1cm² or less board space or the RxxCTxx which delivers 5kVAC isolation in a 2.6mm high package.

The industrial internet of things is a subset of IoT, relating to interconnected sensors, instruments, and other devices used in the commercial manufacturing and energy environments. Leveraging IIoT promises improved process efficiency, productivity and safety, while allowing better decision-making and predictive maintenance to reduce downtime and operational costs.

The industrial environment can be challenging for electronics, but standard RECOM AC/DC and DC/DC converters are an excellent solution thanks to their wide temperature ratings, high efficiency, robust construction, long warranty, and low acquisition and lifetime cost. Many standard RECOM AC/DC products are particularly suitable for noisy industrial environments with their Over Voltage Class III (OVCIII) input rating. Parts are also available with nominal input ranges that include 277VAC for line-to-neutral connections in industrial 480V three-phase systems, or rated up to 480VAC for line-to-line three-phase configurations.

As with general IoT applications, Industrial IoT demands low standby power losses, comprehensive protection features, and minimal EMI emissions—all of which come standard with RECOM industrial power supplies. Many products also have safety certifications suitable for commercial applications, particularly EN 60335-1 as well as EN 62368-1 and EN 61010.

IoT will be ubiquitous, requiring many small AC/DC supplies to power the sensor networks. The RAC series are cost effective, compact, efficient low power supplies ideally suited to IoT installations. They have low standby power requirements, yet can deliver up to 175% peak load. They work from all standard AC power supply voltages and are fully certified to worldwide standards, including the 60355-1 household norm (RACxx-GA).

In large US office blocks, the lighting supplies are often powered from a 277VAC supply. The RAC-SE series have an extra wide input voltage range to cover 90-305VAC supplies to enable intelligent lighting and smart office/smart building applications. In addition, the RAC03-SER has a unique round shape only 11mm thick to allow mounting inside a standard wall box behind a socket or switch plate. As befitting a power supply meant for worldwide applications, the SE series is IEC/EN/UL safety certified for industrial and household applications.

The RAC05-SK/C14 is as easy to mount as a mains filter, but is a fully fledged power supply. This unique design has an IEC mains input connector (commonly called a kettle plug) which accepts a universal 85VAC to 264VAC supply but delivers a safe, touchable, short circuit protected DC output of 3.3, 5, 12, 15 or 24VDC.

The mounting hole is a standard die punch size, so fitting the power supply is quick and easy, requiring only two fixings. The 5W output is easily sufficient to power single board computers such as the Raspberry Pi, Arduino and BBC Micro:bit, as well as IoT nodes, sensors and relay stations. Typical industrial applications include IoT mesh networks, 19” rack mount equipment, short production runs or mass production.

Industry 4.0 will revolutionize smart manufacturing, creating smart factories that communicate with each other to speed up the manufacturing chain. As the number of sensors, actuators, drives and control nodes increase, it will become crucial that the interactions remain secure and reliable.

Therefore, RECOM offers low profile & cost effective DC/DC converters for IoT applications as well as boost and buck switching regulator modules specially designed for very low power applications.

The RPMx family of power modules use the same LGA case and footprint to offer users a choice of performance levels (higher input voltages or higher output currents) as well as an upgrade path within each family. For example, the RPMB is available in 2A or 3A versions so an existing design can be upgraded without changing the PCB layout.

The RPX family of power modules use the same QFN footprint to offer users a choice of maximum output currents from 1A, 1.5A, 2.5A or 4A with an input voltage range of up to 36V. These converters have integrated FET switchers, power inductors and controllers to form a complete SMD power supply solution in a tiny 5mm x 3mm x 1.6mm package.

The RPL power module offer users a maximum output currents of 3A in a tiny LGA10 3mm x 3mm x 1.45mm package. This converter has integrated FET switchers, power inductors and controllers to form a complete SMD power supply solution for input voltages up to 18V and has an output voltage setting range from 0.8V up to 5.2V.

The R05CT05S is an isolated DC/DC converter built using IC construction techniques into a 16-pin SOIC package measuring 10.3mm x10.3 x 2.65mm. The coreless transformer offers 5kVAC reinforced isolation and a pin-selectable 5V/100mA or 3.3V/150mA regulated output. This unique construction allows an operating temperature range from -40°C up to +140°C.

The R1SX are thumb-nail sized SMD DC/DC converters that can be used to isolate 3.3V and 5V supplies to separate control functions so that any local faults, short-circuits or electrical interference do not cause system-wide outages. Despite their cost effective, small footprint and low 6mm profile, the R1SX series are fully featured DC/DC converters with 3kV isolation, -40°C to +100°C full power operation and high efficiency. They will find myriad uses in bus isolators, industrial controls and battery management systems.

The R-78S switching regulator has been specially designed for single-cell powered IoT applications. Due to their wide input voltage range, high efficiency and low stand-by losses, they extend not only the working lifetime of the cell, but also maintain a stable 3.3V output down to “the last gasp” battery voltage. Based on the simple plug-and-play concept of the standard R-78 buck regulator, the R-78S boost regulator is able to provide a stable 3.3VDC output from an input voltage down to 0.65V, allowing a single battery cell to power IoT nodes, Bluetooth-enabled sensors or long range LoRaWAN remote data transmitters.

RECOM’s R-78S evaluation board allows engineers to effortlessly test the functionality of the R-78S switching regulator, which boosts a AA battery or external supply voltage to 3.3V for low power IoT applications. The evaluation board is equipped with several jumper headers to measure input and output current and voltage - allowing typical battery lifetime calculations in both active and standby mode.

The R-REF02-78S is a ready-to-use design for 3.3V IoT applications. It generates 3.3V from a single AA battery and can directly be used in any application. The reference design contains a AA battery holder and an R-78S3.3-0.1 boost converter. Two jumper headers J1 and J2 connect to the output voltage and the CTRL pin of the R-78S converter. An enable pin puts the R-78S into sleep-mode where it draws only 7uA from the battery.