Highly integrated front-end module enhances AMI apps

RF Micro Devices (RFMD) Inc. has rolled out its highly integrated RF6555 ZigBee front-end module (FEM). The device is optimized for smart energy/advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) applications believed to provide utilities and consumers more control over how they monitor and save energy. ZigBee is said to be a global low power wireless networking standard for monitoring and control across a variety of applications, including energy management, safety and security, home automation, lighting and electrical appliances.

It is said that the highly integrated RF6555 combines the power amplifier (PA), harmonic transmit filtering, and low noise amplifier (LNA) with bypass mode in a single 5mm x 5mm x 1mm package, enabling customers to shrink product footprint, accelerate product time-to-market, lower bill of material (BOM) costs, and reduce power consumption for Smart Energy and Home Area Network (HAN) applications.

RFMD claims that the RF6555 is suited for battery operated smart grid and smart energy applications, such as smart meters, demand response, and HAN devices. The RF6555 is also said to be suited for industrial and other wireless sensing and control applications requiring low power consumption, high performance, and proven reliability.

RFMD said that RF6555 operates with Ember's EM300 Series chips—the EM351 and the EM357, in both SoC and network co-processor modes, as well as with Ember's EM250 SoC and EM260 network co-processor.

Bob Van Buskirk, president of RFMD's multimarket products group (MPG), said, "RFMD is pleased to collaborate with Ember to deliver highly integrated, high performance ZigBee solutions that reduce our customers' design cycle times, lower product BOM costs, and accelerate product time to market. Industry analysts forecast global smart energy deployments will continue to grow rapidly, with particular demand anticipated in low-power wireless networking technologies like ZigBee."