T
OOLS
& S
OFTWARE
system define relationships between events
and actions that allow the interaction among
different devices and applications to be easily
programmed. Ease of use is a key focus of the
WunderBar design. The seven chocolate-like
chunks can be separated into a WiFi enabled
master module and six detachable smart sen-
sor mini-modules.
Eachmodule has BLE (Bluetooth LowEnergy),
a sensor or actuator and an on-board battery.
These mini-modules provide light, colour, dis-
tance, temperature and humidity sensing, plus
an accelerometer, a gyroscope and infra-red
(IR) remote control capability. This range of
sensors allows the modules to cover a diverse
range of applications. The inclusion of a Grove
connector from Seeed Studio on the fifth
module broadens the scope further, enabling
a wide range of additional sensors and actua-
tors that are Arduino compatible to be inter-
faced with the platform. The 41mm x 28mm
x 8.6mm thick master module uses a Frees-
cale Kinetis Series MK24FN1M0VDC12 as
its main MCU with an ARM Cortex-M4 core.
The clock speed is 120 MHz and it is equipped
with 1024KB of flash memory and 250KB of
SRAM. Other main module features include
a 3.3V regulator with Li-Ion/LiPo charger, full
speed USB with OTG controller and a 32 kHz
Xtal oscillator for real-time clocking.
As well as providing a huge range of ben-
efits, connecting a network of everyday
physical objects through the internet also
presents a potential security risk. The IoT is
designed to encompass many things and it
is logical to expect that when the number of
devices interconnected through the internet
is extrapolated, the scale of the threat will
increase. Through the IoT, devices will be
able to exchange information and make deci-
sions automatically based on what data they
receive. Without proper security, they could
potentially be susceptible to tampering from
unwelcome sources. This threat could also
be heightened for portable IoT-connected
devices, as they are likely to be in less data-se-
cure environments.
There are some application areas where the
consequences of this threat are more serious,
such as in cars, in medical devices or in retail
inventory monitoring and control. Compa-
nies that are involved in the riskier areas of the
IoT must ensure that their devices and tech-
nologies are fully secure. Despite these inev-
itable issues, the potential benefits of the IoT
greatly outweigh the possible pitfalls. Compa-
nies are already developing ways and means
to combat security threats as they evolve, and
becoming more sophisticated in how to pro-
tect users against future threats.
While starter kits may be used to create com-
plete solutions for students and makers, they
can also be used to create concepts for com-
mercial users who ultimately want to integrate
permanent IoT capability into their products.
TheWunderBar provides a complete hardware
reference design to enable full connectivity to
many open source applications. Implemen-
tation could mean locating the components
they need to achieve IoT connectivity and
making space for them on the existing PCBs
within current product application, whether
they are wearable medical devices, cars or
domestic appliances.
The WunderBar detachable battery-powered BLE sensor modules can be protected with plastic
casings which resemble chocolate-like ‘chunks’.
