RF on Bald Engineerhttps://www.baldengineer.com/tag/rfRecent content in RF on Bald EngineerHugoen-USWed, 05 Jun 2024 16:44:31 +0000WiFi-Enabled LED detector tells me when my Dehumidifier is Full!https://www.baldengineer.com/wifi-enabled-led-detector-tells-me-when-my-dehumidifier-is-full.htmlFri, 12 Apr 2024 23:40:13 +0000https://www.baldengineer.com/?p=8966I created a Wi-Fi-enabled LED Detector using Nordic’s nRF7002 Design Kit (DK). Using this box, I can detect when LEDs on appliances, like my lab’s dehumidifier, are on. In other words, my non-IoT tool can send me messages over the Internet now! And, because the nRF7002 has a dual-band Wi-Fi antenna, it does so on my 5 GHz network. I ran into a number of issues with this project, and I expected that. Except for the RF part of the design, which works fine! Links to the design files are available on the post on the element14 Community.

WiFi-Enabled LED detector tells me when my Dehumidifier is Full!

nRF7002 DK vs EK vs EB Hands-Onhttps://www.baldengineer.com/nrf7002-dk-vs-ek-vs-eb-hands-on.htmlThu, 01 Feb 2024 13:53:00 +0000https://www.baldengineer.com/?p=8884In August 2022, Nordic Semiconductor announced its first Wi-Fi product. The nRF7002 is a dual-band (2.4 and 5 GHz) Wi-Fi 6 compatible companion IC. It does not have a general-purpose microcontroller built-in. Instead, Nordic intends for you to combine it with another microcontroller, like one of their nRF52 or nRF53-series system on chip (SoC). Nordic and the element14 Community sent me an nRF7002 Development Kit (DK), Evaluation Kit (EK), and some nRF7002 QFNs. I reviewed the nRF70 variants in this video and looked at the various boards. As the thumbnail suggests, I connected the Wi-FI transceiver to a FPC1500 spectrum analyzer.

nRF7002 DK vs EK vs EB Hands-On

Instrument Basics: Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) with PicoVNA | Workbench Wednesdays #49https://www.baldengineer.com/instrument-basics-vector-network-analyzer-vna-with-picovna-workbench-wednesdays-49.htmlWed, 19 Jan 2022 00:15:00 +0000https://www.baldengineer.com/?p=8360Vector network analyzers (VNAs) measure how a “network” of components changes the amplitude and phase of signals. By measuring across a wide frequency range, VNAs can create S-Parameters that fully describe the behavior of a circuit. This video uses a PicoVNA 106 to show the basics of what a VNA measures, how they work, and a brief overview of how to use one. I made a mistake on the explainer graphic for S-parameters. The annoying thing is that I think it was a really good explanation!

Instrument Basics: Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) with PicoVNA | Workbench Wednesdays #49