u‑blox has completed AT&T’s chipset verification process for the UBX‑R5 multi‑band Low Power Wide Area (LPWA) chipset platform to operate on the carrier’s LTE‑M network for the Internet of Things. The chipset features end‑to‑end device security, data security, and access control management.
The u‑blox UBX‑R5 is a cellular chipset platform supporting LPWA LTE‑M and NB‑IoT technologies, optimized for long life cycle IoT applications such as smart metering, telematics, tracking, security systems, building automation, as well as smart lighting solutions and connected health. It implements key features of 3GPP Release 14, answering the need for longevity in IoT solutions.
UBX‑R5 also offers built‑in end‑to‑end security using a hardware‑based root of trust (RoT) integrated in a discrete secure element compliant with EAL5+ High common criteria certification, which makes it ideal to protect sensitive assets and communications. This helps to enable strong protection against attacks on mission-critical IoT assets or devices that transmit sensitive information.
Due to the high degree of software configurability within the third generation in-house VSP-based modem processor, the UBX-R5 chipset is 5G-ready and offers platform stability and longevity to customer devices.
UBX-R5 is based on a service-on-chip architecture, which offers low-level insights and data points from deep within the hardware, such as event-based energy consumption monitoring and smart antenna tuning, among others.
The chipset can be combined with any u-blox GNSS product. The UBX-R5 chipset includes integrated RF, baseband, power management and RAM and supports several power-saving functionalities, such as PSM and eDRX. Further, it supports enhanced LTE coverage via CE Mode A and B for LTE-M, and ECL1 and ECL2 for NB-IoT, achieving deeper penetration in- side buildings and underground. The platform also offers integrated eSIM capability, offering customers SIM activation and subscription management options.
“Completing AT&T’s ADAPT certification is a major milestone on the way to commercial readiness of the SARA‑R5 module series, our flagship LPWA modules with secure cloud. We are thrilled that we are now one step closer to bringing SARA‑R5 based IoT solutions to the North American market,” said Andreas Thiel, head of product centers and co‑founder of u‑blox.
“The u‑blox UBX‑R5 chipset will help meet the demand for IoT‑optimized chipsets with innovation in enhanced security and high levels of integration,” said Cameron Coursey, vice president, Advanced Solutions, AT&T. “Having the chipset on our LTE‑M network will contribute to a vibrant ecosystem that is critical to realizing the full potential of massive IoT.”
