Long Range Wireless Integration With Modules
Each year the world becomes more and more integrated with sensors, electronics, and computers. However, to centralize the data without a cable mess requires the use of wireless technologies. However, with the latest wireless electronics trends, manufacturers have had to work hard to keep up. Many of the latest protocols and standard include Wifi, Bluetooth, and Zigbee. Choosing the right protocol can be consuming and difficult. The best protocol is often chosen depending in the application. A module for wireless that works well for one application may not be the best choice for another application.Two of the most important aspects to consider when choosing a protocol or wireless module are range and bandwidth.
For the vast majority of wireless rs232 systems, range and bandwidth are often inversely related. For applications demanding long range, high bandwidth can be difficult to achieve for a reasonable budget. This is why the separate wireless protocols exist in order to create efficient methods of communication for a particular RF bandwidth, which will be transmitted at a particular range. For example, a WiFi module is great for transmitting high bandwidth information, but the range is limited to only a hundred meters or so. Other wireless protocols may be better suited beyond this range as this protocol is not be efficient at this range. A Bluetooth wireless transmitter is in a very similar class to WiFi.
At the opposite end of the wireless rs232 long range spectrum is the zigbee and 802.15.4 protocol. This protocol is made for applications demanding longer transmission range with lower power. The reason this protocol is able to achieve a greater range is due the modulation technique and higher power which is focused into a more narrow bandwidth. Though there may be power peak power in Zigbee, the average power as compared to WiFi is much lower. This allows Zigbee to consume much less power and is used primarily in battery operated applications.