Oslo, Norway – January 6, 2014 – Nordic Semiconductor ASA (OSE: NOD, Country Manager for Korea: Soo-Cheol Choi, www.nordicsemi.com ), a specialist in Ultra Low Power (ULP) RF, announced the release of the nRF51 wireless charging SDK and 8-Link Central protocol stack for wireless charging applications based on the Rezence™ standard, which is developed and led by the Alliance for Wireless Power (A4WP).

Regen is a next-generation wireless power transmission technology based on the principle of magnetic resonance. Based on the concept of spatial freedom, Regen is an international standard that enables the simultaneous charging of multiple devices on a single charging pad without physical contact, thereby expanding wireless power applications to almost any mobile device or surface.

S120 is a Bluetooth® Low Energy SoftDevice with 8-link central functionality for the nRF51822 SoC. The nRF51 wireless charging SDK includes services and profiles such as the Regens Power Transmitting Unit (PTU) and Power Receiving Unit (PRU), as well as state machine examples. Together with the nRF51 wireless charging SDK, S120 provides a solution for Out-of-Band (OOB) signal processing for Regens charging pads. Charging pads based on the nRF51822/S120 support 8-links capable of simultaneous linking, allowing up to 8 devices to be charged simultaneously. Existing S110 peripheral Bluetooth Low Energy SoftDevice can be combined with this SDK to provide the same solution for regenerative rechargeable devices.

Unlike existing technologies, Regen, which utilizes the principle of magnetic resonance, can provide various unique benefits in developing the wireless charging ecosystem. The Regen standard selected Bluetooth Smart as the OOB charging management technology for Regen applications.

Regens technology enables wireless charging on any surface to power all Regens-supported mobile devices. This applies to retail stores, airports, automobiles, and home and office equipment. Furthermore, Regens technology can be integrated with other devices, such as laptops and portable chargers, providing the world's first true mobile wireless charging power source.

The S120 SoftDevice includes all Bluetooth Low Energy protocol layers, including GATT/GAP, and supports multi-link central and observer functions, as well as GATT server and client, event-oriented asynchronous thread-safe GATT/GAP, and L2CAP APIs. Additionally, because the S120 supports up to eight simultaneous links, it is highly suitable for Bluetooth Low Energy hubs rather than smartphones or tablets. Provided as a SoftDevice for Nordic’s nRF51 series ICs, the S120 is a pre-synthesized binary structure that allows customers to conveniently download and use it, ensuring that link times are not affected by application code.

The S120 can be complemented by the nRF51 SDK. The nRF51 SDK provides various Bluetooth Low Energy services and profiles, and also supports complete examples to shorten and simplify application development time. In addition, the currently available nRF51 SDK leverages the advantages of the nRF51 series' flash-based architecture and provides developers with various features and examples, such as OTA DFU (Over-The-Air Device Firmware Upgrade).

Existing nRF51822 customers can immediately access the S120 engineering implementation and nRF51 SDK updates via download. The S120 for Bluetooth 4.1 certified product implementation is also scheduled for release in the first quarter of this year, and the nRF51 wireless charging SDK is currently supported for early adopters. More detailed information can be obtained from Nordic Semiconductor.

Geir Langeland, Sales and Marketing Director at Nordic Semiconductor, stated, “The Regens standard for wireless charging is one of the most exciting technological achievements recently made in the consumer electronics sector.” He added, “The ability to wirelessly charge personal electronics based on the concept of space freedom is a very attractive feature, and its value is expected to grow even further as everyday wearable products become more commonplace.” He further explained, “This technology is becoming a new driving force leading to the diversification of charging pad products, and ultimately, numerous consumer products will offer compatibility with the Regens standard.” He continued, “As a leading supplier of Bluetooth Smart silicon, Nordic is very pleased that Bluetooth Low Energy has been adopted as the OOB signaling technology for Regens products, and Nordic is providing the solutions necessary for developers to create new products based on this standard.”

“Nordic continues to provide customers with all the tools necessary for hardware and software solutions for end products through the SoftDevice S120, which features 8-link Bluetooth Low Energy Central capabilities for the nRF51822 and the dedicated nRF51 wireless charging SDK,” said Director Langeland. “Now, with the S120, S110, SDK, and nRF51822 SoC, developers can get started on product development more quickly to enter the rapidly emerging market based on wireless charging and Regen standards.”