This application note describes design guidelines for NINA-B1, NINA-B2, NINA-W1, NINANINA-B4 short range modules. The guidelines can be used for designing a common PCB that allows
assembly of different generations of NINA modules.
A Glossary .............................................................................................................................................. 15
Related documents ................................................................................................................................ 16
Revision history ....................................................................................................................................... 16
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NINA module family - Application note
1 Overview
u-blox adheres to a core "nested design" philosophy that allows customers to maintain form factor,
mechanical compatibility, and software continuity. This design approach means that application
designs can be easily upgraded with future (or previous) generations of most suitable NINA modules
– without any necessary change in the PCB layout. With a common pinout and footprint, NINA
modules offer a flexible migration path for futureproof applications.
This document highlights the physical differences between NINA module generations and contains
the necessary hardware guidelines for designing generic host PCBs that integrate NINA modules.
☞ Use this application note together with the relevant system integration manual [1][5][7][9][11]
and datasheet [4][6][8][10][12] when designing your nested application design or planning for
migration to a new module platform.
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2 Migration options
Product feature adaption and cost reduction are the main objectives for migration. The inclusion or
removal of Bluetooth BR/EDR, Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) and Wi-Fi standards, as well the opportunity
to reduce costs by descaling to NINA modules with lesser functionality, drive the need to migrate
between the various modules in the NINA family.
2.1 Migration rationales
Figure 1 shows the migration options for u-connectXpress module variants.
Figure 1. Possible migration rationales for u-connectXpress variants
Figure 2 shows the migration options for Open CPU module variants.
Figure 2. Possible migration rationales for Open CPU variants
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2.2 Processor migration paths
NINA module variants comprise either Nordic nRF52 or Espressif ESP32 chipset. These two chip
alternatives offer separately exclusive migration paths – although migration between Nordic and
Espressif is possible when developing Bluetooth BR/EDR or WiFi solutions.
NINA modules come with either u-blox u-connectXpress software or Open CPU structures that allow
custom applications to leverage the full hardware capabilities of the embedded chip.
☞ To learn about the available features of each module, see u-blox short range line card [13].
Expressif migration u-connectXpress Chip Bluetooth BR/EDR Bluetooth LE WiFi GPIO
NINA-B2 ESP32 4.2 Yes No 16
NINA-W15 ESP32 4.2 Yes 2.4G b/g/n 16
NINA-W132 ESP32 4.2 Yes 2.4G b/g/n 16
Table 1: Espressif u-connectXpress
Expressif migration Chip Bluetooth BR/EDR Bluetooth LE Wi-Fi MCU RAM Flash GPIO