Author
Date
Topic
Release Note
u-connectXpress software v1.0.0 for NINA-B41
UBX- 20045853 C1-Public
Erik Carlberg
24 November 2020
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contained herein is provided “as is” and u-blox assumes no lia bility for its use. No warranty, either express or implied, is given, including bu t not limited, with respect to the accuracy,
correctness, reliability a nd fitness for a particular purpose of the in formation. This document may be revis ed by u-blox at any time. For most recent documents, visit www.u-blox.com.
Copyright© u-blox AG.
Contents
1 Software 1
1.1 General Information 1
1.1.1 Scope 1
1.1.2 Related documentation 2
1.1.3 Released software image 2
1.1.4 Hardware and software compatibility 2
1.2 Released software tools 2
2 Features and improvements 2
2.1 GATT server and client 2
2.2 Peripheral and central roles 2
2.3 Serial Port Service 2
2.4 2 Mbps link speed 2
2.5 Long range mode with Coded PHY 3
2.6 Extended advertisements 3
2.7 Extended Data Mode 3
2.8 Configuration over air 3
2.9 GPIO control 3
2.10 UART interface 3
2.11 NFC 3
2.12 Security modes and levels 4
2.13 Out-of-band pairing 4
2.14 Headless pairing 4
3 Known limitations 4
1 Software
1.1 General Information
1.1.1 Scope
This release note describes the u-connectXpress software v1.0.0 for NINA-B41.
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1.1.2 Related documentation
Document UBX number Disclosure Updates
AT commands manual UBX-14044127 C1-Public Updated with NINA-B41
NINA-B41 product summary UBX-20045962 C1-Public New document
NINA-B41 data sheet UBX-20035327 C1-Public New document
u-connectXpress software user guide UBX-16024251 C1-Public Updated with NINA-B41
NINA-B4 regulatory application note UBX-20037320 C1-Public New document
1.1.3 Released software image
The software image is available on the NINA-B41 series page at u-blox.com
. The table below
lists the binary and configuration files included in the package.
File Description
NINA-B41X-SW-1.0.0-001.bin u-connectXpress software binary
NINA-S140-SD-7.2.0.bin Nordic Softdevice
1.1.4 Hardware and software compatibility
1.2 Released software tools
s-center version 5.2.0 has been released and is published on u-blox.com.
2 Features and improvements
This section describes the main features of the NINA-B41 u-connectXpress software v1.0.0.
2.1 GATT server and client
NINA-B41 supports the Generic Attribute Profile (GATT) in the Bluetooth Low Energy
specification. It can act as both GATT server and GATT client simultaneously.
2.2 Peripheral and central roles
NINA-B41 can have both peripheral and central roles. It can be peripheral and central
simultaneously.
2.3 Serial Port Service
Serial Port Service (SPS) is implemented in accordance with the u-blox Low Energy SPS
protocol. The service is implemented on top of GATT and provides a serial data connection over
Bluetooth Low Energy that is similar to the Serial Port Profile (SPP) in Bluetooth BR/EDR. u-blox
provide code examples for the implementation of the SPS protocol in Android and iOS devices.
2.4 2 Mbps link speed
Support for the physical layer for up to 2 Mbps link speed introduced in the Bluetooth 5.0
specification is included.
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2.5 Long range mode with Coded PHY
NINA-B41 supports the Coded PHY mode allowing for longer communication range introducing
error coding and limiting data rate to 125 kbps.
2.6 Extended advertisements
Support for extended advertisement messages according to the Bluetooth 5 specification is
implemented. This includes longer broadcast/advertising messages and the availability of more
advertising channels for offloading the three legacy advertisement channels.
2.7 Extended Data Mode
When setting the module to data mode, multiple connections can be configured. Extended Data
Mode (EDM) allows individual control of each individual connection. EDM makes it possible to
transmit data to one specific remote device and to know from what remote device the data is
received.
2.8 Configuration over air
With configuration over air enabled, the module accepts the AT commands sent from a remote
device connected via Bluetooth low energy.
2.9 GPIO control
GPIO pins available on the NINA-B41 module can be configured, written to, and read from the
host using AT commands over the UART interface. With configuration over air functionality,
NINA-B41 GPIO pins can also be controlled from a remote device using Bluetooth low energy.
2.10 UART interface
NINA-B41 modules support two UART interfaces: The primary interface facilitates
communication with the host system, while the secondary interface makes it possible to
separate AT command communication from data streams and connect to other u-blox cellular
or positioning modules.
Both interfaces support baud rates up to 1 Mbps.
2.11 NFC
NFC tag capabilities, enabling features like simplified pairing or initiation of activities in the
device, are supported.
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characteristic of size > 242 is lost.
2.12 Security modes and levels
Bluetooth low energy security mode 1 and the corresponding four security levels are supported:
1. No security (No authentication and no encryption)
2. Unauthenticated pairing with encryption
3. Authenticated pairing with encryption
4. Authenticated Bluetooth LE Secure Connections pairing with encryption using a 128-bit
strength encryption key supports the enhanced security mode “LE Secure Connections” for
protection against man-in-the-middle attacks and increased encryption using the
FIPS-compliant key generation algorithm called Elliptic Curve Diffie Hellman (ECDH).
2.13 Out-of-band pairing
With the Bluetooth security mode out-of-band pairing, two Bluetooth devices can be paired to
each other by sharing the pairing information through media other than Bluetooth – like NFC
for example.
2.14 Headless pairing
Allows PIN-pairing from Android/iPhone when the module is integrated in an application product
with no user interface.
3 Known limitations
Description Reference
Possible SPS data loss when L2CAP fragments small (3 bytes) UCS_DEV-909
Long MTU GATT Characteristic read in GATT client results in lost data, GATT
If a peripheral is set to connectable but non-discoverable, it makes advertisements
without the GENERAL or LIMITED flag set.
When having GATT client being peripheral, then encryption is not enforced, and it is
possible for the GATT client to trust data from other devices.
Workaround is not to use GATT client together with peripheral.
UCS_DEV-1178
UCS_DEV-1426
UCS_DEV-1532
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