akorIoT Akor4Range-L1, Akor4Range-L2 and Akor4Range-L3
NB-IoT/LTE-M  Antenna Designs

Overview

“akor” is the Proto-Celtic word for “open”. The goal of the akorIoT Akor4Range-Nx was to create an open antenna design on (CC BY-NC 4.0) with the option to move to a commercial on request.

akorIoT Akor4Range-N1 and Akor4Range-N2 are further akorIoT LPWAN antennas licensed on CC BY-NC 4.0. We give you the opportunity to copy and test the antenna. We are happy to advise you on your journey from product idea, through the prototype and PCB design review to successful radio certification.

Why did we call it “4range”? In contrast to standard chip antennas, we do not use a matching network between the radio module and the antenna. Our antennas are tuned to 50 Ohm impedance through the structure and as a result do not require a matching circuit. The requirement for a matching network always means losses of 0.5 to 1 dB. This 0.5 to 1 dB advantage gives our antennas more system gain from the start. We write system gain and not antenna gain. Our antenna gain is in addition to the system gain, often also 0.5 to 1 dB greater than that of classic chip antennas. The more space you give an antenna, the better the performance of the antenna will be. Short and long helix antennas are the best example. Short stubby antennas quickly have 1 dB less antenna gain. 1 dB lost in the matching network plus an additional 1 dB in the antenna gain is 2 dB. The next dB is gained or lost depending on placement of the antenna. With correct placement, in total this quickly adds up to 3 dB more system gain, which as a result increases the range of our Akor4Range antennas and reduces the energy consumption of your device, providing the longer battery life that is so important in remote IoT devices.

You can read about some customised antennas here. The Gillette order button device by Nexolink  is a good example of an IoT development. Nexolink first acquired the IoT/M2M Cookbook and quickly gained a good basic knowledge by reading it. After that Nexolink developed a PCB and did a Proof of Concept (PoC). The Quectel radio module and the 8 -bit-MCU were tested and then transferred to a new round shaped board. Nexolink itself programmed the MCU inside the Quectel radio module, the server for order management and the app on the smart phone. The akorIoT Group designed the round shaped PCB for mass production and developed the code in assembler on the tiny 8-bit MCU.