IoT chipset gets GCF approval

Launched in January this year, the program is designed to certify IoT chipsets covering NB-IoT and LTE-M to allow the IoT ecosystem to integrate and embed certified chipsets into modules and devices.

“We’re extremely pleased to have u-blox achieve the first certification so soon,” said GCF CEO Lars Nielsen. “We anticipate that many more IoT chipsets will come through the programme this year, offering confidence and reliability for the IoT industry with industry-recognised compliance to 3GPP standards.”

The chipset is aimed at low power wide area (LPWA) 5G networks. It has end-to-end device security, data security, and access control management, and is intended for use in non-trivial long-life applications such as smart metering, telematics, tracking, security systems, building automation, smart lighting solutions and connected health.

On-board is a hardware‑based root-of-trust (RoT) integrated in a discrete secure element compliant with EAL5+ High common criteria certification.

“With mobile network operators announcing their plans to roll out 5G networks, 5G readiness is becoming a key factor in selecting cellular communication modules,” according to u-blox. “LTE‑M and NB‑IoT are forward‑compatible with 5G networks, and, by implementing key LTE‑M and NB‑IoT features from 3GPP Release 14, UBX-R5 offers customers a smooth transition towards 5G via software upgrades to already deployed devices.”