Taiwanese companies Ubiik and Realtek Semiconductor have joined forces to produce an NB-IoT module targeting the utility and IoT markets.

The Nimbus 220 NB-IoT module is based on the Realtek RTL9518 chipset, and optimised for operation in the upper 700MHz A Block band.

Ubiik is a vendor of AMI and end-to-end private LTE products. Realtek is the world’s eighth largest fabless semiconductor company and the second largest wifi chip vendor by revenue.

This development is targeting the utility and IoT markets in the USA, as it will allow licence holders of Band 103 to use this prime 1MHz paired spectrum by leveraging features such as non-anchor carriers and non-IP data delivery (NIDD).

After Select Spectrum and Access Spectrum announced that the upper 700MHz A Block is officially designated in 3GPP Release 16 as NB-IoT Band 103 for 4G and 5G services, Ubiik and Realtek are partnering on the development of this NB-IoT module allowing Ubiik’s GoRAN cellular base station to address current gaps in the North American market for band 103 at 787-788MHz uplink and 757-758MHz downlink.

With NB-IoT using as little as 180kHz of spectrum, and being able to scale up by using multiple carriers simultaneously, companies who are using this band now have the possibility to add standard-compliant NB-IoT to deliver affordable, long-range connectivity to low-power or low-throughput devices.

“We are excited to collaborate with Realtek in bringing forth Nimbus 220 that supports Band 103,” said Tienhaw Peng, CEO of Ubiik. “This advanced module, when paired with our Ubiik GoRAN base station, offers cost-efficient 3GPP for implementing smart grid, AMI and other IoT applications within the upper 700MHz spectrum. At Ubiik, we are dedicated to supporting the 3GPP ecosystem and helping our clients fully leverage the capabilities of their IoT investments.”

With this partnership, Ubiik aims to expand its reach in the North American market and provide reliable private LTE connectivity. The module, whose embedded processing unit can support Ansi meters and other applications and protocols, and GoRAN base stations were on show this week at Distributech in San Diego.

Founded in 2016, Ubiik started its IoT business by providing Weightless LPWAN. Since its successful AMI project in 2018, which has expanded its product portfolio to a PaaS platform, Ubiik has become a vertical IoT provider. It has since grown its connectivity offerings to include LTE technologies to cover the multi-modality of the IoT market, especially for applications with strong security requirements that can be met with 3GPP standards.