The wonderful world of wireless: Q&A with Josh Mickolio

As part of his role as Supplier Business Development Manager – Wireless and IoT at DigiKey, Josh Mickolio* is responsible for identifying growth areas in the wireless and IoT space, which requires early engagement with new technologies and suppliers as well as a deep understanding of customers’ needs. Josh recently spoke to Critical Comms about all things wireless, including emerging technologies and applications as well as design tips.

What are some emerging wireless technologies that are really making their mark in 2023?

This year is one of the most active I’ve been a part of, both globally and regionally. [Open-source connectivity standard] Matter had a big launch at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this year after the release of the specification late last year. As new versions of the spec are released, it will be exciting to see where developers can take the technology. DECT NR+ is a very interesting play in non-cellular 5G; it has the potential to support the high network density that IoT needs. In the mobile space, LTE Cat 1bis is giving us a single antenna for medium-throughput applications, which can result in big cost and space savings for many applications. 5G RedCap (reduced capability) is bringing us an efficient future replacement for applications that required the speed of LTE Cat-4.

Are there any wireless technologies that are currently on the way out as newer, more cutting-edge technologies take their place?

A common concern I’m hearing more of now as 5G matures is the sunsetting of 4G networks, and it shouldn’t really be a concern for engineers. The pathway is there to operate into the next decade if not further. With Matter’s strength in the smart home space growing, that may cause issues for some of the more niche technologies or it may be a boost as those technologies bridge to the Matter ecosystem and the expected growth in user engagement. Wireless technologies tend to evolve versus fade away, so I’d expect to see that here as well.

Are there any particularly popular, or surprising, applications for which your customers require RF/wireless products?

20 years in this space, you would think it would be hard to be surprised, but as I’ve mentioned, wireless technologies evolve, while other ‘new’ technologies develop to serve new markets and demands. The combination of these things enables some incredible use cases. One innovative area is short-range radar and applications that require sensing very tiny movements like measuring heart rate, head tilt and more. Short-range radar’s potential in health and safety is huge, and potentially life-saving.

What are some of the fundamentals that people should know when designing their own wireless network?

The fundamentals of wireless design are like any other design: component selection, board layout, testing and certification. Wireless makes it challenging at every one of these decision points. Selecting the right components is always important; in a wireless design every component can cause a failure in certification due to EMI and other issues. The layout and board design will directly impact the RF performance, higher frequencies can cause odd component behaviour, and placement and signal routing just become more challenging. Testing an RF design requires expensive equipment and software and can be overwhelming without experience. The most critical and painstaking part of any wireless design is certification. Depending on the technology used and the region the device will be used in, the certification requirements can change dramatically. Licence-free frequencies like those used by Bluetooth and Wi-Fi may only require certification on the operation of the radio. Licensed frequency bands like those used in mobile networks require testing for use on each of those networks, for example GCF and PTCRB certification, though each mobile network operator (MNO) might require devices to be certified for their network specifically.

What are some of the challenges of wireless network design that people may not be aware of?

One area that is overlooked and that impacts each of those fundamental areas is the antenna. Selecting the right antenna, choosing the right placement and properly testing the design will determine if your design will pass or fail certification. Choosing the wrong antenna or placing the antenna in a non-ideal location isn’t an automatic fail but it may be the cause of intermittent failures, battery drain, transmission range limitations and more. We’ve talked to countless customers who had a design that performed well, passed certification, and then had performance issues in the field. This was despite impressive performance in the lab, which often unfortunately does not translate well to the environment the devices are being deployed in. These unexpected issues can be nearly impossible to address or diagnose. The best radio design won’t help if it’s mounted next to a noisy transformer or can’t talk to the other devices because it is out of range, or the range is impacted with line-of-sight issues or was not mounted correctly. It is not possible to design for every scenario, though plenty of care should be taken to choose the technology and components that can perform to the demands of the application regardless of most environmental issues.

Are there any further resources you would recommend for people who would like further tips or training on all things wireless?

Most suppliers offer a wide variety of useful technical content like application notes and reference designs that provide recommendations on board layout and a good starting point for component selection, among others. For those new to RF, these resources are a great start. DigiKey has a lot of useful resources like our RF calculators, articles, videos, product training modules and the TechForum that offer great reference material for both beginner and experienced engineers. The standards organisations have a lot of material available to understand the technology as well, including the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, or SIG. The Bluetooth SIG manages the Bluetooth specification and is a good resource for understanding the underlying technology, its versions and any membership requirements. Another useful resource is the regulatory authorities; they provide the parameters you will need to conform to pass certification. Understanding the common reasons for failure during certification is helpful to begin to understand the steps you can take to avoid them.

*Josh Mickolio joined DigiKey in 2002 as a technical support specialist and has held a variety of roles with the organisation, including product specialist, product manager and senior product manager, working closely with suppliers and customers. He holds an Associate of Applied Science degree in Industrial Electronics and Networking from Northland Technical College in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, and has completed several advanced training programs in cellular technologies, wireless certifications, RF and Bluetooth technologies, among others.

Top image credit: iStock.com/fatido