Introducing the new Digi IX20: a cloud managed LTE cellular router. This high-performance router is built with industrial infrastructure and advanced security features; the Digi IX20 is ideal for critical applications, and its versatility makes it suitable for digital signage, retail kiosks, and other assets where it is vital for transactions to be secure.
The router delivers primary and backup WWAN connectivity over software selectable multi-carrier LTE, and supports security software such as stateful firewall, MAC filtering and VPN, and management software such as SNMP, event logging, analyzer trace and QOS. This enables the router to be used in PCI or NERC-CIP compliant applications.
Key Features:
Compact and economical cellular routing platform
Redundant connectivity with dual SIMs and Digi SureLink
Dual Ethernet ports and single serial port
Global bands and single part number to simplify global distribution, deployment and management
Secure: Digi TrustFence® for device security, device identity and data privacy
Digi Remote Manager for easy set up and remote management
Digi Remote Manager
The Digi IX20 is compatible with Digi Remote Manager® – a cloud device management platform that allows devices to be set up, deployed, and maintained remotely and securely.
In the last decade, the IoT evolution has seen an ever-increasing number of embedded systems – large and small being connecting to the internet – ranging from wearables, smart home devices, automotive, transportation, security, medical, industrial to smart city control systems.
Billions of devices are connected to the internet and a majority are being designed to be remotely managed or field-upgradable from the cloud. This presents a huge landscape for cyber-attacks; from malicious firmware uploads to corrupt the functionality of the device, IP theft within the device or to hijack the device to gain access to the wider network it happens to be connected to.
To counter such threats in your design, the embedded designer now has to consider all aspects in the design that are prone to these types of attack. Typically, a full understanding from the cloud layer down to the gateway, the protocols, types of embedded hardware and memory used is required. For those who are not security experts, this could be a daunting task.
Thankfully, technology companies have not stood still on this subject and have developed robust solutions to help embedded designers on this subject by offering embedded technologies with security built in.
Digi International provides a suite of products which all incorporate their Trustfence® security framework designed to run on the Digi range of embedded products. From the XBee3® wireless control modules, to high performance ConnectCore® CC6UL and CC8x NXP iMX based processor SoMs, Digi industrial cellular gateways.
In conjunction with Trustfence®, there is Digi Remote Manager® (DRM®): a cloud management layer that can be integrated to a variety of cloud platforms e.g. AWS, Azure, Google. By using DRM®, the end products can be deployed, remotely managed and upgraded with a high level of confidence that the network of edge devices remain secure. Preconfigured APIs are available for customers to tailor their DRM® solution for deployment, remote access and management of the assets. A mobile app is also available for DRM®.
For more information, please use the form below to get in touch.
Introducing two new families from Digi’s cellular portfolio to address next-generation IoT connectivity and 5G needs: the TX545 and the TX64.
The TX range are designed for critical infrastructure and intelligent traffic system applications, using the new, security-enhanced Digi Accelerated Linux (DAL) operating system, making smart cities a reality. The routers feature 5Ge / Gigabit LTE (Cat 18) radios, Band 71 and CBRS connectivity, 5G readiness, and are FirstNet Ready™.
The Digi TX54 is a rugged and secure cellular router for mission critical Industrial and Transportation applications, including FirstNet Ready™ models for public safety networks. The TX54 delivers high performance ideal for mission-critical applications that require continuous connectivity, field longevity and edge computing (Python development environment). It offers FirstNet Ready™ models with single or dual cellular options, and local private subnets are bridged across public networks to safeguard privacy.
Digi TX54 Features:
FirstNet Ready™ and global models both available in single and dual cellular options
Future-built with dual-core 880 MHz MIPS processor and PCIe 2.0 internal bus
Capable of segmenting private and public data communication across dual 600 Mbps Cat 11 cellular modules
High-speed 867 Mbps 802.11ac Wi-Fi for WAN or LAN service and optional dual Wi-Fi radios
Cryptographic co-processor with secure key generation
Securely deploy, monitor and control devices with Digi Remote Manager®
The Digi TX64 is a 5G-ready, high performance cellular router with dual redundant communications (LTE-Advanced and LTE-Advanced Pro router) for complex transit and transportation systems with true enterprise class routing, security, firewall and integrated VPN. The TX64 is ideal for challenging transportation and mobile environments: internet access for passengers is managed securely and separately to the priority on board bus systems.
Digi TX64 Features:
5G-ready platform: future-built with powerful quadcore processor
Segmented private and public data communication across dual 1.2 Gbps Cat 18 (or Cat 11) cellular modules
Wired Gigabit Ethernet (4-port) for onboard systems
Video and vehicle data offload over 1.7 Gbps 802.11ac Wi-Fi backhaul
Passenger Wi-Fi over 867 Mbps 802.11ac access point
Securely deploy, monitor and control devices with Digi Remote Manager®
Please use the form below to order now or to find out more about the new Digi TX range.
During the current outbreak of COVID-19 and recent announcements from the government, many companies have had to adopt to the ‘working from home’ practice to ensure the health and safety of their employees whilst assuring business continuity.
Technology is remarkable is these days, allowing companies to easily adapt so easily and have the option to continue ‘business as usual’ from employees’ homes. However, it can inevitably come with security risks to your corporate and customer data, if not set up correctly. For example, home WiFi can present risks to your security compliance protocols and proprietary data.
Fortunately, there are ways to mitigate the security risks of data leakage and provide enterprise-level security at an affordable cost for businesses. One of the many options that we have are Digi’s cellular extenders. The cellular extenders that Digi offers are able to deliver connectivity in a compact, all-in-one solution that integrates with your existing corporate infrastructure and supports secure VPN tunnelling for maximum data security.
Digi also offers a cloud-based, secure central management platform: Digi Remote Manager. You can easily and safely monitor and configure your devices remotely; keeping track and protecting your vital connections, whilst ensuring compliance with security frameworks in Digi Remote Manager.
Digi has expanded on their successful System-on-Module (SoM) portfolio by introducing the ConnectCore® 8M Nano based on the NXP® i.MX 8M Nano application processor. This integrated SoM platform is designed for longevity and scalability in industrial applications featuring up to 4x power-efficient Arm® Cortex®-A53 cores and 1x Cortex-M7 core for minimal power consumption whilst maintaining high performance. The 8M Nano also features pre-certified wireless connectivity, remote management, cloud integration and a complete Linux software platform based on Yocto Project®. Along with the rest of the ConnectCore portfolio, Digi ensures a peace of mind for critical security with built-in Digi TrustFence®.
The ConnectCore® 8M Nano is suitable for a wide range of industrial, medical, agricultural and transportation applications, including Internet of Things (IoT), human-machine interface (HMI), equipment monitoring, audio/voice, edge computing and machine learning (e.g. anomaly detection).
The use of wireless technologies has proliferated into numerous applications from toys, home automation, smart street lighting, industrial automation and mobile communications. In the era of the Internet of Things (IoT), the demand for smart sensors and end equipment to provide further data for intelligence is on the increase. From monitoring how much energy you are using to monitoring industrial machines, the information gathered can provide a better understanding on the way assets can be better deployed, improving efficiencies, which in the long run will lower running costs. Also, should critical operating parameter fall outside the normal operating conditions, preventative maintenance can lead to a reduced down time.
When designing a new application (depending on the design parameters, e.g. data rate, range, battery life, etc.), there are a number of wireless technologies designed to fulfil those requirements such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, IEEE802.15.4, LTE CAT-1, NB-IoT and subGHz ISM bands.
Often, most wireless module manufacturers provide solutions as discrete components or in the form of pre-certified modules. However, usually the form factor of the devices for each different protocol is different and not usually pin compatible, so before committing to a new PCB design, the type of wireless technology needs to be chosen very carefully depending on the range, data rate, topology of the wireless network e.g. Point-to-Point (P2P), Star or Mesh.
The next step for Design Engineers is to look at the capability for cloud connectivity. If capable, does the link need to be secure and how do you implement this? For a Design Engineer, this is a lot to think about. How do you get the device data from the end nodes up into the cloud? This article describes what Digi International offers around its XBee3® technology to help customers connect to the cloud.
About the XBee3®
To help customers get a head start with their new XBee3® technology, Digi has designed the XBee3® with multiple protocols in Zigbee, 802.15.4 and their own proprietary meshing protocol, called Digimesh, which is much leaner than the Zigbee standard and well-suited to a battery-powered network. There are also variants for NB-IoT, LTE CAT-1. The advantage of this is that there’s a common form factor on either SMT or THT devices, so the same PCB footprint can be used for all the different Digi protocols.
Development
Tools
To enable designers to configure, evaluate and optimise an XBee3 communications network, Digi provides robust tools such as the XCTU (XBee Configuration Tool Utility).
Using the XBee3® development kits, designers can readily attach the XCTU to their XBee3® devices by the USB cable initially to configure, and then remotely, to start sending messages between devices and to perform range testing. A message framework function also enables designers to understand how the message frames are setup.
New for the XBee3®, software development can be achieved with Micropython. 32KB flash and 32KB ram are available to enable the code to be programmed onto the XBee3 and run standalone. This is ideal if an additional micro is not required and can help keep the cost down and if the design is battery powered, battery life could be improved. To enable Micropython development, Digi provide the PyCharm toolset which includes XBee3® examples using the I2C, digit I/O, to help designers getting started.
Connections to the Digi Remote Manager® (DRM)
For companies who do not have a cloud solution in place, trying to find different companies for software and hardware could be a challenge. To overcome this, Digi International have put together an eco-system for all of their embedded products to enable customers a seamless design flow to get their design working and information up into the cloud. Digi Remote Manager® (DRM) enables customers to manage and control their embedded devices from a central, secure platform anywhere in the world. The status and location of edge-devices can be monitored and if required, firmware over the air updates can be achieved.
DRM can then be integrated to cloud solutions such as Microsoft Azure, AWS or other customers choice of cloud systems.
To enable the Digi XBee3® to connect to DRM, Digi also offer XBee® gateways which can communicate to your local XBee® network as a concentrator and via Wi-Fi, ethernet or cellular connectivity (with fallback capability should one of these channels fail) to connect to the DRM. A programming API is available for DRM to enable companies to integrate this into their cloud application code.
Security – Digi Trustfence®
Of course, anything which is potentially connected to the worldwide web will be a target for cyber criminals. Therefore, integrating security is of utmost importance in any design today. The Digi security platform called Trustfence® is built into every Digi product. It takes a layered approach and can grow and adapt according to your system. Trustfence® takes leading industry standards and relevant security certifications, i.e. HIPAA, FIPS140-2, and NIST. Compassing the Digi XBee3® end node device, up to through the gateway and into DRM, so even if you are not a cyber security expert, you can be sure Trustfence® can protect your design and deployment with confidence.
Digi International offers hardware and software solutions that are designed to help simplify a customer’s experience. The Digi XBee Tools are an expansion in the XBee Ecosystem, proving that Digi are much more than just a module provider. By understanding customers’ needs, the release of these tools means that Digi are providing solutions to improve the customer experience, by making integration with Digi products effortless.
The XBee Tools are products that streamline development, building, deployment and management of a wireless application. These tools will add value to any IoT projects by reducing the time it takes to develop, build, deploy and manage a Digi XBee network.
New development tools in this Ecosystem reduces the time it takes to develop a proof-of-concept, such as the XBIB-C Development Board and the Digi XBee Micro Python PyCharm Plugin. Whereas the Digi Multi Programmer allows simultaneous programming of multiple Digi Bees, thus, increasing manufacturing throughout.
As well as development and manufacturing tools, Digi has tools that help deploy and manage IoT applications, such as the Digi XBee3 USB adapter and the Digi Network Assistant, which works in tandem to streamline deployment.
Finally, the Digi Remote Manager is the one-stop solution for remote management, with a range of functionality to allow you to effectively, and effortlessly, manage a network.
For more information, please email marketing@sssltd.com or use the contact form below.
Digi International, Inc. was founded in 1985, originally offering intelligent multiport serial boards for PCs. Today, Digi® are Machine to Machine (M2M), IoT experts expanding the product lines with RF modules, gateways, and cellular routers to build critical communications infrastructures, plus embedded wireless system on module (SoM) and single-board computer (SBC) offerings for makers of next generation connected products.
Digi® develops reliable products and technologies designed to connect and securely manage local or remote electronic devices over the network or via the Web. Digi® offers a wide range of products for Embedded Systems, Networking, IoT Platforms and IoT Services.
Please contact our Digi experts; Scott Brenton for any Networking Product enquiries and Paul Forsyth for any Embedded Product enquiries.
