Radinn Electric Jetboards Employs Nordic Bluetooth LE nRF52840 SoC for Wireless Control

Radinn Electric Jetboards

Radinn, has developed a range of electric jetboards linked to a handheld remote controller used to adjust acceleration. Both the jetboard and handheld remote controller integrate a u-blox BMD-340 module, powered by Nordic Semiconductor’s nRF52840 SoC, to provide Bluetooth LE wireless connectivity between the board and the handheld controller, as well as the user’s smartphone. Depending on the ride mode selected and weight of the rider, the ‘Carve’, ‘X-Sport’ and ‘Freeride’ jetboards can reach a top speed of 60 km/h, and have a battery life of up to 45 minutes.

The jetboards feature a modular design enabling the user to detach the battery pack and jetpack from one board, and attach them to another board providing the versatility to use multiple boards for different surf conditions. All the user has to do is insert the fully-charged battery into a board, set the performance level in the ‘Radinn’ smartphone app, and drop the board into the water. As well as providing low latency wireless connectivity between the remote controller and the jetpack for responsive throttle control, the nRF52840 SoC provides Bluetooth LE connectivity between both the jetpack and battery, and the iOS and Android smartphone app. 

The nRF52840 features a 2.4 GHz multiprotocol radio with 8 dBm output power and -95 dBm RX sensitivity for robust and reliable connectivity. In addition to the Nordic-powered u-blox module, the jetboards integrate a host of sensors and a GPS module, overseen by the nRF52840 SoC’s powerful 64 MHz, Arm® Cortex® M4 processor with floating point unit (FPU). Accelerometer and gyroscope sensors provide rider data on speed and performance metrics, as well as crash/impact detection. The humidity and temperature sensors supervise jet pack and battery pack condition monitoring and maintenance. The GPS module provides positioning and speed parameter data via the Radinn app.