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There was a time when power engineers and RF engineers occupied different ends of the hallway.

The RF team debated noise figure and linearity as if civilization depended on it. The power team worried about volts, amps and whether something might overheat. They shared a PCB but not always a worldview. If a spur appeared in the spectrum, it was clearly an RF problem. If something got hot, that was clearly a power problem.

Life was simpler then.

Today, those hallway boundaries are dissolving. Modern converters switch fast enough that layout parasitics resemble transmission lines. Gate loops behave like resonant structures. Package inductance stops being an afterthought and starts showing up in the lab as an unexpected oscillation.

And when power management is treated casually, the PCB occasionally rewards you with a full laser-light-and-pyrotechnics show.

The oscilloscope glows with overshoot. The spectrum analyzer fills with harmonics you never budgeted for. That tidy switching node becomes a broadband radiator with impressive range and zero respect for your carefully tuned RF front end. A near-field probe appears, wielded like a fire extinguisher.

The board may not literally ignite, but it can behave as if it is auditioning for a stadium tour.

Fast edges create ringing. Poor loop control creates EMI. A little optimism in the layout can turn a clean design review into spectral damage control. Once the show begins, it is very difficult to argue that power management belongs to someone else’s discipline.

Eventually the smoke clears — metaphorically, one hopes — and the lesson becomes obvious: high frequency is no longer exclusive to the RF team.

At the same time, RF systems have grown far less tolerant of sloppy electrons. AI accelerators, phased array radars, 5G radios and satellite payloads all share a dependency on tightly controlled, dynamically managed power. We celebrate the antenna aperture, beamforming algorithms and heroic PA linearity. But none of those subsystems behave well if the supply rail resembles a suggestion rather than a specification.

Ripple becomes phase noise.
Transients become spectral regrowth.
Impedance becomes destiny.

Consider a modern phased array. Hundreds or thousands of elements must maintain phase coherence while digital control, converters and RF front ends draw from shared power domains. A transient event in one corner of the board can surface elsewhere as jitter, drift or degraded dynamic range. In high order modulation schemes, that becomes degraded EVM. In radar systems, it can mean reduced detection sensitivity.

Efficiency, in this environment, is not merely a thermal metric. It becomes an RF specification.

As systems scale, so does power density. Data centers supporting AI workloads offer a convenient illustration. We speak of “the cloud” as if it floats. In reality, it is racks of silicon pulling tightly regulated current at astonishing speed. Switching frequencies rise to shrink passives and sharpen transient response. Those faster edges introduce coupling paths and parasitics that refuse to be ignored.

The physics is indifferent. Inductance does not care whether it resides in a matching network or a buck converter. A poorly controlled current loop will radiate whether it carries a carrier wave or a switching waveform. Maxwell’s equations remain gloriously impartial.

This is where the quiet revolution in power management becomes compelling. The focus is shifting from delivering power to managing it intelligently. Adaptive control loops respond in real time. Power domains are segmented to isolate sensitive circuits. Integration reduces loop area and parasitic uncertainty. Packaging and layout are treated as electromagnetic structures, not mechanical necessities.

In other words, power design increasingly looks like RF design — just with larger currents and fewer Smith charts.

For microwave engineers, this convergence is both challenge and opportunity. The electromagnetic environment inside modern systems is crowded. High di/dt edges, dense routing and compact integration leave little margin for wishful thinking. Power integrity analysis belongs in the same conversation as S-parameters and stability circles.

The opportunity is equally clear. RF engineers already think in terms of impedance, resonance and coupling. Applying that intuition to power distribution networks and switching loops can elevate overall system performance. When the supply rail is treated as part of the signal chain rather than background infrastructure, the architecture becomes more predictable and more robust.

Power management is no longer the quiet corner of the board that “just has to work.” In high performance infrastructure, aerospace and defense systems, it is a lever for differentiation. A well-managed power architecture enables higher linearity, lower noise floors and tighter timing margins. It allows RF subsystems to operate closer to their limits without being sabotaged by their own energy source.

We often talk about pushing the boundaries of frequency. Just as important is pushing the boundaries of how precisely we manage the energy that makes those frequencies possible.

The best light show, after all, is the one that never makes it past the layout review.

This article first appeared in Brent’s Musings in Microwave Journal.

Time pressure is real. And increasing. Competing demands from work, family, and social commitments place enormous strain on individuals already stretched thin. The average person juggles multiple tasks and responsibilities every day, trying to make the most of limited time by prioritizing certain tasks, delaying a few, and dropping some entirely.

The digitized world has further influenced habits. Bombarded by instant everything from one-click shopping to instantaneous payments and same-day deliveries, patience has diminished, rewiring expectations. The blurring of work-life boundaries by remote work, constant digital distractions, and the desire to be constantly available has exacerbated the perception of reduced time availability. Research on “time poverty” conducted by Ashley Whillans, a Harvard Business School professor, reinforces this, finding that a staggering 80% of Americans feel rushed or do not have enough time.[1]

Time is money. Digital friction steals customer time.

Picture an employee working from home on a critical deadline. Suddenly, the internet connection drops. Every second of buffering, every audio drop-out, and every frozen screen adds to the stress. Every delay chips away at the customer’s trust and confidence in the internet services they pay for.

For online businesses, the real loss occurs when repeated disruptions frustrate customers enough to abandon tasks, question the business’s reliability, or even switch to a competitor. The high value placed on seamless, instant experiences makes even the slightest disruption unacceptable.

The high cost of digital friction highlights the need for businesses to reduce it and protect the customer experience. A frictionless digital experience is a cornerstone of positive customer perception and a meaningful contributor to their quality of life.

The cost of lag for businesses

The impact of lag is both immediate and cumulative. When a digital experience falls short of customer expectations, revenue leakage follows. A Google study found that 53% of mobile users abandon any site that takes longer than 3 seconds to load.[2] 

In e-commerce, the impact can be brutal. Slow load times, buffering, or delayed transaction processing impact conversion rates, increase bounce rates, and contribute to significant losses from abandoned carts. Poor digital experiences directly drain bottom lines. Beyond direct sales loss, poor performance weakens brand perception and lifetime value. Reliable performance thus becomes a driver of revenue protection and growth and not just a technical metric.

Impact of smallest inconveniences

Even the smallest digital inconveniences have an exaggerated impact on customer experience perception. Any delay translates into frustration and disappointment. For customers, technical causes mean nothing. The experience defines the brand.

These micro-frictions add up over time, eroding confidence, reducing engagement, and making customers less tolerant of future issues. When expectations are unmet, perceptions shift to distrust, leading customers to disengage or seek alternatives. Ultimately, lost time equates to lost satisfaction.

Network performance as a competitive advantage

For internet service providers (ISPs) in particular, consistent network performance offers a powerful competitive edge. While speed and continuity are considered baseline requirements, there are now strategic differentiators that directly influence customer choice, loyalty, and quality of life. For example, customers expect uninterrupted streaming services, regardless of the many other apps running on the same network. Financial transactions must go through securely on the first try, without a hitch. Network coverage must be strong and available wherever the user is located.

A superior network experience reduces frustration, saves time, and enhances daily convenience, which defines the brand reputation, customer retention, and visible market differentiation.

Network optimization solution as a competitive moat

For ISPs, a network optimization solution that delivers reliable, consistent digital experiences by intelligently managing traffic, reducing latency, and minimizing disruptions is a powerful strategic tool. The value extends beyond technical efficiency. It has a clear and direct positive impact on customer satisfaction and time savings for customers.

Where the industry historically measured network performance using the quality of service (QoS) metric that looked at the delivery of internet to the home, the benchmark has now shifted to the quality of experience (QoE) which is a measure of the customer’s actual experience and level of satisfaction all the way down to the application level.

When users experience superior QoE through smooth streaming, quick transactions, and responsive applications, brand confidence grows. This in turn drives higher engagement, stronger loyalty, and better commercial outcomes. Proactively optimizing performance allows organizations to give customers back valuable time, prevent revenue loss, and create a sustainable competitive moat.

Customer satisfaction and network performance are tightly interconnected drivers of business success. At its core, network optimization exists to give people their time back. For ISPs, this means going beyond QoS compliance to delivering real QoE. When network connections are seamless, human connections grow stronger. Families enjoy uninterrupted movie nights, students learn without disruptions, remote work happens reliably, and calls with loved ones never drop at the wrong moment. A quality network experience is proof of how technology can keep its promise to make life better and enhance the quality of experience.

By leveraging AI to build self-healing networks that improve online experiences, Aprecomm’s product suite helps save precious time for both customers and the service providers they depend on. As Theophrastus wisely wrote, “Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend”, so it’s certainly the most valuable thing we can help people save.

For patients who depend on insulin pumps, remote continuous glucose monitors, wearable heart-rate patches, pacemakers and other wireless medical technologies, the battery is a precious energy resource. When it comes to healthcare outcomes, how long – and how well – a battery does its job before it must be charged or changed isn’t a matter of convenience, it can define clinical safety and quality of life.

 

Unlike consumer electronics, these devices operate in tightly constrained biological environments where every milliwatt counts. Batteries power sensors, compute, storage and radio communications while also pushing RF signals through dense human tissue – one of the more challenging mediums for wireless signal propagation.

As medical devices become more connected, manufacturers increasingly face a complex question: How to guarantee robust wireless performance without accelerating battery drain? LitePoint’s testing expertise helps medical device designers solve that problem to efficiently validate RF performance, extend device uptime and improve product reliability all while ensuring patients receive timely, accurate, actionable data.

Why Wireless Testing Is Critical for Battery-Powered Medical Devices

Whether a device uses a replaceable cell or a sealed rechargeable battery, wireless testing plays an essential role in ensuring the radio transmitter and receiver behave reliably. For battery-powered medical devices, inefficient testing can shorten device life.

For example, a continuous glucose monitor patch rated for 14 days of use might lose an entire day of uptime simply because its RF tests consumed too much battery during production. Faced with this trade-off, some manufacturers may opt to reduce their RF test coverage. While this may seem like a fair exchange, shipping devices with unverified connectivity performance can cause problems down the line.

The primary battery-saving contribution that test delivers is optimizing energy during the test process itself, ensuring devices leave the factory at maximum capacity and with verified performance. Rigorous testing also reduces:

  • Device recalls by catching RF failures before shipment
  • Warranty and service costs by limiting early-life field failures
  • Healthcare risk by improving the reliability of continuous monitoring
  • Yield fallout by accurately identifying borderline units

Without sufficient test data, companies may think they are saving battery capacity during manufacturing, when in fact they are compromising long-term device reliability and the patient experience.

What Makes Wireless Operation Uniquely Challenging in Biological Environments

Human tissue is a notoriously lossy environment for RF signals. The body absorbs and attenuates energy, increasing the amount of transmit power required to deliver data to an external receiver. This drives up energy consumption, especially for implantable devices like pacemakers or emerging ingestible sensors, where signals must travel through multiple tissue layers and fluid types.

 

Even for devices worn on the skin, performance varies based on placement, body orientation or whether the device is covered by clothing. These factors create propagation conditions far more complex than a smartphone or wearable used in open air.

Medical manufacturers often rely on specialized labs equipped with CTIA-style phantoms – human-body simulators filled with tissue-mimicking material – to quantify how much signal is lost through the body. While LitePoint does not conduct biological absorption testing directly, RF data gathered from LitePoint equipment complements phantom-based testing to give engineers a full picture of how signal strength, receiver sensitivity and antenna orientation perform in real-world conditions.

Test Solutions Help Optimize Connectivity and Energy Efficiency

Optimizing wireless efficiency in medical applications means tuning the radio for both performance and power. Device accuracy and battery life are tightly linked as missed data packets mean retransmissions, and retransmissions cost energy. But the longer a device stays in test mode, the more battery life it burns before ever reaching a patient.

LitePoint’s specializes in test time optimization using advanced techniques like proprietary Bluetooth over-the-air (OTA) test. This method measures radio transceiver performance using beacons without establishing a full Bluetooth connection, which allows manufacturers to capture critical RF data in far less time than a manual test using a standard Bluetooth adapter and software.

 

This preserves battery capacity and allows designers to test multiple devices in parallel, reducing manufacturing bottlenecks without compromising quality.

How Coexistence Testing Contributes to Better Battery Management

Many medical devices now incorporate multiple radios, for instance, Bluetooth LE for data transfers, Wi-Fi to sync data with the cloud and near-field communication (NFC) for device pairing and user authentication. While each radio may be optimized individually, coexistence issues can cause interference that forces retransmissions, increases latency and drains battery life.

 

The key is to determine where and when to run these tests as full coexistence testing is too power-intensive for many high-volume production lines. LitePoint helps manufacturers by moving testing earlier in the product development cycle or design verification environment, where engineers can identify interference patterns and tune channel plans or antenna layouts without draining battery life during manufacturing.

The Risks of Insufficient Wireless Testing in Medical Devices

The consequences of inadequate testing are more serious than a dropped Netflix video frame. At minimum, poor RF performance leads to inconsistent data transmission or premature battery drain. In the worst cases, devices risk missing early warning signs of a serious condition, such as a glucose spike or a heart arrhythmia.

There is also a significant brand-trust implication. Medical device companies spend years building credibility, and a single high-profile failure tied to missed wireless data can easily erode customer confidence.

Still, some manufacturers rely on shortcuts like “golden devices.” These prototype units are presumed to represent ideal RF performance, but unless they are repeatably calibrated, they’re subject to signal drift over time which can degrade accuracy. A dedicated tester eliminates that variability and ensures consistent measurement across every unit.

Likewise, radio duty-cycling, which determines how often the radio wakes to transmit or receive data, is primarily a design consideration. Test data can help refine these decisions by revealing signal margins, sensitivity thresholds or susceptibility to interference, while RF test helps designers understand how aggressively they can duty-cycle without data loss.

Connected Healthcare Is Reshaping Wireless Test

Medical device volumes can reach hundreds of thousands or even millions of units. Repeatability and speed are essential. LitePoint’s automation tools, such as the IQfact+™ platform and IQfactATM™ software for module-based designs, allow manufacturers to validate critical RF parameters quickly and consistently, even when they lack direct access to the underlying chipset. These tools help ensure every device shipped meets its RF performance targets, enabling reliable operation for months or years in the field.

Healthcare is becoming a high-connectivity device environment. Everything from blood pressure cuffs to ultrasound imaging have wireless – and cloud-connected – options. As adoption scales, the need for efficient, precise, low-impact RF testing becomes even more critical. LitePoint is continuing to innovate in areas such as OTA efficiency, beacon-based RF measurement and automation, all aimed at helping med-tech engineers extend battery life while ensuring the data their devices generate is trustworthy.

Edge AI, Brought to Life at Embedded World

Embedded World 2026 made one thing clear: AI is no longer confined to the cloud—it’s moving decisively onto the device. Across our demos and conversations, a consistent theme emerged: intelligence is shifting closer to where data is created—into devices, environments, and the physical world.

From smart homes to industrial systems and a wide range of emerging robotics applications, the focus is evolving from what AI can do to how efficiently, responsively, and seamlessly it operates at the Edge.

From Edge Intelligence to Real-World Awareness

Edge AI is evolving into context-aware, real-world intelligence. Systems are beginning to not just process data, but also to understand context and respond in real time.

At Embedded World, we brought this to life through integrated platforms that sense, process, and act—demonstrating how AI is transitioning from a technical capability to a tangible user experience across real-world applications.

Smart Homes: SYN765x Connectivity Platform

In smart homes, AI is enabling devices to detect events, automate responses, and enhance security, while preserving privacy through local processing.

Our latest SYN765x solution integrates Wi-Fi® 7, Bluetooth® 6.0, and embedded AI compute into a single solution. The result: faster decision-making, reduced system complexity, and built-in security—bringing real-time intelligence directly into the home.

Edge AI Audio MCUs: Synaptics Astra™ SR80

Audio devices are becoming more intelligent and responsive. From headsets to conferencing systems, AI enables real-time voice recognition, noise suppression, and contextual audio processing.

The Synaptics Astra SR80 family is designed for always-on, low-power intelligence — delivering adaptive, personalized audio experiences that respond almost instantly to users and their environments.

Advancing the Ecosystem: Coral and Google Collaboration

We also showcased the Synaptics Coral Dev Board, highlighting how advanced AI workloads can run directly on Edge devices. Powered by Astra SL2610 and Synaptics’ Torq™ NPU—alongside the Coral NPU by Google Research—the dev board enables efficient, on-device inference for both generative and perception-based AI.

Pre-configured with the Gemma™ model and supported by an open, MLIR-based toolchain, it provides a streamlined path from prototyping to production—making Edge AI more practical and accessible across smart home, industrial, wearables, and hearables applications.

Coral Board

Together, these demos illustrate the broader transition: from isolated Edge inference to systems that combine processing, connectivity, sensing, and AI into cohesive, production-grade applications.

Why Edge AI Changes Everything

Bringing AI to the Edge fundamentally transforms system performance and scalability. It enables:

  • Real-time responsiveness with ultra-low latency
  • Enhanced privacy through local data processing
  • Reduced reliance on cloud infrastructure
  • Greater power efficiency for embedded systems
  • Increased autonomy, allowing devices to operate independently

These benefits are accelerating the shift toward distributed intelligence, where processing is embedded across connected devices rather than centralized in the cloud.

Building an Open Ecosystem for Edge AI Innovation

As Edge AI adoption accelerates, developer accessibility becomes critical.

Synaptics is focused on enabling innovation through support for open frameworks and toolchains, including evolving compiler technologies, exemplified by collaboration with partners such as Google Research, to expand AI capabilities at the Edge.

This approach helps reduce barriers to development and supports a more scalable ecosystem—allowing developers to build, deploy, and iterate more quickly.

The Future: Intelligent, Connected, Everywhere

AI is rapidly becoming a foundational capability across embedded systems.

At the center of this evolution is the shift toward integrated platforms that combine compute, connectivity, and sensing—regardless of the application.

Synaptics is enabling this transition by helping bring intelligence to the Edge, where it can deliver the greatest impact.

Looking Forward

Thank you to everyone who visited Synaptics at Embedded World.

If we didn’t connect during the show, we welcome the opportunity to continue the conversation.

Because, as AI continues to evolve, one thing is clear:

Intelligence is most powerful when it’s embedded, efficient, and exactly where it needs to be.

Qualcomm’s engineering journey to evolve RF exposure management for modern wireless performance

What you should know:
  • Time-Averaged Specific Absorption Rate (TAS), is a method of RF exposure management established by Qualcomm Technologies to address evolving performance requirements of 5G, multi-radio devices and emerging technologies while meeting worldwide RF exposure regulation. 
  • Between 2012 and 2019, Qualcomm led the industry in research, testing and validation, culminating in a breakthrough solution that set a new standard for the industry. 
  • Our innovations paved the way for other OEMs and set new benchmarks for compliance and performance, and transformed how the industry approaches RF exposure compliance and device performance.

When Qualcomm Technologies pioneered a new way to manage RF exposure through real-time averaging, it wasn’t simply about a new product. Behind this breakthrough development is a story about years of vision, collaboration and technical rigor that paved the way for a new era in RF exposure management. Spanning nearly a decade, the journey to develop this new technology — Time-Averaged Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), also known as TAS — stands as another example of our relentless drive to develop the best wireless experience possible and deliver maximum benefit to industry and consumers.

 

A foundation built on determination: 2012–2019

Developing TAS required years of systematic effort to redefine how wireless devices manage RF exposure. Our expertise in mobile gave us a unique line of sight to where the industry was headed, and we were pursuing novel ways to enable the growth required for better uplink performance.

The seeds of TAS were planted in 2012, when our engineers and scientists recognized a looming challenge: Legacy RF exposure management was holding back the promise of next-generation wireless technologies. The team saw that RF exposure management using static, capped peak power limits were stifling innovation and making it harder for device makers to deliver the performance users were demanding. Thus began a decade of dialog, research, testing and validation, culminating in a breakthrough solution that set a new standard for the industry.

This effort unfolded through several key milestones:

  • Early regulatory engagement:

In 2012, we presented the concept of real-time averaging for RF exposure management to the FCC, initiating a dialogue that would shape future compliance procedures. We worked closely with regulators worldwide, advocating for the adoption of time averaging as a scientifically sound and practical approach to Regulatory compliance.

  • Technical prototyping and validation:

Between 2013 and 2015, Qualcomm Technologies developed and tested prototype algorithms and devices, including the first sub-6 GHz hand-held device. These efforts demonstrated the feasibility of real-time power averaging and provided critical data for regulatory review.

  • Establishment of new regulatory test procedures:

In 2016, we released to the regulators the first version of SAR measurement procedures for validating TAS algorithms. Since then, the test cases and procedures for regulatory certification of wireless devices enabled with TAS RF exposure management have been updated to validate enhancements and used to enable other TAS providers to enter the market.

  • Algorithm development for 5G and mmWave:

As wireless technology has evolved, so have Qualcomm Technologies’ solutions. In 2018, our engineers expanded the algorithms to support 5G mmWave, addressing new challenges in device complexity and simultaneous multi-radio transmissions.

  • Collaboration with third-party labs:

To ensure robust validation, Qualcomm Technologies partnered with leading compliance labs and third-party test houses worldwide. These collaborations helped to harmonize TAS testing procedures and meet the compliance test and regulatory certification needs of OEMs for on-time launch of their commercial products.

  • Regulatory approval:

In 2018, the FCC first approved time averaging procedures for sub-6 GHz and mmWave devices, a direct result of our sustained engagement and technical advocacy. This enabled OEMs to design for compliance using time averaging, rather than relying on legacy power back-off methods.

  • Industry education and knowledge transfer:

Qualcomm invested significant resources in educating OEMs, operators, and labs about the new approach. Our teams provide training, consulting and technical support to accelerate industry adoption and ensure consistent, reliable compliance. To date, we have on-boarded 25 compliance labs in 8 different countries with 10 more labs in progress.

 

The launch: Qualcomm Smart Transmit becomes reality

In April 2019, Qualcomm Technologies launched TAS as a commercial product, branded Smart Transmit, as an optional feature in the first 5G-enabled smartphones. Smart Transmit was more than a product introduction; it was the culmination of years of hard work, technical excellence and industry-wide collaboration. The technology was validated, the ecosystem was ready and the industry was aligned on the benefits of dynamic RF exposure management.

 

Why this journey matters

In addition to cellular, today Smart Transmit includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth® wireless technology, UWB, RFID and satellite radios. The rise of AI, XR and an ever-increasing number of wearables are placing even more importance on the efficiency and capacity of uplink transmission as devices send more and more data to the cloud for real-time learning and personalization.

The principles and methodologies developed during this journey paved the way for other OEMs and set new benchmarks for compliance and performance. The groundwork laid between 2012 and 2019 enabled not just a technical solution, but a transformation in how the industry approaches RF exposure compliance and device performance.

Qualcomm’s leadership in developing TAS reflects the strength of our research and development teams, our engineering ingenuity and our commitment to solving the hardest problems in wireless.

If you’re reading this from a desk in a climate-controlled office at HQ, take a second to appreciate your Wi-Fi. It doesn’t have to deal with strong winds, flammable vapors, or the constant threat of combustible gases. But for the IT teams managing “The Patch”- the remote rigs, sprawling pipeline networks, and high-stakes refineries—connectivity is a completely different beast.

In the Oil & Gas (O&G) world, “standard” equipment doesn’t just struggle – it fails. And in this industry, failure isn’t just an IT ticket: it’s a multi-million-dollar downtime event or, even worse, a safety hazard. As the industry pivots toward the “Digital Oilfield,” the demand for high-speed, reliable data at the extreme edge has never been higher. You need a network as tough as the crews operating the drills.

The “Mud, Sweat, and Gears” of O&G Connectivity

Let’s be real: trenching fiber to a remote wellhead or a moving offshore platform is a logistical nightmare and a financial black hole. Traditional wireless has often been the “best-effort” alternative, but it comes with its own baggage.

First, there are environmental extremes. We’re talking temperatures from -50°C to +75°C. Then there’s the HazLoc (Hazardous Location) factor. If your access point isn’t certified for Class I Division 2, ATEX, or IECEx, it may not even be allowed on your site. Finally, there’s a mobility challenge. Assets in O&G move—drilling rigs shift, service vehicles roam, and autonomous robots are now entering the fray. Maintaining a seamless connection while these assets are in motion has historically been the “Holy Grail” of industrial networking.

Enter the Heavyweight: The Cisco Catalyst IW9167E-HZ

 

This is where the Cisco Catalyst IW9167E-HZ steps into the ring. Think of it as the Swiss Army Knife of industrial wireless, specifically engineered for some of the most volatile environments on Earth.

The “HZ” stands for Hazardous Locations, and it wears its certifications like a badge of honor. With a heavy-duty, IP67-rated design, it’s built to withstand the vibration of a rig floor and the corrosive air of a coastal refinery. But it’s what’s inside that really changes the game for O&G IT professionals.

The Secret Sauce: Wi-Fi 6/6E + URWB

Why choose between local access and robust backhaul when you can have both in one box? The IW9167E-HZ features tri-radio capabilities that allow it to run Wi-Fi 6/6E and Cisco Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB) simultaneously.

  • Wi-Fi 6/6E for the Workforce: Provide high-bandwidth connectivity for tablets, handheld scanners, and worker safety wearables. With the 6GHz spectrum, you’re looking at lower latency and higher capacity for the growing number of IIoT devices on-site.
  • URWB for the Infrastructure: This is Cisco’s “fiber-like” wireless technology. It delivers near-zero latency (<10ms) and zero packet loss during handoffs. Whether you’re connecting a moving autonomous vehicle or backhauling critical SCADA data from a remote wellhead, URWB ensures the data gets through without the “make-before-break” drops common in standard Wi-Fi.

By integrating both into a single device managed through a “single pane of glass” with Cisco Catalyst Center, you’re not just improving performance – you’re slashing your Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). No more managing separate, siloed networks for backhaul and access.

AI in the Patch: Not Just a Buzzword

We know IT teams are under pressure to “AI-enable” their operations. According to the 2024 State of Industrial Networking Report, 48% of industrial leaders believe AI will have the greatest impact on their networking strategy over the next five years. In O&G, this isn’t science fiction – it’s happening now.

Securing the Future of the Digital Oilfield

The right connectivity does more than keep systems running; it acts as a safeguard for your personnel and a catalyst for operational efficiency. Whether you are connecting a remote wellhead or managing a complex refinery, with the IW9167E-HZ you are building a resilient foundation that supports advanced AI, strengthens cybersecurity, and ensures that critical data is always available, even in the most volatile environments.

DNSFilter Wins Market Leader Placement for Internet Filtering, Protective DNS, SMB Cybersecurity in 14th Annual Global InfoSec Awards at #RSAC 2026

SAN FRANCISCO, CA –  MARCH 23, 2026 – DNSFilter is proud to announce we have won the following award(s) from Cyber Defense Magazine (CDM), the industry’s leading electronic information security magazine:

  • Market Leader in Internet Filtering
  • Market Leader in Protective DNS
  • Market Leader in SMB Cybersecurity

“We are thrilled to be named a market leader in three distinct categories by Cyber Defense Magazine during their 14th anniversary. On the heels of launching our DNS PreCheck and CyberSight capabilities, we have shown that we are committed to innovation and supporting enterprises, SMBs, and MSPs,” said Ken Carnesi, CEO of DNSFilter.

“DNSFilter embodies three major features we judges look for to become winners: understanding tomorrow’s threats, today, providing a cost-effective solution and innovating in unexpected ways that can help mitigate cyber risk and get one step ahead of the next breach,” said Gary S. Miliefsky, Publisher of Cyber Defense Magazine.

We’re thrilled to be a member on this coveted group of winners, located here:   http://www.cyberdefenseawards.com/

Please join us at the #RSAC RSAC Conference 2026, https://www.rsaconference.com/usa today, as we share our red-carpet experience and proudly display our trophy online at our website, our blog and our social media channels.

About DNSFilter
DNSFilter is a cybersecurity company that protects every click, leveraging AI-driven content filtering and threat protection to block threats up to 10 days earlier than competitors. DNSFilter’s solution secures workers wherever they are, helping organizations boost productivity, minimize compliance risk, and protect corporate brands on public Wi-Fi networks. Trusted by more than 45,000 organizations worldwide, DNSFilter enables organizations to deploy powerful protection in minutes while gaining deep visibility into their security posture. Learn more at dnsfilter.com.

About the Global InfoSec Awards
This is Cyber Defense Magazine’s thirteenth year of honoring InfoSec innovators from around the Globe. Our submission requirements are for any startup, early stage, later stage, or public companies in the INFORMATION SECURITY (INFOSEC) space who believe they have a unique and compelling value proposition for their product or service. Learn more at www.cyberdefenseawards.com

In the embedded systems world, embedUR has spent the last twenty years in the trenches. We’ve built the wireless infrastructure that runs enterprise access points and the residential gateways sitting in millions of homes. In that time, we’ve learned one thing: regulatory shifts aren’t just legal problems. They are engineering problems.

The EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) is one of the biggest shifts we’ve seen in a decade. It isn’t just a footnote in a policy briefing; it’s a fundamental change in how we need to or should design, build, and most importantly, sustain products. At embedUR, we’ve guided teams through every Wi-Fi evolution from the early days of 802.11n to the complexities of Wi-Fi 6E and the new world of tinyML at the edge.

From where we stand, the CRA shouldn’t be a headache. It should be the catalyst that finally forces the industry to build smarter, more resilient systems.

But let’s be honest: for an engineering lead trying to hit a product launch date while staring down resource gaps, the CRA looks like a mountain of paperwork. To climb it, you have to bridge the gap between using an open-source RTOS like Zephyr and meeting the rigorous demands of European law.

The Clock is Ticking: Understanding the CRA Milestones

We are currently in early 2026. The grace period is evaporating. The CRA was formally adopted back in late 2024, and the first major hammer will drop on September 11, 2026. That is the date when mandatory vulnerability reporting goes live.

If your device has a digital element and you sell it in the EU, you have 24 hours to report an exploited vulnerability. Not 24 hours after you fix it—24 hours after you find it.

By December 2027, the remaining requirements kick in: security-by-design as a legal mandate, machine-readable Software Bills of Materials (SBOMs), and a 5-year support window. If you miss these marks, the fines are eye-watering: up to €15 million or 2.5% of your global turnover. For any U.S. company exporting to Europe, which is a massive chunk of the global market, this is now the cost of doing business.

Why Zephyr is our Go-To (And Why It’s Not a Silver Bullet)

We’ve been working with Zephyr RTOS since its early releases in 2016. It’s under the Linux Foundation, it’s transparent, and it’s modular. On paper, it’s the perfect answer to the CRA.

Zephyr’s PSIRT (Product Security Incident Response Team) is excellent. They handle CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) with a level of transparency that mirrors the Linux kernel. When a bug is found in the networking stack, the fix is public and documented.

Furthermore, the Long-Term Support (LTS) releases, like the 3.7 LTS, offer five years of security maintenance. That perfectly maps to the CRA’s support requirements.

Zephyr also gives us the “West” tool. Using west spdx, we can generate an SBOM automatically during the build process. If you’ve ever tried to manually track every library and sub-component in a proprietary RTOS, you know that automated SBOM generation is a godsend. It takes the drudgery out of compliance.

However, this is the local engineer’s truth: upstream Zephyr is not the same thing as a shipping product.

The Reality of “The Fork” and Maintenance Debt

Here is where the theory hits the floor. In our work sustaining Wi-Fi products for major global brands, where we manage fleets of over 10 million units, we’ve seen divergence as a major problem.

An engineer starts with a clean Zephyr LTS branch. Then, the silicon vendor provides a HAL (Hardware Abstraction Layer) that isn’t quite right for the specific power constraints of a Cortex-M4 gateway. So, the engineer tweaks the kernel. Then the marketing team requests a specific feature that requires a custom driver. Before you know it, you’ve forked the repo.

When a security patch comes down from the Zephyr upstream six months later, it doesn’t fit. It breaks your custom power management. It conflicts with your Wi-Fi driver. Now, compliance means a three-week rebase and a full regression test.

If you have a multi-SKU product line, maybe some devices use ARM and others use RISC-V, your vulnerability tracking turns into a nightmare. There are cases where a field-reported bug traced back to an unpatched erratum in a silicon vendor’s HAL. Because the team had drifted too far from the clean upstream code, they couldn’t pull the fix. 

This kind of delay is exactly what the CRA will penalize.

The tinyML Constraint

The complexity doubles when you add tinyML. We’re seeing more industrial gear using TensorFlow Lite Micro on Zephyr to do predictive maintenance at the edge. These models are ultra-constrained. Every byte of RAM matters.

When you’re fighting for every kilobyte to make an AI model work on an IoT sensor, security overhead feels like an enemy. But under the CRA, that edge intelligence is part of the product’s digital footprint.

If your ML inference engine has a buffer overflow vulnerability, you are liable. Shoehorning these models into Zephyr while maintaining a secure, updatable bootloader (like MCUboot) requires a level of memory management that most teams aren’t prepared for.

Making Compliance a Competitive Edge

So, how do we stop compliance from being a burden and turn it into a reason why customers choose you over a competitor? You have to treat security as a feature, not a chore.

1. Stop Wild Forking

The biggest mistake we see is that engineers treat Zephyr like a one-off download. You have to stay aligned with the LTS branches. We recommend a “cherry-pick” strategy. You pin your project to a stable LTS version and build a rigorous process for pulling in only the security patches you need. This keeps your custom “secret sauce” separate from the core RTOS plumbing.

2. Automate the Paperwork

If an auditor asks for your SBOM, you shouldn’t have to spend a week in Excel. We help our clients integrate SBOM tools directly into their CI/CD pipelines (like GitLab or GitHub Actions). 

Every time a developer pushes code, the system should automatically run a vulnerability scan (using tools like grype or trivy) and generate a new SPDX file. If a vulnerability is found, the build should fail before the code ever reaches a device.

3. Standardize via Device Tree Overlays

To handle the multi-SKU headache, we use Zephyr Device Tree overlays. Instead of having different codebases for different hardware, you keep one core application and use overlays to describe the hardware differences. This minimizes code drift and ensures that a security patch for your BLE stack works across every device in your catalog.

4. Hardware-in-the-Loop (HiL) Testing

You can’t trust a simulation for CRA compliance. You need automated test rigs where real hardware is subjected to simulated exploits. At embedUR, we’ve built environments where we test everything from LTE stack vulnerabilities to timing glitches in crypto libraries. 

This is how you catch a DoS (Denial of Service) bug before it gets found in the field and  becomes a mandatory 24-hour report to the EU.

The embedUR Difference: Real Engineers, Real Solutions

This is what we do. We aren’t a compliance consultancy that just hands you a PowerPoint. We are an engineering firm with over 400 expert embedded systems engineers who live in the kernel. Our architects have upstreamed code to Zephyr’s networking modules. We also know the silicon vendors—NXP, Infineon, Nordic, and Silicon Labs—and where their HALs usually break.

We have the sustainment framework ready to go. We handle the kernel upgrades, the CVE monitoring, and the SBOM maintenance so that your senior engineers can focus on the stuff that actually makes you money, like your next-gen predictive maintenance algorithms or your cloud-to-edge analytics.

The Bottom Line

The September 2026 deadline is closer than it looks on the calendar. In the world of embedded systems, eighteen months is one design cycle. If you start thinking about the CRA during the testing phase, you’ve already lost.

Is your Zephyr setup a solid foundation, or is it a house of cards? If you’re building for the EU market and worried about staying compliant without killing your product roadmap, let’s talk.

We can do a technical review of your current stack and show you exactly where the gaps are. We’ve been through the Wi-Fi wars and the IoT explosion; we can get you through this, too.

Let’s get your engineering team back to innovating. Schedule a Technical Review: Talk directly with our lead architects about your current Zephyr stack and CRA gaps.

IoT deployments are moving from pilot programs to scaled rollouts, and the conversation is changing.

As deployments scale, different application tiers demand different optimization points. High-end platforms are built to manage complex, multiprotocol, and mesh networking environments. Broad-market deployments, however, prioritize streamlined capability—long-range, multi-year battery life, deterministic responsiveness, built-in security, and cost structures aligned with volume production.

That’s the design philosophy behind Silicon Labs’ EFR32FG23L sub-GHz wireless SoC.

Sub-GHz Wireless: Designed for Structured, Real-World Architectures

Many high-volume sub-GHz systems follow structured topologies such as sensor-to-gateway, remote-to-controller, and endpoint-to-hub. These are not massive mesh networks, but purpose-built wireless links that prioritize predictability, fast response, and architectural simplicity.

Designing Large Scale Sub-GHz Wireless Systems Requires Discipline

The EFR32FG23L SoC was built specifically for these types of deployments. Rather than carrying the overhead of multiprotocol stacks intended for complex network coordination, FG23L delivers a streamlined architecture optimized for proprietary and star network topologies. The result is a tightly integrated platform that balances performance, memory footprint, and cost efficiency.

This approach allows developers to focus on what matters most: building responsive, reliable wireless products without paying for silicon they don’t need.

Extending Sub-GHz Wireless Range Where It Matters

Sub-GHz connectivity continues to be the preferred choice for applications that demand deep penetration, extended coverage, and reliable performance in challenging RF environments.

From industrial campuses and agricultural fields to commercial buildings and residential perimeters, longer range directly impacts system economics. Fewer gateways. Simplified installation. Lower infrastructure costs.

The FG23L SoC supports global sub-GHz bands and delivers a strong link budget that enables robust connectivity across diverse deployment scenarios. Whether navigating dense industrial structures or covering wide outdoor spaces, the device is engineered to maintain reliable communication over distance.

In this context, range is just as much a business enabler as an RF metric.

Deterministic Communication for Responsive Systems

In many sub-GHz applications, timing is everything.

A remote key fob has to respond instantly, an access control system needs to be authenticated without delay, and an industrial safety trigger cannot tolerate uncertainty.

These use cases demand deterministic, low-latency communication rather than complex routing protocols. By leveraging Silicon Labs’ RAIL (Radio Abstraction Interface Layer), developers can implement custom PHY and MAC layers that are optimized for responsiveness and efficiency. This flexibility allows precise control over airtime, data rate, and power consumption assuring predictable system behavior.

For designers building proprietary wireless systems, this level of control is often more valuable than protocol breadth.

Power Efficiency That Enables Large Scale IoT

Battery life remains one of the defining constraints in IoT design. Maintenance costs, service intervals, and user experience are all shaped by energy consumption.

The FG23L SoC is engineered to support multi-year battery operation across a wide range of endpoint devices. Its low sleep currents, fast wake-up capabilities, and intelligent low-power listening modes allow systems to remain energy-efficient without sacrificing responsiveness.

From security sensors and smart agriculture nodes to consumer remotes and monitoring devices, efficient power design directly reduces operational costs and supports large-scale deployment models.

At scale, every microamp matters.

Security as a Foundation, Not an Afterthought

As IoT devices proliferate across industrial and residential environments, security expectations rise. Device identity, encrypted communication, and secure firmware management are baseline requirements.

The FG23L integrates Secure Vault™ embedding hardware-rooted security directly into the device architecture. Secure boot, hardware-accelerated cryptography, secure debug capabilities, and advanced protection mechanisms provide a strong foundation without requiring external security components.

By integrating security at the silicon level, developers can meet modern protection requirements while maintaining cost and design efficiency.

Multicore Architecture and Integration That Simplifies System Design

With dedicated cores for application, radio, and secure engine, the FG23L SoC provides ample compute headroom to minimize protocol and application processing latency, ensuring responsive sub-GHz wireless communication.

In cost-sensitive designs, integration drives advantage, and the FG23L brings together a rich set of analog and digital peripherals to support real-world product requirements, including precision data acquisition, autonomous sensing, flexible communication interfaces, and extensive GPIO to enable compact, single-chip solutions.

Higher integration also reduces external components, simplifies PCB layout, and accelerates development cycles. For manufacturers targeting competitive markets, these efficiencies translate directly into lower total system cost and faster time to market.

FG23L Sub-GHz SoC: Built for Broad-Market Opportunity

Sub-GHz technology continues to expand beyond traditional industrial niches into commercial infrastructure and home automation ecosystems. Wireless I/O modules, condition monitoring systems, building automation platforms, lighting control, access systems, smart locks, perimeter sensors, and remote-control devices all share a common set of requirements: structured communication, long-range reliability, battery-powered operation, hardware-rooted security, and cost alignment for volume deployment.

The FG23L was designed precisely to meet these design requirements.

FG23L Applications

Focused Capability for the Next Phase of Sub-GHz IoT Growth

The future of sub-GHz IoT growth won’t be driven by maximum feature density as much as by focused capability and devices that deliver the performance designers need while eliminating unnecessary overhead.

The FG23L sub-GHz wireless SoC embodies this trend, combining low cost, long-range connectivity, deterministic communication, integrated security, ultra-low power operation, and streamlined memory into a cost-optimized platform tailored for scale.

As IoT continues its transition from specialized deployments to mainstream infrastructure, right-sized wireless solutions will define competitive advantage.

COSTA MESA, Calif., March 24, 2026 — EnGenius Technologies Inc., a global leader in advanced connectivity and cloud-managed networking solutions, is pleased to announce the expansion of its AI-powered Network Video System (NVS) lineup with two tower-based SKUs designed to bring intelligent analytics, centralized cloud management, and enterprise reliability to existing ONVIF & RTSP camera deployments. This transformative solution brings AI intelligence to existing camera systems without the need for a full hardware replacement, significantly reducing upgrade costs, minimizing the risk of evidence loss, and accelerating investigations. The company also announced that its EnGenius EVS1004D has been honored with a Best of Show award at Integrated Systems Europe 2026, where industry judges recognized the platform’s innovation in AI-driven video surveillance and seamless cloud management designed to simplify enterprise security deployments..

The new lineup includes: 

  • EVS1004D — Cloud Managed AI 4-Bay Network Video System Tower
  • EVS1002D — Cloud Managed AI 2-Bay Network Video System Tower

Both systems enable organizations to upgrade existing ONVIF-compatible cameras with advanced AI capabilities—without costly camera replacements— capable of supporting up to 16 non-AI channels, or a maximum of 4 channels when 2 AI-enabled cameras are included, for intelligent, real-time video analysis.

Recognizing the stringent legal and regulatory compliance requirements faced by multi-site SMBs and enterprise organizations across the retail, hospitality, healthcare, education, and finance sectors, the EnGenius NVS Series delivers reliable, 24/7 video availability and playback. By combining edge-based storage with unified cloud management, the EVS Series provides a secure, scalable, and resilient surveillance ecosystem designed to meet the operational and compliance demands of modern, distributed environments.

Intelligent AI Upgrade for Existing Cameras

EnGenius Cloud Managed AI NVS platforms enhance third-party ONVIF or RTSP cameras with powerful edge and cloud-based intelligence. Supporting FHD to 4K resolutions, both tower models deliver 24/7 continuous recording, intelligent metadata-driven analytics, and centralized cloud management across single or multi-site deployments.

AI processing is performed locally while leveraging EnGenius Cloud AI for advanced search, alerts, and insights. Natural language search powered by multimodal AI/LLMs allows operators to locate critical video evidence using simple descriptions—dramatically reducing investigation time.

Two Tower Options for Flexible Deployments

Designed to fit a wide range of surveillance needs, both SKUs share a desktop tower housing optimized for professional environments:

  • EVS1004D (4-Bay Tower)
    Provides enterprise-grade RAID-protected storage (RAID 1/5/6) for high availability and long-term video retention, ideal for larger or compliance-driven deployments.
  • EVS1002D (2-Bay Tower)
    A compact, cost-efficient solution delivering centralized AI-enabled recording and analytics, with RAID 1–protected storage for added data reliability, for small to mid-size installations.

Both models feature:

  • Maximum video backup capacity: up to 30 channels with EnGenius AI cameras; 16 channels with third-party, non-AI-enabled cameras; or up to 4 channels when two AI-enabled cameras are used for intelligent, real-time video analysis.
  • 1Ă— 10-Gigabit Ethernet + 1Ă— Gigabit Ethernet ports
  • USB 3.0 Ă—4 and USB 2.0 Ă—1 connectivity
  • SA2.5″ or 3.5″ SATA 3 drives; includes 1Ă— HDMI port and 1Ă— Kensington lock slot.
  • ONVIF Profile S and RTSP compatibility
  • Cloud-managed access anytime, anywhere

“We are delivering simplicity and intelligence to the security landscape. For years, the high cost of rip-and-replace upgrades has prevented organizations from adopting modern AI-driven security. With the EnGenius AI Network Video System, enterprises can preserve their existing camera investments while unlocking advanced AI analytics and enterprise-grade data redundancy—seamlessly bridging legacy infrastructure with the future of intelligent surveillance.”

— Roger Liu, Vice President at EnGenius

Secure, Bandwidth-Efficient, and Future-Ready

Security is built into every layer of the EnGenius AI NVS architecture. By transmitting AI metadata instead of continuous video streams, both systems significantly reduce WAN bandwidth usage—making them ideal for scalable, multi-location environments.

Flexible Video Backup Mechanism

Designed for multi-site enterprise environments, the EVS Series enables seamless video backup across distributed networks within the same organization to EnGenius NVS units. Featuring customizable retention policies, administrators can define recording duration or storage limits to align with legal, regulatory, and operational requirements.

Unified Cloud Management in a Single Ecosystem

Eliminating system silos, the EVS Series seamlessly integrates with all cameras within the EnGenius Cloud platform, enabling IT teams to centrally manage storage, video access, and device health from a single interface. This cloud-native architecture delivers streamlined monitoring and actionable insights—without the complexity of on-premises server deployments.

Designed for Every Industry

The EnGenius Cloud Managed AI NVS solutions are purpose-built for education, retail, hospitality, student housing, senior living, corporate offices, and warehousing, delivering actionable intelligence such as people and vehicle detection, tracking, counting, and real-time Cloud-AI alerts for incidents including bullying, fights, accidents, or restricted-area access.

The Next-Generation of Intelligent Storage

“We are delivering simplicity and intelligence to the security landscape. For years, the high cost of rip-and-replace upgrades has prevented organizations from adopting modern AI-driven security,” said Roger Liu, CEO of EnGenius Technologies. “With the EnGenius AI Network Video System, enterprises can preserve their existing camera investments while unlocking advanced AI analytics and enterprise-grade data redundancy—seamlessly bridging legacy infrastructure with the future of intelligent surveillance.”

Availability

The EnGenius Cloud Managed AI Network Video System Tower lineup—including the EVS1004D (4-bay) and EVS1002D (2-bay) models, will be available through EnGenius authorized resellers and distribution partners beginning in March 2026. For additional product specifications and purchasing information, visit: EnGenius AI NVS