BP35C5-T01 - Wi-SUN FAN Evaluation Board 902-928MHz | ROHM

Smart Metering Networks

The BP35C5-T01 fits smart electric, gas, and water meter deployments because the BP35C5 module it evaluates is Wi-SUN Alliance certified (WSA0218) and supports mesh networks of up to 1000 units - the node density typical of neighborhood-scale AMI (advanced metering infrastructure). The dual-band coverage of 920.6-928 MHz and 902.2-927.8 MHz means the same evaluation setup validates designs for Japanese 920 MHz-band meter networks and North American 902-928 MHz ISM deployments. In a metering topology, each meter acts as a Wi-SUN FAN router node, and the Sub-GHz band provides multi-hundred-meter range with wall and foliage penetration that 2.4 GHz cannot match. During development, attach an external antenna via the SMA connector to characterize real-world link budget, then design the 15.0 mm x 19.0 mm BP35C5 module onto the meter PCB.

Street Lighting Control

Street lighting controllers benefit from the BP35C5-T01 evaluation platform because Wi-SUN FAN mesh networking provides self-healing, multi-hop connectivity across pole-to-pole distances without cellular data costs. The BP35C5's 1000-node mesh capacity covers a complete urban district, and the integrated 32-bit MCU runs the full Wi-SUN FAN stack on-module, offloading the lighting controller's main processor. Evaluating with the BP35C5-T01 lets engineers measure latency and route re-formation time when a lamp fails or is switched off - a critical failure mode in lighting meshes. The two SMA connectors allow antenna placement experiments (mast-top versus enclosure-internal) that directly determine mesh reliability. After evaluation, the compact 15.0 mm x 19.0 mm module footprint fits inside standard NEMA or Zhaga lighting controller enclosures with margin for the antenna match.

Solar and Renewable Energy Monitoring

Distributed solar installations and renewable energy plants need monitoring across wide, obstruction-rich sites where the BP35C5-T01's Sub-GHz Wi-SUN mesh excels. The 902-928 MHz band penetrates panel arrays and vegetation better than higher frequencies, and the 1000-node mesh capacity scales from a single rooftop string monitor to a utility-scale plant. Using the BP35C5-T01, engineers can validate inverter and panel-monitor communication nodes before production, testing how network latency affects data reporting intervals. The board's evaluation role is decisive here: RF performance near large metal-framed solar arrays differs substantially from open-field assumptions, so measuring real RSSI and packet error rates via the SMA-attached external antenna prevents costly redesigns. The certified (WSA0218) protocol stack ensures interoperability with other vendors' Wi-SUN FAN head-end equipment.

Industrial Automation and Building Management

Factory floors and large commercial buildings present RF-hostile environments - metal racking, concrete walls, and rotating machinery - where the BP35C5-T01 evaluation board enables realistic validation of a Sub-GHz Wi-SUN mesh before rollout. The BP35C5's 902-928 MHz operation and up-to-1000-node mesh handle sensor-dense installations such as HVAC monitoring, occupancy sensing, and equipment condition tracking across multiple floors. The board's adapter-board form factor lets developers interface the module to their host MCU or gateway hardware over its standard pin header interface, iterating firmware against real building propagation. The status indication feature on GPIOA0/SDA (pin 18), which blinks per the broadcast slot in default operation, provides at-a-glance network join confirmation during commissioning walks. Production designs then reuse the identical BP35C5 module, eliminating a second qualification cycle.

Smart City Infrastructure Gateways

City-scale gateways aggregating meters, lights, and environmental sensors rely on Wi-SUN FAN border routers, and the BP35C5-T01 provides a low-risk platform to prototype that gateway's radio subsystem. Because the BP35C5 is Wi-SUN Alliance certified (WSA0218), gateway developers avoid the cost of protocol certification and can focus on backhaul and application layers. The dual-band support (920.6-928 MHz for Japan, 902.2-927.8 MHz for North America) allows one gateway hardware platform to serve multiple regulatory regions - a major cost advantage for multi-country smart city tenders. The two SMA connectors support the antenna diversity or higher-gain sector antennas that border routers typically require to reach the 1000-node mesh edge. Evaluation data gathered here informs the final gateway RF front-end and antenna selection.

RF Module Prototyping and Education

Universities and corporate R&D groups use the BP35C5-T01 as a hands-on platform for teaching and researching low-power mesh networking, since it exposes the complete BP35C5 Wi-SUN FAN stack without requiring RF design expertise. The 42-page BP35C5 datasheet and the dedicated application manual - which documents behaviors such as the GPIOA0/SDA (pin 18) status LED - give students a guided path from first link-up to multi-hop mesh formation. The adapter-board construction makes the module replaceable, so multiple BP35C5 modules can be swapped across a class set of boards to build large experimental meshes approaching the 1000-node limit. Experiments cover range testing with different SMA-attached antennas, regional band switching between 920.6-928 MHz and 902.2-927.8 MHz, and network formation timing. This makes the board a cost-effective, standards-based wireless mesh laboratory resource.