The Cloud2GND Bumblebee LE Audio Demonstrator board was designed to support the development of all Bluetooth LE Audio applications, including high-quality applications. The Bumblebee board includes amplifiers, drivers, audio connectors, and other components to provide an out-of-box Bluetooth LE Audio experience. The board is configurable for various use cases, such as point to point connected audio, stereo audio to left/right devices (True Wireless Stereo), and audio broadcast (Auracast). This user’s guide explains how to configure and operate the board for several example use cases.
The Bumblebee LE Audio demonstrator includes the main Bumblebee board, and a MEMS PDM microphone daughterboard (Infineon IM69D130). Integrated in the main board and Bluetooth LE Module developers will find a Diodes PAM8965 Class-D amplifier, AKM AK4558 stereo ADC/DAC, left and right speaker connections, line-in and line-out 1/8" audio jacks, and NFC type 4 tag. The Bumblebee board can be powered over USB or external power supply.
With this board, developers will be able to evaluate all the main Bluetooth LE Audio application cases, starting with True Wireless Stereo audio (TWS) to left/right receivers, multi-channel audio broadcast (1-to-N) (Auracast), connected bi-directional audio and more, all using the mandatory LC3 codec in unidirectional or bi-directional (Line In and Mic) modes up to 16-bit/48kHz and 96 kbps per channel. The amplifier is able to power 4 to 16 ohms speakers (10W max @ 4 ohms).
Cloud2GND is a global engineering services firm specializing in standards-based wireless connectivity with a strong background in stack and protocol design, system development, qualification, and product/solution delivery. The Bumblebee LE Audio demonstrator was created to train and support developers to design LE Audio TWS earbuds. In that specific case, the Bumblebee board acts as an audio gateway using Bluetooth LE Connected Isochronous Streams (CIS) to send audio to two receiver boards in a true wireless stereo (TWS) configuration. Each receiver board is configured to accept a specific audio channel – left or right.
Developers can also experiment the full possibilities with the board acting as an audio gateway using the new Bluetooth LE Broadcast Isochronous Streams (BIS) to send two channels of audio to an arbitrary number of receiver boards. A button on each board can be used on a receiver to switch channels while actively receiving audio data. Its also possible to evaluate Bluetooth LE Connected Isochronous Stream (CIS) to send
bi-directional audio for a gaming headset design, as an example.
The Bumblebee board comes with firmware that provides the use cases described and is able to receive updates with additional features provided in firmware releases by Cloud2GND. Updating the Bumblebee board firmware requires using a smartphone that is supported by the nRF Connect Device Manager application. This application communicates with the Bumblebee board and requires that the board be booted in over-the-air (OTA) update mode.
Cloud2GND was founded by a team of passionate professionals with a deep understanding of connected devices and experienced in solving complex challenges in the worlds of wireless connectivity, mesh networking, and embedded systems. In the early 2000s, Bluetooth technology was primarily used as a cable replacement for short-range data transfer, but with the introduction of new audio use cases, it was clear that Bluetooth was poised to become a household name. Several members of the Cloud2GND team worked together at a leading Bluetooth stack vendor, where they spent years developing and troubleshooting Bluetooth devices and solutions.
After the stack vendor was acquired by a major semiconductor company, Cloud2GND was founded to continue providing support and maintenance to key customers, in direct involvement with the Bluetooth SIG.
www.cloud2gnd.com/bumblebee-le-audio-demonstration-board
