Qualcomm Introduces New Amazon Alexa Development Kit for Affordable Smart Home Products

October 31 2019, 00:20
Qualcomm Technologies, a subsidiary of Qualcomm, announced a new development kit based on the Qualcomm QCA4020 multimode SoC that is qualified by Amazon’s Alexa Voice Service (AVS) for AWS IoT Core connected devices. The new Qualcomm Home Hub 100 kit supports Alexa Voice Service using a microcontroller (MCU) and Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) with Multimode Connectivity and adds to Qualcomm's’ line up of voice enabling products including kits that can allow OEMs to easily integrate Alexa into smart speakers and hearables.

With consumer expectations centering on voice to interact with and control connected devices in the home, Qualcomm Technologies is creating practical solutions that are designed to deliver virtually seamless voice-driven consumer experiences. The new kit can enable device manufacturers to easily evaluate, integrate, and test connectivity, voice control and interactivity with smart appliances, home automation configurations and lighting. 

“With this development kit, device manufacturers can quickly develop useful voice-controlled smart home products that are designed to be interoperable across multiple technologies,” sats Jeffery Torrance, vice president, business development, Qualcomm Technologies. “As a result, consumers can gain an unprecedented level of control over various devices in their smart homes at affordable price points. We are proud to work with Amazon to be the catalyst for this growth.”

“We’re thrilled Qualcomm Technologies is releasing a new voice-first solution that can streamline the development cycle for OEMs and make it even easier to bring new products to customers,” adds Sanjay Voleti, Senior Manager, Alexa Voice Service. “The Qualcomm Home Hub 100 Platform is designed to simplify what’s required to integrate Alexa into a variety of everyday smart home devices like thermostats, light switches, appliances and more – we can’t wait to see what developers build.”

Allowing fast evaluation and prototyping, the Qualcomm Home Hub 100 development kit with AVS offers several key advantages for manufacturers looking to develop connected devices that integrate Alexa for device control. The integrated hardware and software platform was designed to support multi-mode intelligent connectivity with the QCA4020 SoC featuring Dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low Energy 5, and 802.15.4-based technologies, including ZigBee and Thread. This microcontroller based solution is designed to support a Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) and is complemented with a reference command and control audio framework, and advanced coexistence combined with a pre-integrated DSP voice module by Synaptics featuring AudioSmart CX20921 Smart Trigger technology. And integrated hardware-based security features and functions are also integrated in a single IC to enhance device protection. 

“As a company with a long working relationship with Amazon and early developer of solutions for the Alexa Voice Service, we are pleased to work with Qualcomm Technologies in the launch of this new development kit that utilizes our two-mic AudioSmart solution,” says Saleel Awsare, senior vice president and general manager, IoT Division, Synaptics. “The rise of voice as one of the fastest growing human interfaces in Consumer IoT is very exciting, and we are proud to work closely with industry leaders to help simplify people’s lives.”

The development kit is manufactured by AQUILA. The North America ISV is TANTIV4. The Asia ISV is UTILE.
www.qualcomm.com/products/qualcomm-home-hub-100-dev-kit-amazon-avs
www.qualcomm.com
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