Near Field Magnetic Induction and Apple iPhone 7 ear buds

You know Near Field Communication (NFC) but you may not be knowing that NFMI is also hot. NFMI stands for Near Field Magnetic Induction. The iPhone 7 earbuds use NFMI so that they do not require a wire running between them. The company which specializes in NFC goes by the name NXP Semiconductors in Holland also makes the NFMI.

The NFMI chip uses less power than an equivalent Bluetooth Low Power device and its absorption by the body tissues is 10000 times less than Bluetooth makes it an attractive alternative. As a consequence of this low power operation its range is limited to about a meter making it just appropriate for connecting the two ear buds and of course it is tiny with a 10.4 mm sq. area.

Ear is a very sensitive area of the body where other body functions can also be monitored and, of course it has very sensitive parts. Any thing to reduce damage from anything including RF damage is most desired. The new NFC chip also has a two-axis accelerometer embedded, another very desirable feature is, it is also water proof.

I have only summarized this excellent coverage of the article by Colin Johnson and I recommend you reading this article which appeared on EETimes.
 
Here is a short video of NxH2280 demonstration .





This schematic of the NxH2280 chip appeared in the article.


NFMI_00

Michael Faraday would have been thrilled!




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