Iridium launches new Certus 9704 satellite IoT module

McLean, Va.–headquartered LEO satcom specialist Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) has launched the Iridium Certus 9704, its newest IoT module, and the Iridium Certus 9704 development kit.

It says that the new module, featuring Iridium Messaging Transport (IMT) technology, is the smallest and most powerful that it has created and is ideal for supporting satellite IoT applications that require real-time data analysis, analytics and automated decision-making. Providing larger file transfer sizes and faster message speeds than previous Iridium IoT modules, it delivers data, picture, and audio messages for industrial (IIoT), machine-to-machine (M2M) and remote personnel use cases. Like other Iridium Connected devices, the Iridium Certus 9704 can provide two-way IoT services anywhere in the world, making fast and reliable connections to a broad array of applications.

Iridium says that the Certus 9704 architecture simplifies data transfer requirements for use cases like predictive maintenance, diagnostics, telemetry monitoring, remote asset tracking, and command and control for uncrewed aircraft, vehicles and vessels. The module’s larger-sized data messages are also said to be ideal for remote sensing applications and enable a new generation of purpose-built satellite messengers and personal safety devices.

“We’ve now packed more capability and value into the smallest module ever from Iridium,” said Matt Desch, CEO, Iridium. “When companies choose to develop with Iridium, they know they are partnering with the leader in satellite IoT applications, and we’ll support them through the development and deployment of their solutions. We’re excited to see how they implement this new technology.”

Designed for ease of integration, the Iridium Certus 9704 is 34% smaller than the Iridium 9603, 79% smaller than the Iridium 9602, and has an 83% reduction in idle power consumption compared to both. This power optimization makes the new module ideal to support battery powered applications, while taking advantage of two-way messaging, including delivery confirmation, over Iridium’s low-latency, truly global satellite network.

“Ideal for supporting traditional satellite IoT applications,” says Iridium, “the new module can also help organizations become more future ready as Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes integrated with IoT services, known as AIoT (Artificial Intelligence of Things). With this integration, satellite AIoT services should quickly follow, and companies that deploy products with Iridium Certus 9704 modules inside can then choose to offload more computing to the cloud in a single message, where an AIoT engine can quickly make decisions and send new, actionable instructions back to the remote device. This can lessen the required edge device processing power, lower hardware cost, and increase battery life and overall device lifespan. With IMT at its core, a built-in topic-sorting capability means messages can be efficiently organized for delivery to the appropriate engine for various types of real-time data, audio or image analysis.”

“The Iridium Certus 9704 module and Development Kit were designed with the developer in mind,” said Omar Azad, associate director, product management, Iridium. “We want to make it as easy as possible for anyone to experience the new module’s capabilities and quality of the IMT service. When they’re ready to take the next step and build a product to take to market, we’re there to support them with our decades of experience in the satellite IoT space.”

The Iridium Certus 9704 development Kit is a complete test kit featuring a motherboard, power supply, antenna, module and software from the popular Arduino platform. It was designed to provide maximum autonomy and flexibility for developers, coming with 1,000 free messages and GitLab hosted reference materials. The kit is initially available to prospective Iridium customers for evaluation of the Iridium Certus 9704 module and IMT data service. Iridium has partnered with Blynk to give developers an all-in-one platform for data visualization and a rapid unboxing-to-live-testing experience.

The Iridium Certus 9704 has received FCC and ISED authorizations for use, with additional regulatory approvals pending.

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