FreeWave unveils data radio
FreeWave Technologies released the FGR2-PE, a data radio developed for distribution and automation applications in smart-grid and renewable-energy systems. The data radio offers industrial serial and Ethernet wireless connectivity over long distances, said Matthias van Doorn, product manager for Ethernet and licensed radio systems.
The FGR2-PE transmits data over the unlicensed 900 MHz band. It offers users a second, switched Ethernet port and two serial ports and is ruggedized in a metal-cast enclosure, van Doorn said. It also offers integrated security options, such as AES 128-bit encryption and proprietary spread-spectrum technology.
“We’ve chosen to go with a proprietary spread-spectrum technology, which inherently makes it very safe,” van Doorn said. “Because we are hopping very fast, it is very difficult to interfere with the radio itself — to do a denial of service attack — or try to capture frequencies and start listening to it.”
The radio costs $1,195, but pricing varies, depending upon customer configuration, van Doorn said.
