Average power consumption of mesh node

[Dilip.n]

Hello ,

    I was working on BLE mesh implementation, It would be helpful if there is information regarding current consumption of different mesh nodes ( low power node, friend node, relay node etc..). I went  through this  PDF , where I was able to get some insights about power consumption of low power node. In application we are planning to deploy the mesh devices, more or less all the nodes will be on powered by battery. So as to arrive on certain implementation decisions, it would be helpful if there is a document or a case study which provides some reference into power consumption of other nodes and not just low power node.

  

[Hung Bui]

Hi Dilip,

The current consumption for a normal mesh node (not the low power node) should be almost the same as the RX current of the radio. The reason is that the Radio has to stay in RX all of the time to scan for any packet. And this will be the significant current draw of the device. The CPU may be active when there is a packet to process but that's wouldn't contribute much to the average of the current consumption in the long run, unless you send and receive data at a very high rate. 

You can find the RX current in the product spec. Or you can have a look at the online power profiler here: https://devzone.nordicsemi.com/nordic/power/

[Dilip.n]

Hello Hung bui,

   Thank you for the reply.