BT SIG - using nrF52832 with S132 v3.0.0 - how should we determine we need qualification certification or just declaration and listing

[sireeshad]

We are using nrF52 series in combination with v3.0.0 of the S132 SoftDevice stack. And I want to understand if we have to go through any of the qualification certification phase even if we refer its end product QDID (85568) ? Or do we have to perform just RF-PHY cert by quoting the same end product QDID (If our module FCC/CE certified)

[run_ar]

Yes, you simply need to perform the RF-PHY certification and reference our qualified design. If you support a bluetooth sig defined profile, you might also have to reference our profile subsystem (if using our service interface files), Or qualify your own profile implementation if you have that.

[sireeshad]

Thanks for the response. Another question on the same lines - we have followed the reference design rules and using unmodified softdevice (and our module is going to be FCC certified): Do we still need to go through qualification process i.e. just the RF_PHY cert with BT SIG? And why not directly use Nordic's qualified reference ID and declare/list our product?

[run_ar]

It is probably possible to avoid RF-PHY testing using our reference design provided you use the same (including same manufacturer) 16/32 Mz crystal and load capacitors. As well as use the same (same manufacturer) ANT components (C3 and L1). In addition your layout will have to match our reference design (especially the placement of C3 and L1).

Regardless we will still recommend that you do the RF-PHY re-test and save the result as engineering evidence. In the end it is up to you to do the reassessment and decide what you want to do.

[sireeshad]

Ok thank you run_ar for the details. I am not sure if the reference design spec out any recommended manufacturer for the components but does spec the values. We are using 32mhz Kyocera with a PPM (+/-10). the C3 and L1 are placed exactly in the same formation. L1 seems to be a tighter tolerance than the ref. design with a 3.9nH +/- 0.1nH compared to +/-5% on the ref. design. Appreciate your opinion on this. Thank you.

[run_ar]

You can see what components we have used in the BOM in the nRF52 Development HW reference files.