Bluetooth module with antenna, or other?

Other Hardware General Electronics
1

Hi there

I'm new to the Arduino world.
I have a project where two Arduino boards (in the same room or on stage at max 10m appart) have to communicate over bluetooth. They have to be in metal enclosures (one in a 19" rack and the other in a footstep resistant ground controller enclosure so it's rather well insulated...).

So I think using an internal bluetooth module with integrated antenna (be it a nano 33 BLE or an additional BT module) would be a bad idea regarding those metal boxes.

So I am wondering if we can find a BT module with an external SMA antenna that I might have overlooked ?
I've seen some people cutting the copper of integrated BT antennas to solder an external one or even a tuned wire but I'd rather prefer a reliable solution over a hack if possible...

Or maybe a WiFi or other proprietary system I am not aware of would be easier ?

It is to be known that I don't need to transmit much information, just a few bytes every now and then (in fact simple MIDI data), but it has to be responsive (changing sound during a live performance)

Any help much appreciated
Greg

2

I didn't spend too much time looking, but I did remember the ESP32 boards I have, with an external antenna. I have the boards and antennas (on a short pigtail coax). They do support BT.

1 Like
3

Hi @ustk .

I don't know arduino has external antenna.
But some microcontrollers have external antenna.
For example, ESP32-WROOM-32U and ESP32-WROVER-IE have external antenna.
I can find one of them in amazon.com.
Amazon.com

If you can use them in Arduino IDE, they can help you.

1 Like
4

Oh thanks a lot @hijiy @anon57585045 !
I'm having a look at those boards and effectively it seems to solve my problem!
Are they as easy to use as Arduino ones? (thinking of OLED display libraries, EEPROM...)
I'm a newbie, just used PICs long ago...

5

No, but in many cases it's worth the effort. What really sets them apart is the built in wifi and BT. They also have a very powerful processor (two cores actually).

6

Ok thanks, I think I'll go this way then.
I need a limited power, just need a display interface for some settings, digital inputs for interrupts an outputs for some relays, MIDI library, and BT so I'm sure it is a piece of cake for ESP :slight_smile:

7

Keep in mind, all the I/O is 3.3V.

8

I think two ESP32 will make this task easier. They have in-built bluetooth modules.

9

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