Wi-Fi box, connected watch, Bluetooth speaker, voice assistant… In our daily lives, waves are everywhere.
But to prevent devices from interfering with each other, they must be tested under special conditions.
And it is in the new radio frequency room at the National Metrology and Testing Laboratory (LNE), in Trappes (Yvelines), that this is happening.
This cutting-edge public establishment brings together a thousand engineers from all over the world, including 480 in Trappes.
Last December, the Yvelin laboratory inaugurated a “radio frequency cage” in partnership with the company Nexio, for an investment of 1.3 million euros.
Radio frequency is all wireless communication technology, such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.
Waves that must not collide when two devices are operating next to each other.
“We have around 16 billion connected objects in the world,” says Bernard Picque, deputy director of testing and certification.
In 2025, there will be 25 billion connected objects.
Our tests ensure their reliability.
Our laboratory is designed to accommodate 5G, 6G and goes up to 18 gigahertz.
» (A Wi-Fi wave can go up to 5 gigahertz).
Soon an artificial intelligence tester
This 7 meter high chamber, 9 meters long and 5 meters wide, tests infinitely small waves in order to ensure the conformity and safety of the product before it is placed on the market.
In this bright room, the walls are covered with 20,000 tiles, squares of ferrites, as well as plexi plates in order to absorb, reflect or even “break” the waves.
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The clients are mainly companies that have their prototypes tested.
For a day of testing, it costs around 2,000 euros.
“We use these measurement methods to help manufacturers develop their products,” adds Julien Fouques, developer engineer in Île-de-France.
Thanks to laboratory analyses, we then help companies place the antennas for greater efficiency and so that they do not disturb each other.
It’s about making connections coexist.
»
After radio frequency, the laboratory is preparing to welcome an artificial intelligence tester at the end of February.
A new room will be inaugurated at the end of February to test the robots in a virtual scene, such as a server robot in a restaurant or another personal assistance robot...