11.4.1 Antenna Placement Recommendations for ATWINC15x0-MR210UB

The following recommendations must be applied for the placement of the antenna and its cable:

• The antenna cable must not be routed over circuits generating electrical noise on the host board or alongside or underneath the module. It is preferred that the cable be routed straight out of the module.
• The antenna must not be placed in direct contact or in close proximity of the plastic casing/objects.
• Do not enclose the antenna within a metal shield.
• Keep any components which may radiate noise, signals or harmonics within the 2.4 GHz to 2.5 GHz frequency band away from the antenna and, if possible, shield those components. Any noise radiated from the host board in this frequency band degrades the sensitivity of the module.
• The antenna should preferably be placed at a distance greater than 5 cm away from the module. The following figure shows the antenna keep-out area indication; where the antenna must not be placed in this area. This recommendation is based on an open-air measurement and does not take into account any metal shielding of the customer end product. When a metal enclosure is used, the antenna can be located closer to the ATWINC15x0-MR210UB module.

The drawing below provides an indication of how the antenna cable should be routed depending on the location of the antenna with respect to the ATWINC15x0-MR210UB PCB. There are two possible options for the optimum routing of the cable.