Knowles, Trillbit Team Up to Simplify Setup of Voice-Integrated Smart Devices for OEMs and Consumers

IoT OEMs can now pair the best-in-class, low-power IA61x SmartMics with wake-on-voice capabilities with Trillbit’s ‘Data Over Sound’ for frictionless smart device setup for consumers.

Knowles Corporation (NYSE: KN), a market leader and global provider of advanced micro-acoustic microphones and speakers, audio solutions, and high-performance capacitors and RF products, today announces a collaboration with Trillbit Inc. The combination empowers Trillbit’s TrillConnect software solution to be used for IoT device authentication and commissioning in conjunction with the “always on” Knowles SmartMic IA61x family (IA610 and IA611). Trillbit’s TrillConnect SDK, based on Trillbit’s ‘Data over Sound’ technology, is integrated efficiently into the Knowles IA61x SmartMic, paving the way for highly secure and hassle-free onboarding and set-up solutions. Consumers can now set up devices in one touch and OEMs benefit from high customer satisfaction.

“A challenging setup experience is one of the top reasons consumers return their smart home products and one of the largest barriers to boost consumer adoption of IoT devices,” says Mehul Kochar, Sr. Director Business Development, Audio Solutions at Knowles. “The addition of Trillbit’s TrillConnect SDK to Knowles SmartMic DSP makes it easy for OEMs to ensure their consumers have the best and the simplest setup process, in turn ensuring consumer satisfaction and lower return rates.”

Fast IoT Device Setup 

Conventional Wi-Fi setup involves multiple steps and can be confusing for non-technical users. Smart home devices, such as speakers, typically do not have a user interface (aka headless) and offer little visibility to the user regarding errors during setup. When a user needs to repeat the setup process multiple times, such as for failed initial setups, network changes, or when provisioning multiple devices, a complex initial process is compounded and can frustrate the user. This leads to poor “out-of-box” first impressions and can be the cause of costly customer service calls and product returns.

Simple And Secure Authentication 

Implementing secure authentication is a major hurdle for headless consumer IoT devices. TrillConnect transfers a user's Wi-Fi credential between the user's phone and a new device without the need for Bluetooth pairing or Soft Access Point connection. After unboxing the new device and putting it in setup mode, the customer can use the vendor’s app to pass on the credential. If the customer is using the app for the first time, then they only need to input the Wi-Fi SSID and password and click to connect. Trillbit’s SDK, embedded in the app, encodes and encrypts this data on inaudible sound waves and transfers it to the new device automatically.

The Knowles IA61x family of SmartMic Voice Wake Audio Processors with Trillbit’s ‘Data Over Sound’ technology easily integrates into any IoT-based smart home device to streamline network provisioning. The Trillbit TrillConnect SDK allows for the efficient transfer of encrypted digital data that triggers the gadget to “wake up” and enter the setup phase. TrillConnect encodes any data into a series of near-ultrasound frequencies. This encoded data gets played by a sending device by their speaker in form of Trill tones, over the air, to a receiving device where it is received by a microphone and decoded by the Trillbit SDK. A Knowles SmartMic makes the most efficient and cost-effective listening device that is capable of decoding the Trill tones into usable data. An OEM can customize their smartphone app to authenticate a new IoT device by integrating a Knowles SmartMic enabled with Trillbit’s decoder algorithm and securely send sensitive provisioning data with minimum consumer involvement.

“We are excited to collaborate with Knowles, an IoT industry leader, to solve this critical pain point for OEMs,” said Bhaskar Deo, CEO at Trillbit. "Trillbit’s ‘Data Over Sound’ is a new communication channel that bridges the gap to solving these challenges with a frictionless user experience. ‘TrillConnect’ vastly simplifies the commissioning of headless devices: one-touch setup with no pairing or configuration, no additional hardware requirements, and the ability to set up multiple devices at once. Manufacturers can provide a setup solution that is preferred by users and ultimately a better product experience."

The IA610 and IA611 include an “always-on” Acoustic Processor featuring Voice Wake and Voice ID keyword detector, a pre-roll buffer, and Knowles’ proven high-performance acoustic SiSonic™ MEMS technology in a single, miniature, top-port (IA611) or bottom-port (IA610) package. The IA61x family offers flexibility by supporting the most relevant audio and data interfaces. Its integrated programmable DSP with 248 KBytes of RAM is available for customer and third-party algorithms, enabling unlimited creativity. The solution pushes the system performance to ultra-low power with its custom core design and accelerates times to market with its unique combination of hardware, software, and firmware.

Additional information regarding this solution and its availability can be found on DigiKey.

To learn more, please visit Knowles.com

About Knowles 

Knowles Corporation (NYSE: KN) is a market leader and global provider of advanced micro-acoustic microphones and speakers, audio solutions, and high performance capacitors and RF products, serving the consumer electronics, communications, medtech, defense, electric vehicle, and industrial markets. Knowles uses its leading position in SiSonic™ MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical systems) microphones and strong capabilities in audio processing technologies to optimize audio systems and improve the user experience across consumer applications. Knowles is also a leader in hearing health acoustics, high performance capacitors and RF solutions for a diverse set of markets. Knowles’ focus on the customer, combined with unique technology, proprietary manufacturing techniques, and global operational expertise, enables it to deliver innovative solutions at scale across multiple applications. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, Knowles is a global organization with employees in over a dozen countries. For more information, visit knowles.com.

About Trillbit 

Trillbit is a Boston-based company that offers next-generation software solutions to authenticate people and things without the use of Passwords. Trillbit’s Data-over-Sound technology brings an unprecedented level of security and user experience in authentication use cases across industries, especially for smart home IoT devices and in online access authentication. Trillbit has offices in Cambridge (USA), Munich, and Bengaluru. Trillbit was Finalist in the FIDO Alliance Challenge in 2021 for its FIDO authentication solution utilizing Data over Sound technology. Trillbit has been judged ‘best emerging startup’ by various forums like TiE, Nasscom, IoT India Congress, Network World, and has been covered by major news platforms like Yourstory, Computer World, Business Wire, Yahoo Finance, etc. For more information, visit Trillbit.com.

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The addition of Trillbit’s TrillConnect SDK to Knowles SmartMic DSP makes it easy for OEMs to ensure their consumers have the best and the simplest setup process, in turn ensuring consumer satisfaction and lower return rates.