RS485 to NB-IoT converter with UART and M16 cable gland Dragino RS485-NB M16/GE

The Dragino RS485-NB M16/GE is designed to bring existing field sensors with RS485, UART, or interrupt output into an NB-IoT deployment. Instead of replacing the sensor itself, the converter keeps the installed sensor in use, reads its data at intervals, and sends the values over NB-IoT to the platform. This is especially useful where sensing points are spread out and there is no practical wired communications path.

Typical use cases include water and environmental monitoring points, tanks, shafts, pump stations, technical building systems, agricultural monitoring points, and remote industrial sites. In many of these projects, there are already sensors with Modbus or UART output, but no simple way to move their data into a modern IoT system. That is exactly where the RS485-NB fits.

The converter supports RS485 sensors, 3.3 V or 5 V UART TTL sensors, and interrupt sensors. It also provides controllable 3.3 V and 5 V outputs for powering external sensors. This matters in battery-powered deployments because an external sensor can be powered only when needed for sampling, helping reduce overall energy use.

For integrators, the RS485-NB is useful when different kinds of field devices need to be tied into one NB-IoT architecture. Modbus support, multiple uplink protocols, and flexible sampling make it easier to reuse existing sensor hardware rather than rebuilding the measurement side from scratch. The M16/GE version is the variant with M16 cable entry.

One important point for this version: it is battery-operated, not solar-powered. The 8500 mAh Li/SOCl2 battery is intended for long service life. BLE configuration and OTA updates simplify deployment and maintenance in the field.