Designed & Made in the USA Since 1983
Featured on all MobileCollect products.
RM2.4 is a proprietary wireless protocol developed by MicroRidge from the ground up for high performance and reliability when transmitting precision gage data. It’s engineered to maintain consistent communication in demanding industrial environments where other wireless technologies often struggle.
That’s why MobileCollect is built on RM2.4—delivering dependable operation in the high-RF conditions common in modern manufacturing. RM2.4 also provides key advantages including encrypted data packets for security, smart battery management that can allow transmitters to operate for years on a single CR2032, long-range communication of 140+ ft, and easy scalability with no limit to how many transmitters can be paired to a single Base Receiver.
RM2.4 is built on the proven foundation of IEEE 802.15.4, a low-power wireless standard designed for short-range, low-data-rate communication—ideal for transmitting small measurement packets from precision gages. 802.15.4 defines the PHY (radio) and MAC layers, including channelization, modulation, clear-channel assessment, addressing, acknowledgments/retries, and optional beaconing, enabling efficient, deterministic communication without the overhead of Wi‑Fi or classic Bluetooth. This “send a short packet, confirm delivery, then go back to sleep” model is both dependable and battery-friendly in high-RF industrial environments. By contrast, channel hopping schemes like Bluetooth’s can run into trouble in noisy facilities: if wide portions of the 2.4 GHz band are contaminated by broadband interference or strong emitters, hopping simply moves the transmission into another bad channel, increasing retries and latency. Hopping also adds timing and coordination complexity, and rapid frequency changes can be less forgiving in metal-heavy environments where reflections and fading vary across channels.
RM2.4 uses 32-bit encryption to protect measurement data and help meet security and compliance requirements in government facilities and other high-security manufacturing environments. The data packet is encrypted at the transmitter before it’s sent over the air, helping protect it from interception while in transit. When the Base Receiver receives the transmission, it decrypts (un-encrypts) the packet locally and then passes the measurement into the host computer/software in the required format, so you get secure wireless transport without changing your existing data-collection workflow. Even through the payload is “just” a single feature measurement, maintaining high security standards is important to protect sensitive production details and meet strict audit requirements.
Smart battery management in the RM2.4 protocol is important in manufacturing because it minimizes maintenance and prevents avoidable disruptions on the shop floor. By optimizing power use so transmitters can run for years—not months—on a single CR2032, it reduces the frequency of battery changes, lowers the risk of unexpected dropouts during inspections, and cuts the time supervisors and operators spend checking battery status across multiple stations. The result is less downtime, fewer interruptions to production and quality workflows, and more consistent data collection with minimal hands-on oversight.
RM2.4 delivers industry-best wireless range for precision gage data collection thanks to its IEEE 802.15.4 foundation. It uses small, efficient data packets engineered for reliable transmission, lower power consumption, and greater range. This combination helps RM2.4 achieve industry-best performance that can exceed 140 ft in real industrial environments—even where metal structures and RF noise challenge other wireless options. For large-component inspections or spread-out work areas, RM2.4’s industry-best range keeps measurement data flowing without forcing operators to work right next to the receiver.
RM2.4 provides exceptional flexibility by not limiting how many transmitters/gages can be paired to a single Base Receiver. This lets you build one unified measurement collection system that scales as your needs grow—without splitting devices across multiple receivers or managing separate wireless networks. In practice, you can bring numerous hand gages, RS-232 instruments, DROs, scales, and other measurement devices onto the same RM2.4 system, simplifying deployment, reducing hardware complexity, and keeping data collection consistent across the shop floor.
Often called the “industrial Bluetooth,” RM2.4 is purpose-built for shop-floor gage data, delivering small measurement packets reliably through clear-channel assessment and acknowledgments/retries instead of channel hopping, which can struggle when much of the band is noisy. Anyone who has fought with a Bluetooth speaker that won’t pair knows how frustrating Bluetooth can be—and that headache multiplies when many operators are trying to run Bluetooth-based systems in close proximity. RM2.4 scales easily in manufacturing environments by allowing large numbers of devices to operate within one system without the practical connection limits common to Bluetooth deployments.
For a detailed breakdown of how RM2.4 outperforms Bluetooth and other wireless protocols in real industrial environments — including published specs from Mitutoyo, Fowler, Starrett, and Mahr — see our full technical comparison.
The MICRO-RM2.4 Radio Module from MicroRidge Systems is a small wireless module based on the Atmel ATmega2564RFR2 microcontroller. The ATmega2564RFR2 is a low-powered CMOS 8-bit microcontroller based on the AVR enhanced RISC architecture combined with a high data rate transceiver for the 2.4 GHz ISM (industrial, scientific and medical) band. The MICRO-RM2.4 contains an on-board chip antenna. The module contains radio certifications for FCC, IC and EU (CE). No additional RF testing is required as long as the application of the MICRO-RM2.4 follows the approved certifications. The small size of the MICRO-RM2.4 module allows it to be used in small and compact products. The module measures 12 x 20.75 x 3 mm (.472 x .817 x .118 inches). The module requires a power supply of 1.8 to 3.6 volts DC. This voltage range allows the module to be powered by a single 3 volt coin cell or two 1.5 volt batteries.
The following RM2.4 logo may be required to be displayed on products that use the RM2.4 Radio Module. This requirement only applies to products that are compatible with the MicroRidge MobileCollect product line.
If you are using the RM2.4 Radio Module with application firmware developed by MicroRidge for use with the MobileCollect product line, the RM2.4 logo must be displayed on the product label. By displaying the RM2.4 logo on the product, it will help the user to identify products compatible with MobileCollect.
If you are developing your own application firmware and the product will be compatible with MobileCollect, it is strongly recommend that you put the RM2.4 logo on your product.
The MICRO-RM2.4 Radio Module is classified as a short range device by ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute).
Short Range Devices (SRD) are radio devices that offer a low risk of interference with other radio services, usually because their transmitted power, and hence their range, is low. Short range devices often benefit from a relaxed regulatory regime compared with other radio communications equipment. The definition ‘Short Range Device’ may be applied to many different types of wireless equipment, including various forms of:
The following documents provide additional information about the MICRO-RM2.4 Radio Module. All of the documents are supplied as PDF files.
