Specialized Dual-Role BLE for Marine Tech: The Power-Pole MOVE Success Story

On the water, there’s no room for “almost works.” When anglers rely on their trolling motor for precise boat control while fishing, wireless connectivity must be flawless. For JL Marine Systems, makers of the renowned Power-Pole brand, standard Bluetooth solutions weren’t enough. They needed something that had rarely been achieved: simultaneous dual-role BLE operation on a single chip, enabling their Power-Pole MOVE system to act as both a Central and Peripheral device at the same time. It was a wireless challenge that required specialized expertise and innovative thinking.

The Vision: Next-Generation Marine Control

JL Marine Systems has built their reputation on innovation in marine technology. Their Power-Pole shallow water anchors revolutionized boat positioning, and with the Power-Pole MOVE trolling motor system, they aimed to bring the same innovation to trolling motor control.

The vision was ambitious:

Advanced Wireless Control: Create a seamless wireless experience between the trolling motor base unit and the foot pedal controller, providing anglers with precise, responsive control.

Unified System Architecture: Develop a single firmware platform that could run on both the baseboard (in the trolling motor) and the foot pedal, simplifying development and maintenance.

Beyond Standard BLE: Implement capabilities that went beyond typical Bluetooth implementations, requiring the system to simultaneously manage multiple connection roles.

Marine-Grade Reliability: Ensure robust operation in the challenging marine environment with its unique interference patterns, weather exposure, and reliability demands.

This wasn’t just about adding Bluetooth to a trolling motor—it was about reimagining wireless control for marine applications.

Why JL Marine Chose Croxel

When JL Marine evaluated their options for this complex wireless development, they needed more than just embedded firmware contractors. They needed a team with:

Deep BLE Expertise: The dual-role requirement pushed beyond what most firmware teams had experience with. Croxel’s proven track record with advanced BLE implementations made us the right choice.

Autonomous Team Capability: JL Marine wanted a partner who could take complete ownership of the wireless system, working independently while integrating with their broader product development.

Production Mindset: This wasn’t a prototype or proof-of-concept. JL Marine needed production-ready firmware that would perform flawlessly in customers’ boats.

Innovation Partnership: They sought a team that would push boundaries and find creative solutions to seemingly impossible requirements.

Our autonomous team model aligned perfectly with their needs—providing focused expertise without the overhead of managing individual contractors.

Our Solution: Autonomous Team Delivering Specialized Expertise

From the outset, our approach was to take complete ownership of the wireless subsystem while ensuring seamless integration with JL Marine’s product vision.

Dual-Role BLE Innovation

The heart of the challenge was implementing simultaneous dual-role BLE operation on a single Nordic nRF52833 SoC. In typical BLE applications, a device is either a Central (like a smartphone connecting to peripherals) or a Peripheral (like a sensor broadcasting data). The Power-Pole MOVE system needed to be both—simultaneously.

This required:

Complex State Management: Developing sophisticated firmware architecture to manage concurrent Central and Peripheral roles without conflicts.

Resource Optimization: Carefully managing the Nordic chip’s resources to handle multiple simultaneous connections efficiently.

Custom Protocol Development: Creating robust communication protocols that leveraged both roles for reliable motor control.

Timing Precision: Ensuring that the dual-role operation didn’t introduce latency or reliability issues in the control system.

Unified Firmware Architecture

Rather than developing separate firmware for the baseboard and foot pedal, we created a unified architecture that could adapt to either role:

Hardware Abstraction: Built comprehensive abstraction layers that detected hardware configuration at runtime.

Modular Design: Developed modular components that could be configured for either baseboard or foot pedal operation.

Shared Protocol Stack: Implemented a common communication protocol that worked seamlessly regardless of which hardware it ran on.

Simplified Maintenance: One codebase meant bugs fixed in one place benefited both hardware platforms.

Marine-Ready Implementation

Marine environments are notoriously challenging for electronics. Salt spray, vibration, temperature extremes, and electromagnetic interference from other boat systems all threatened reliable operation. Our implementation addressed these challenges:

Robust Error Handling: Implemented comprehensive error detection and recovery mechanisms to handle connection disruptions.

Interference Mitigation: Developed adaptive algorithms to maintain connectivity even in high-interference environments.

Power Management: Optimized power consumption for extended battery life while maintaining responsive control.

Environmental Resilience: Designed the firmware to operate reliably across the full range of marine conditions.

Complete Ownership Model

As an autonomous team, we took full responsibility for the wireless subsystem:

Defined the architecture and implementation approach
Managed our own development timeline and milestones
Conducted comprehensive testing and validation
Delivered production-ready firmware with documentation
Provided clear integration points with JL Marine’s systems

This model allowed JL Marine to focus on their core mechanical and systems engineering while trusting us to deliver the wireless innovation they needed.

The Technical Achievement

What we delivered pushed the boundaries of BLE technology:

Simultaneous Dual-Role Operation

The firmware successfully implemented true simultaneous dual-role operation—a capability rarely achieved in production systems. The Power-Pole MOVE could:

Act as a Peripheral to receive commands from mobile apps or other controllers
Simultaneously operate as a Central to manage connections with foot pedals and accessories
Maintain multiple concurrent connections without performance degradation
Switch contexts seamlessly based on operational needs

Elegant Complexity Management

While the underlying implementation was complex, we abstracted this complexity behind clean, maintainable interfaces:

Simple APIs for JL Marine’s application layer
Hidden complexity of role management and state machines
Clear documentation for future maintenance
Robust error handling that gracefully managed edge cases

Over-the-Air Updates

Recognizing that marine products need long-term support, we implemented comprehensive OTA update capabilities:

Secure firmware updates for both baseboard and foot pedal
Ability to update the Host MCU and BLE Controller independently
Fail-safe mechanisms to prevent bricking devices
Version management and rollback capabilities

The Result: Marine-Grade Wireless Excellence

The successful delivery of this specialized BLE system had immediate and lasting impacts:

Technical Excellence: JL Marine received a dual-role BLE implementation that few companies have achieved, providing a significant technical advantage in the marine market.

Unified Development Platform: The single firmware architecture reduced development complexity and accelerated time-to-market for the Power-Pole MOVE system.

Field-Proven Reliability: The robust implementation has proven itself in demanding marine environments, earning trust from professional anglers and recreational boaters alike.

Future-Ready Architecture: With OTA updates and modular design, the platform can evolve with new features and capabilities without hardware changes.

Competitive Differentiation: The advanced wireless capabilities enable control features that competitors simply cannot match with standard BLE implementations.

The Value of Specialized Expertise

The Power-Pole MOVE project demonstrates why specialized expertise matters in embedded systems development. Standard BLE implementations are well-documented and widely understood. But when you need to push beyond the standard—when you need simultaneous dual-role operation, unified architectures, and marine-grade reliability—you need a team that specializes in making the impossible possible.

Our autonomous team model delivered this expertise efficiently:

Complete ownership meant clear accountability
Specialized knowledge applied directly to the challenge
No learning curve or ramp-up time
Production-ready results, not just prototypes

For JL Marine, this meant they could focus on what they do best—creating innovative marine products—while trusting our team to deliver the wireless capabilities that would set their product apart.

Looking Forward

The success of the Power-Pole MOVE wireless system represents more than just a technical achievement. It demonstrates how specialized expertise, delivered through an autonomous team model, can unlock capabilities that transform products and create market advantages.

In an industry where wireless connectivity is becoming table stakes, the companies that will lead are those that go beyond standard implementations. They’ll create wireless systems that do more, work better, and enable experiences their competitors cannot match.

Does your product need specialized wireless capabilities?

Whether you’re pushing the boundaries of BLE, implementing complex wireless protocols, or need marine-grade reliability, Croxel’s autonomous teams deliver the specialized expertise that makes the difference between “works” and “works brilliantly.”

Explore our Engineering Services to discover how specialized expertise can transform your next product.