STMicroelectronics and COMPRION have developed a jointly validated test environment aimed at helping developers test IoT devices using the GSMA’s SGP.32 eSIM specification.
The companies say the environment is designed to address one of the practical challenges created by SGP.32: ensuring that the different components involved in remotely managing an IoT device’s cellular profile can work together reliably.
SGP.32 introduces the IoT Profile Assistant (IPA), which manages eSIM profiles in connected devices and acts as an intermediary between the device’s eUICC and the eSIM IoT Remote Manager (eIM).
There are two implementations of the IPA. An IPA embedded in the eUICC, known as an IPAe, runs on the secure element itself, while an IPAd runs on the IoT device. The latter gives device manufacturers and embedded software developers another component to implement and test.
For an IPAd implementation, however, testing cannot be confined to the device. The IPAd needs to interact with the eUICC, eIM and Subscription Manager Data Preparation+ (SM-DP+) service, which provides the eSIM profiles.
The result is a more complex testing environment for manufacturers developing their own IPAd implementations, particularly where they need to demonstrate interoperability with components supplied by different vendors.
“Many companies are currently developing components for the SGP.32 ecosystem for the first time,” said Dr Marcus Dormanns, Director Product Management & Business Development at COMPRION.
“The real challenge often lies not in implementing individual functions, but in validating the interaction between the IPAd, the eUICC, and backend systems.”
The test environment combines COMPRION’s eUICC Profile Manager with Loader IoT and Network Bridge tools with STMicroelectronics’ ST4SIM-300 eUICC. COMPRION provides simulated eIM and SM-DP+ functionality, alongside analysis and monitoring tools.
The companies say they have tested the components together to provide a reference environment for third-party IPAd implementations, including implementations based on STMicroelectronics’ reference software or developed independently.
The setup uses a physical ST4SIM-300 eUICC alongside simulated backend systems, allowing developers to test interactions between the IPAd and eUICC under conditions designed to reflect a complete SGP.32 deployment.
“This enables developers to verify interoperability between the IPAd and the eUICC under realistic conditions, identify potential issues early in the development cycle, and reduce integration risks before deployment,” said Agostino Vanore, Secure Edge & IoT eSIM Business Unit Manager at STMicroelectronics.
STMicroelectronics is also providing an IPAd sample implementation that developers can use as a starting point for their own implementations.
The companies are targeting IoT device, module and gateway manufacturers, embedded software developers, connectivity providers and system integrators working on applications including automotive, smart metering, payments and industrial IoT.
