[PCB] Pro mini / RFM95W / 18650 solar chargeable

End Devices (Nodes) Hardware
63

Hi all, in the meantime the IoT LoRa v4 board (Arduino Pro Mini + RFM95W + AT24CXX:

iot_lora_v4_top

and the IoT Battery-Sensor board (with the TPL5111/TPS22860 concept):

0

are tested and working perfect.

See also: IoT LoRa Sandwiches

The total result (with case 85x58x33mm and antenna) looks nice:

node-case_85x58x33_b

5 Likes
64

Just over a year too lateā€¦ but yes, just to confirm the Whisper Node uses the RFM95 (20dBm), which Hope RF prints RF96 on their chips to confuse all of us. This is the same SX1276 chip on all other LoRaWAN devices and modules.

By the way, for those wanting to try the Whisper Node with TTN, have a look at the Adafruit TinyLoRa library. It should be just a matter of setting 4 things:

  1. The Frequency Plan directly inside TinyLoRa.h
  2. Manually add a device to your TTN Application and use ABP registration
  3. Open the example ā€œhello_LoRaā€ and update the NwkSkey, AppSkey and DevAddr using the values generated by the TTN during your device registration
  4. Setup the correct pinout in the example code:
    // Pinout for Whisper Node LoRa
    TinyLoRa lora = TinyLoRa(2, 10, 7);

The library is not a full LoRaWAN implementation, but itā€™s indeed tiny:
Sketch uses 5232 bytes (17%) of program storage space. Maximum is 30720 bytes.
Global variables use 340 bytes (16%) of dynamic memory, leaving 1708 bytes for local variables. Maximum is 2048 bytes.

One more thingā€¦ you might need to keep eye/disable the ā€œFrame Counter Checksā€ in the TTN or implement a way to save the counter as this starts from zero every reboot.

2 Likes
65

Just an update on this, weā€™ve just published the detailed steps how to configure the Whisper Node to send a message to TTN using the tinyLoRa library: https://wisen.com.au/blog/whisper-node-and-ursalink-lorawan-gateway/

67

Hello Wijnand,

Ik heb de indruk dat je uit NL komt, daarom meteen in eigen taal: in de zoektocht naar een manier om mijn eerste stappen te zetten op TTN door RF95 met een Arduino Mini te koppelen vind ik je posting. Je PCB ziet er goed uit. Kun je me verder helpen: heb je boards te koop?
Bestaat er een speciaal topic met meer info van je board?

68

The forum is for English content only, please

69

Yes, you ware right. Was my first posting, assuming to sent a direct message :wink:
So, in english: a) hello Wijnand, please inform us if you still have some boards for sale. Iā€™m stumbled upon your design while looking for a solution to connect RF95 to an Arduino Mini. Want to start wiith some simple temperature readings and send them to TTN.
Secondly: do you have more information on the PCB? Link, PDF, part list, etc?

70

Hello @renerene

Eat this! : https://pcbs.io/user/Wijnand

Aaaand this! : http://alf4all.demon.nl/engineering/topics/targets/Arduino-Pro-Mini_RFM95/index.htm

I/we love this PCB from @Wijnand! We build our Weather.- and TrackerNodes with this PCB.

IMG_1900

Have a nice day. :wink:

Nordrunner

71

Hello @renerene,

I donā€™t sell PCBā€™s but if you want to make a quick start I can send you one or two older versions for free. In return you can publish your experiences in this topic. Let me know, regardsā€¦

2 Likes