I have been working on a .NET nanoFramework library for the RAKwireless RAK3172 module for the last couple of weeks. The devices had been in a box under my desk for a couple of months so first step was to flash them with the latest firmware using my FTDI test harness.
I use two hardware configurations for testing
My sample code has compile time options for synchronous and asynchronous operation. I also include the different nanoff command lines to make updating the test devices easier.
//---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// Copyright (c) May 2022, devMobile Software
//
// Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
// you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
// You may obtain a copy of the License at
//
// http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
//
// Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
// distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
// WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
// See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
// limitations under the License.
//
// https://docs.rakwireless.com/Product-Categories/WisDuo/RAK4200-Breakout-Board/AT-Command-Manual/
//---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#define SERIAL_ASYNC_READ
//#define SERIAL_THREADED_READ
#define ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY // nanoff --target ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY --update
//#define ESP32_WROOM //nanoff --target ESP32_PSRAM_REV0 --serialport COM17 --update
...
namespace devMobile.IoT.LoRaWAN.nanoFramework.RAK3172
{
using System;
using System.Diagnostics;
using System.IO.Ports;
using System.Threading;
#if ESP32_WROOM
using global::nanoFramework.Hardware.Esp32; //need NuGet nanoFramework.Hardware.Esp32
#endif
public class Program
{
private static SerialPort _SerialPort;
#if SERIAL_THREADED_READ
private static Boolean _Continue = true;
#endif
#if ESP32_WROOM
private const string SerialPortId = "COM2";
#endif
...
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
private const string SerialPortId = "COM6";
#endif
public static void Main()
{
#if SERIAL_THREADED_READ
Thread readThread = new Thread(SerialPortProcessor);
#endif
Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.LoRaWAN.nanoFramework.RAK3172 BreakoutSerial starting");
try
{
// set GPIO functions for COM2 (this is UART1 on ESP32)
#if ESP32_WROOM
Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO16, DeviceFunction.COM2_TX);
Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO17, DeviceFunction.COM2_RX);
#endif
Debug.Write("Ports:");
foreach (string port in SerialPort.GetPortNames())
{
Debug.Write($" {port}");
}
Debug.WriteLine("");
using (_SerialPort = new SerialPort(SerialPortId))
{
// set parameters
//_SerialPort.BaudRate = 9600;
_SerialPort.BaudRate = 115200;
_SerialPort.Parity = Parity.None;
_SerialPort.DataBits = 8;
_SerialPort.StopBits = StopBits.One;
_SerialPort.Handshake = Handshake.None;
_SerialPort.NewLine = "\r\n";
//_SerialPort.ReadBufferSize = 128;
//_SerialPort.ReadBufferSize = 256;
_SerialPort.ReadBufferSize = 512;
//_SerialPort.ReadBufferSize = 1024;
_SerialPort.ReadTimeout = 1000;
//_SerialPort.WatchChar = '\n'; // May 2022 WatchChar event didn't fire github issue https://github.com/nanoframework/Home/issues/1035
#if SERIAL_ASYNC_READ
_SerialPort.DataReceived += SerialDevice_DataReceived;
#endif
_SerialPort.Open();
_SerialPort.WatchChar = '\n';
#if SERIAL_THREADED_READ
readThread.Start();
#endif
for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++)
{
string atCommand;
atCommand = "AT+VER=?";
Debug.WriteLine("");
Debug.WriteLine($"{i} TX:{atCommand} bytes:{atCommand.Length}--------------------------------");
_SerialPort.WriteLine(atCommand);
Thread.Sleep(5000);
}
}
Debug.WriteLine("Done");
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
}
}
#if SERIAL_ASYNC_READ
private static void SerialDevice_DataReceived(object sender, SerialDataReceivedEventArgs e)
{
SerialPort serialPort = (SerialPort)sender;
switch (e.EventType)
{
case SerialData.Chars:
break;
case SerialData.WatchChar:
string response = serialPort.ReadExisting();
Debug.Write(response);
break;
default:
Debug.Assert(false, $"e.EventType {e.EventType} unknown");
break;
}
}
#endif
#if SERIAL_THREADED_READ
public static void SerialPortProcessor()
{
while (_Continue)
{
try
{
string response = _SerialPort.ReadLine();
//string response = _SerialPort.ReadExisting();
Debug.Write(response);
}
catch (TimeoutException ex)
{
Debug.WriteLine($"Timeout:{ex.Message}");
}
}
}
#endif
}
}
When I requested the RAK3172 version information with “AT+VER=?” the response was spilt over two lines which is a bit of a Pain in the Arse (PitA). The RAK3172 firmware also defaults 115200 baud which seems overkill considering the throughput of a LoRaWAN link.
While building the test application I encountered a few issues (STM32F769I DISCOVERY SerialPort.GetPortNames() port name text gets shorter, STM32F769I DISCOVERY Inconsistent SerialPort WatchChar behaviour after erase->power cycle->run & erase->run and No SerialPort.WatchChar events if WatchChar set before SerialPort opened) which slowed down development. The speed the nanoFramework team triages then fixes issues is amazing for a team of volunteers dotted around the world.
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