.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library “it’s all about timing”

Posted on March 22, 2022 by devmobilenz

Every so often my nanoFramework SX127X library RangeTester application wouldn’t start. When I poked around with the Visual Studio 2022 debugger the issue went away(a “Heisenbug” in the wild) which made figuring out what was going on impossible.

One afternoon the issue occurred several times in a row, the application wouldn’t startup because the SX127X device detection failed and message transmission was also not being confirmed.(TX Done).

Visual Studio output windows with SX127X detection failure

Visual Studio output windows with no Transmit confirmations

public SX127XDevice(SpiDevice spiDevice, GpioController gpioController, int interruptPin, int resetPin)
{
	_gpioController = gpioController;

	// Factory reset pin configuration
	_resetPin = resetPin;
	_gpioController.OpenPin(resetPin, PinMode.Output);

	_gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.Low);
	Thread.Sleep(20);
	_gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.High);
	Thread.Sleep(100);

	_registerManager = new RegisterManager(spiDevice, RegisterAddressReadMask, RegisterAddressWriteMask);

	// Once the pins setup check that SX127X chip is present
	Byte regVersionValue = _registerManager.ReadByte((byte)Configuration.Registers.RegVersion);
	if (regVersionValue != Configuration.RegVersionValueExpected)
	{
		throw new ApplicationException("Semtech SX127X not found");
	}

	// Interrupt pin for RX message & TX done notification 
	_gpioController.OpenPin(interruptPin, PinMode.InputPullDown);

	_gpioController.RegisterCallbackForPinValueChangedEvent(interruptPin, PinEventTypes.Rising, InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged);
}

I could single step through the code and inspect variables with the debugger and it looks like a timing issue with order of the strobing of the reset pin and the initialisation of the RegisterManager. I’ll spend and hour starting and stopping the application, then smoke test the code for 24 hours with a couple of other devices generating traffic just to check.

.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library playing nice with others

Posted on March 18, 2022 by devmobilenz

So nanoFramework applications using my SX127X library.NetNF can access other General Purpose Input Output(GPIO) ports and Serial Peripheral Interface(SPI) devices I have added SpiDevice and GpioController parameters to the two constructors.

// Hardware configuration support
private readonly int ResetPin;
private readonly GpioController _gpioController = null;
private readonly SpiDevice _sx127xTransceiver = null;
private readonly Object SX127XRegFifoLock = new object();
private double Frequency = FrequencyDefault;
private bool RxDoneIgnoreIfCrcMissing = true;
private bool RxDoneIgnoreIfCrcInvalid = true;

public SX127XDevice(SpiDevice spiDevice, GpioController gpioController, int interruptPin, int resetPin)
{
	_sx127xTransceiver = spiDevice;

	_gpioController = gpioController;

	// As soon as ChipSelectLine/ChipSelectLogicalPinNumber check that SX127X chip is present
	Byte regVersionValue = this.ReadByte((byte)Registers.RegVersion);
	if (regVersionValue != RegVersionValueExpected)
	{
		throw new ApplicationException("Semtech SX127X not found");
	}

	// Factory reset pin configuration
	ResetPin = resetPin;
	_gpioController.OpenPin(resetPin, PinMode.Output);

	_gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.Low);
	Thread.Sleep(20);
	_gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.High);
	Thread.Sleep(20);

	// Interrupt pin for RX message & TX done notification 
	_gpioController.OpenPin(interruptPin, PinMode.InputPullDown);

	_gpioController.RegisterCallbackForPinValueChangedEvent(interruptPin, PinEventTypes.Rising, InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged);
}

public SX127XDevice(SpiDevice spiDevice, GpioController gpioController, int interruptPin)
{
	_sx127xTransceiver = spiDevice;

	_gpioController = gpioController;

	// As soon as ChipSelectLine/ChipSelectLogicalPinNumber check that SX127X chip is present
	Byte regVersionValue = this.ReadByte((byte)Registers.RegVersion);
	if (regVersionValue != RegVersionValueExpected)
	{
		throw new ApplicationException("Semtech SX127X not found");
	}

	// Interrupt pin for RX message & TX done notification 
	_gpioController.OpenPin(interruptPin, PinMode.InputPullDown);

	_gpioController.RegisterCallbackForPinValueChangedEvent(interruptPin, PinEventTypes.Rising, InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged);
}

I then “over refactored”(broke) the constructor without the resetPin by removing the GpioController parameter which is necessary for the RegisterCallbackForPinValueChangedEvent.

.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library on Github

Posted on March 15, 2022 by devmobilenz

The source code of my nanoFramework SX127X library is now available on GitHub. I have tested the library and sample applications on Netduino 3Wifi, Sparkfun LoRa Gateway 1 Channel ESP32 for LoRaWAN and ST Micro STM32F7691 Discovery devices.(I can add more platform configurations if there is interest).

STM32F769I Discovery, Netduino 3 Wifi and Sparkfun testrig

I started with a proof of concept update of my RFM9X for nanoFramework library to the new nanoFramework System.Device model (“inspired” by .Net Core System.Device) which was slow going. I then tried “back porting” my SX127X for .Net Core library to the .NET nanoFramework which was much quicker.

namespace devMobile.IoT.SX127xLoRaDevice
{
	using System;
	using System.Text;
	using System.Threading;

	class Program
	{
		private const double Frequency = 915000000.0;
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
      private const int SpiBusId = 1;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
		private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
		private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif
		private static SX127XDevice sx127XDevice;

		static void Main(string[] args)
		{
			int SendCount = 0;
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL // No reset line for this device as it isn't connected on SX127X
			int chipSelectLine = Gpio.IO16;
			int interruptPinNumber = Gpio.IO26;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
			// Arduino D10->PB10
			int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('B', 10);
			// Arduino D9->PE5
			int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('E', 5);
			// Arduino D2 -PA3
			int interruptPinNumber = PinNumber('A', 3);
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
			// Arduino D10->PA11
			int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('A', 11);
			// Arduino D9->PH6
			int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('H', 6);
			// Arduino D2->PA4
			int interruptPinNumber = PinNumber('J', 1);
#endif
			Console.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127xLoRaDevice Client starting");

			try
			{
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
				Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO12, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MISO);
				Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO13, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MOSI);
				Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO14, DeviceFunction.SPI1_CLOCK);

				sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, interruptPinNumber);
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
				sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, interruptPinNumber, resetPinNumber);
#endif

				sx127XDevice.Initialise(SX127XDevice.RegOpModeMode.ReceiveContinuous,
							Frequency,
							lnaGain: SX127XDevice.RegLnaLnaGain.G3,
							lnaBoost:true, 
							powerAmplifier: SX127XDevice.PowerAmplifier.PABoost,
							rxPayloadCrcOn: true,
							rxDoneignoreIfCrcMissing: false
							);

#if DEBUG
				sx127XDevice.RegisterDump();
#endif

				sx127XDevice.OnReceive += SX127XDevice_OnReceive;
				sx127XDevice.Receive();
				sx127XDevice.OnTransmit += SX127XDevice_OnTransmit;

				Thread.Sleep(500);

				while (true)
				{
					string messageText = $"Hello LoRa from .NET nanoFramework {SendCount += 1}!";

					byte[] messageBytes = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(messageText);
					//Console.WriteLine($"{DateTime.UtcNow:HH:mm:ss}-TX {messageBytes.Length} byte message {messageText}");
					//sx127XDevice.Send(messageBytes);

					Thread.Sleep(50000);
				}
			}
			catch (Exception ex)
			{
				Console.WriteLine(ex.Message);
			}
		}

		private static void SX127XDevice_OnReceive(object sender, SX127XDevice.OnDataReceivedEventArgs e)
		{
			try
			{
				// Remove unprintable characters from messages
				for (int index = 0; index < e.Data.Length; index++)
				{
					if ((e.Data[index] < 0x20) || (e.Data[index] > 0x7E))
					{
						e.Data[index] = 0x7C;
					}
				}

				string messageText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(e.Data, 0, e.Data.Length);

				Console.WriteLine($"{DateTime.UtcNow:HH:mm:ss}-RX PacketSnr {e.PacketSnr:0.0} Packet RSSI {e.PacketRssi}dBm RSSI {e.Rssi}dBm = {e.Data.Length} byte message {messageText}");
			}
			catch (Exception ex)
			{
				Console.WriteLine(ex.Message);
			}
		}

		private static void SX127XDevice_OnTransmit(object sender, SX127XDevice.OnDataTransmitedEventArgs e)
		{
			sx127XDevice.SetMode(SX127XDevice.RegOpModeMode.ReceiveContinuous);

			Console.WriteLine($"{DateTime.UtcNow:HH:mm:ss}-TX Done");
		}

#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
		static int PinNumber(char port, byte pin)
		{
			if (port < 'A' || port > 'J')
				throw new ArgumentException();

			return ((port - 'A') * 16) + pin;
		}
#endif
	}
}

The sample application shows how to configure the library for different devices (SPI port, interrupt pin and optional reset pin) then send/receive payloads. The library is intended to be initialised then run for long periods of time (I’m looking at a month long soak test next) rather than changing configuration while running. The initialise method has many parameters which have “reasonable” default values. (Posts coming about optimising power consumption and range).

I’m looking at extending the library with optional functionality like tamper detection via signing and privacy via payload encryption, and mesh network support.

.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library with Interrupts

Posted on March 14, 2022 by devmobilenz

To test the nanoFramework transmit and receive with interrupts implementation I used three Dragino LoRa Shields, a Seeeduino V4.2 and a pair of Netduino 3 Wifi devices.

I started with transmit as I was confident my Netduino 3 Wifi & Seeeduino + Dragino LoRa Shields could receive messages.

The TransmitInterrupt application loads the message to be sent into the First In First Out(FIFO) buffer, RegDioMapping1 is set to interrupt onTxDone(PacketSent-00), then RegRegOpMode-Mode is set to Transmit. When the message has been sent InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged is called, and the TxDone(0b00001000) flag is set in the RegIrqFlags register.

The ReceiveInterrupt application sets the RegDioMapping1 to interrupt on RxDone(PacketReady-00), then the RegRegOpMode-Mode is set to Receive(TX-101). When a message is received InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged is called, with the RxDone(0b00001000) flag set in the RegIrqFlags register, and then the message is read from First In First Out(FIFO) buffer.

namespace devMobile.IoT.SX127x.ReceiveTransmitInterrupt
{
...
   public sealed class SX127XDevice
   {
...
      public SX127XDevice(int busId, int chipSelectLine, int interruptPin, int resetPin)
      {
         var settings = new SpiConnectionSettings(busId, chipSelectLine)
         {
            ClockFrequency = 1000000,
            Mode = SpiMode.Mode0,// From SemTech docs pg 80 CPOL=0, CPHA=0
            SharingMode = SpiSharingMode.Shared
         };

         SX127XTransceiver = new SpiDevice(settings);

         GpioController gpioController = new GpioController();


         // Factory reset pin configuration
         gpioController.OpenPin(resetPin, PinMode.Output);

         gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.Low);
         Thread.Sleep(20);
         gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.High);
         Thread.Sleep(20);

         // Interrupt pin for RX message & TX done notification 
         gpioController.OpenPin(interruptPin, PinMode.InputPullDown);

         gpioController.RegisterCallbackForPinValueChangedEvent(interruptPin, PinEventTypes.Rising, InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged);
      }
...
   }

      private void InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged(object sender, PinValueChangedEventArgs e)
      {
         byte irqFlags = this.ReadByte(0x12); // RegIrqFlags
         Debug.WriteLine($"RegIrqFlags 0X{irqFlags:x2}");

         if ((irqFlags & 0b01000000) == 0b01000000)  // RxDone 
         {
            Debug.WriteLine("Receive-Message");
            byte currentFifoAddress = this.ReadByte(0x10); // RegFifiRxCurrent
            this.WriteByte(0x0d, currentFifoAddress); // RegFifoAddrPtr

            byte numberOfBytes = this.ReadByte(0x13); // RegRxNbBytes

            // Allocate buffer for message
            byte[] messageBytes = this.ReadBytes(0X0, numberOfBytes);

            // Remove unprintable characters from messages
            for (int index = 0; index < messageBytes.Length; index++)
            {
               if ((messageBytes[index] < 0x20) || (messageBytes[index] > 0x7E))
               {
                  messageBytes[index] = 0x20;
               }
            }

            string messageText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(messageBytes, 0, messageBytes.Length);
            Debug.WriteLine($"Received {messageBytes.Length} byte message {messageText}");
         }

         if ((irqFlags & 0b00001000) == 0b00001000)  // TxDone
         {
            this.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000101); // RegOpMode set LoRa & RxContinuous
            Debug.WriteLine("Transmit-Done");
         }

         this.WriteByte(0x40, 0b00000000); // RegDioMapping1 0b00000000 DI0 RxReady & TxReady
         this.WriteByte(0x12, 0xff);// RegIrqFlags
      }

   public class Program
   {
...
   #if NETDUINO3_WIFI
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif
...

      public static void Main()
      {
         int SendCount = 0;
...
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
         // Arduino D10->PB10
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('B', 10);
         // Arduino D9->PE5
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('E', 5);
         // Arduino D2 -PA3
         int interruptPinNumber = PinNumber('A', 3);
#endif
...
  
       Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127x.ReceiveTransmitInterrupt starting");

         try
         {
...
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
            SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, interruptPinNumber, resetPinNumber);
#endif
            Thread.Sleep(500);

            // Put device into LoRa + Sleep mode
            sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000000); // RegOpMode 

            // Set the frequency to 915MHz
            byte[] frequencyWriteBytes = { 0xE4, 0xC0, 0x00 }; // RegFrMsb, RegFrMid, RegFrLsb
            sx127XDevice.WriteBytes(0x06, frequencyWriteBytes);

            // More power PA Boost
            sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x09, 0b10000000); // RegPaConfig

            sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000101); // RegOpMode set LoRa & RxContinuous

            while (true)
            {
               // Set the Register Fifo address pointer
               sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0E, 0x00); // RegFifoTxBaseAddress 

               // Set the Register Fifo address pointer
               sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0D, 0x0); // RegFifoAddrPtr 

               string messageText = $"Hello LoRa {SendCount += 1}!";

               // load the message into the fifo
               byte[] messageBytes = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(messageText);
               sx127XDevice.WriteBytes(0x0, messageBytes); // RegFifo 

               // Set the length of the message in the fifo
               sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x22, (byte)messageBytes.Length); // RegPayloadLength
               sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x40, 0b01000000); // RegDioMapping1 0b00000000 DI0 RxReady & TxReady
               sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000011); // RegOpMode 

               Debug.WriteLine($"Sending {messageBytes.Length} bytes message {messageText}");

               Thread.Sleep(10000);
            }
         }
         catch (Exception ex)
         {
            Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
         }
      }
...
   }
}

ReceiveTransmitInterrupt application output

The ReceiveTransmitInterrupt application combines the functionality TransmitInterrupt and ReceiveInterrupt programs. The key differences are the RegDioMapping1 setup and in InterruptGpioPin_ValueChanged where the TxDone & RxDone flags in the RegIrqFlags register specify how the interrupt is handled.

.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library Basic Receive & Transmit

Posted on March 11, 2022 by devmobilenz

For testing nanoFramework device transmit and receive functionality I used an Arduino/Seeeduino with a Dragino LoRa Shield (running one of the Arduino-LoRa samples) as a client device. This was so I could “bootstrap” connectivity and test interoperability with other libraries/platforms.

Arduino/Netduino devices for .NET nanoFramework interoperability test-rig

I started with transmit as I was confident my Seeeduino + Dragino LoRa Shield could receive messages. The TransmitBasic application puts the device into LoRa + Sleep mode as after reset/powering up the device is in FSK/OOK, Low Frequency + Standby mode).

After loading the message to be sent into the First In First Out(FIFO) buffer, the RegOpMode-Mode is set to Transmit(TX-011), and then the RegIrqFlags register is polled until the TxDone flag is set.

public static void Main()
{
  int SendCount = 0;
...
  Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127x.TransmitBasic starting");

   try
   {
...
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, resetPinNumber);
#endif
     Thread.Sleep(500);

     // Put device into LoRa + Standby mode
     sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000000); // RegOpMode 

      // Set the frequency to 915MHz
      byte[] frequencyBytes = { 0xE4, 0xC0, 0x00 }; // RegFrMsb, RegFrMid, RegFrLsb
      sx127XDevice.WriteBytes(0x06, frequencyBytes);

      // More power PA Boost
      sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x09, 0b10000000); // RegPaConfig

      sx127XDevice.RegisterDump();

      while (true)
      {
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0E, 0x0); // RegFifoTxBaseAddress 

         // Set the Register Fifo address pointer
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0D, 0x0); // RegFifoAddrPtr 

         string messageText = $"Hello LoRa from .NET nanoFramework {SendCount += 1}!";

         // load the message into the fifo
         byte[] messageBytes = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(messageText);
         sx127XDevice.WriteBytes(0x0, messageBytes); // RegFifo

         // Set the length of the message in the fifo
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x22, (byte)messageBytes.Length); // RegPayloadLength

         Debug.WriteLine($"Sending {messageBytes.Length} bytes message {messageText}");
         // Set the mode to LoRa + Transmit
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000011); // RegOpMode 

         // Wait until send done, no timeouts in PoC
         Debug.WriteLine("Send-wait");
         byte irqFlags = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x12); // RegIrqFlags
         while ((irqFlags & 0b00001000) == 0)  // wait until TxDone cleared
         {
            Thread.Sleep(10);
            irqFlags = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x12); // RegIrqFlags
            Debug.Write(".");
         }
         Debug.WriteLine("");
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x12, 0b00001000); // clear TxDone bit
         Debug.WriteLine("Send-Done");

         Thread.Sleep(30000);
         }
      }
      catch (Exception ex)
      {
         Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
      }
   }
}

Once the TransmitBasic application was sending messages reliably I started working on the ReceiveBasic application. As the ReceiveBasic application starts up the SX127X RegOpMode has to be set to sleep/standby so the device can be configured. TOnce that is completed RegOpMode-Mode is set to RxContinuous(101), and the RegIrqFlags register is polled until the RxDone flag is set.

public static void Main()
{
...
   Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127x.ReceiveBasic starting");

   try
   {
...
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, resetPinNumber);
#endif
      Thread.Sleep(500);

      // Put device into LoRa + Sleep mode
      sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000000); // RegOpMode 

      // Set the frequency to 915MHz
      byte[] frequencyBytes = { 0xE4, 0xC0, 0x00 }; // RegFrMsb, RegFrMid, RegFrLsb
      sx127XDevice.WriteBytes(0x06, frequencyBytes);

      sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0F, 0x0); // RegFifoRxBaseAddress 

      sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000101); // RegOpMode set LoRa & RxContinuous

       while (true)
       {
          // Wait until a packet is received, no timeouts in PoC
         Debug.WriteLine("Receive-Wait");
         byte irqFlags = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x12); // RegIrqFlags
         while ((irqFlags & 0b01000000) == 0)  // wait until RxDone cleared
         {
            Thread.Sleep(100);
            irqFlags = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x12); // RegIrqFlags
            Debug.Write(".");
         }
         Debug.WriteLine("");
         Debug.WriteLine($"RegIrqFlags 0X{irqFlags:X2}");
         Debug.WriteLine("Receive-Message");
         byte currentFifoAddress = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x10); // RegFifiRxCurrent
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0d, currentFifoAddress); // RegFifoAddrPtr

         byte numberOfBytes = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x13); // RegRxNbBytes

         // Read the message from the FIFO
         byte[] messageBytes = sx127XDevice.ReadBytes(0x00, numberOfBytes);

         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x0d, 0);
         sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x12, 0b11111111); // RegIrqFlags clear all the bits

         // Remove unprintable characters from messages
         for (int index = 0; index < messageBytes.Length; index++)
         {
            if ((messageBytes[index] < 0x20) || (messageBytes[index] > 0x7E))
            {
               messageBytes[index] = 0x20;
            }
         }

         string messageText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(messageBytes, 0, messageBytes.Length);
         Debug.WriteLine($"Received {messageBytes.Length} byte message {messageText}");

         Debug.WriteLine("Receive-Done");
      }
    }
   catch (Exception ex)
   {
      Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
   }
}

Every so often the ReceiveBasic application would display a message sent on the same frequency by a device somewhere nearby.

ReceiveBasic application messages from unknown source

I need to do some more investigation into whether writing 0b00001000 (Transmit) vs. 0b11111111(Receive) to RegIrqFlags is important.

.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library Read & Write

Posted on March 9, 2022 by devmobilenz

Now that I could reliably dump all the Dragino shield registers I wanted to be able to configure the Semtech 127X device and reset it back to factory settings. A factory reset is done by strobing the SX127X reset pin.

SX127X Reset process

To support this I added a constructor with an additional parameter for the reset General Purpose Input Output(GPIO) pin number to the SX127XDevice class. The original constructor was retained as the SX127X reset pin is not connected on the SparkFun LoRa Gateway-1-Channel (ESP32) and a limited number of other devices.

namespace devMobile.IoT.SX127x.RegisterReadAndWrite
{
   using System;
   using System.Diagnostics;
   using System.Threading;

   using System.Device.Gpio;
   using System.Device.Spi;

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
   using nanoFramework.Hardware.Esp32;
#endif

   public sealed class SX127XDevice
   {
      private const byte RegisterAddressMinimum = 0X0;
      private const byte RegisterAddressMaximum = 0x42;
      private const byte RegisterAddressReadMask = 0X7f;
      private const byte RegisterAddressWriteMask = 0x80;

      private readonly SpiDevice SX127XTransceiver;

      public SX127XDevice(int busId, int chipSelectLine, int resetPin)
      {
         var settings = new SpiConnectionSettings(busId, chipSelectLine)
         {
            ClockFrequency = 1000000,
            Mode = SpiMode.Mode0,// From SemTech docs pg 80 CPOL=0, CPHA=0
            SharingMode = SpiSharingMode.Shared
         };

         SX127XTransceiver = new SpiDevice(settings);

         // Factory reset pin configuration
         GpioController gpioController = new GpioController();
         gpioController.OpenPin(resetPin, PinMode.Output);

         gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.Low);
         Thread.Sleep(20);
         gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.High);
         Thread.Sleep(20);
      }

      public SX127XDevice(int busId, int chipSelectLine)
      {
         var settings = new SpiConnectionSettings(busId, chipSelectLine)
         {
            ClockFrequency = 1000000,
            Mode = SpiMode.Mode0,// From SemTech docs pg 80 CPOL=0, CPHA=0
            SharingMode = SpiSharingMode.Shared,
         };

         SX127XTransceiver = new SpiDevice(settings);
      }

      public Byte ReadByte(byte registerAddress)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { registerAddress &= RegisterAddressReadMask, 0x0 };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);

         return readBuffer[1];
      }

      public ushort ReadWord(byte address)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { address &= RegisterAddressReadMask, 0x0, 0x0 };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);

         return (ushort)(readBuffer[2] + (readBuffer[1] << 8));
      }

      public ushort ReadWordMsbLsb(byte address)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { address &= RegisterAddressReadMask, 0x0, 0x0 };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);

         return (ushort)((readBuffer[1] << 8) + readBuffer[2]);
      }

      public byte[] ReadBytes(byte address, byte length)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[length + 1];
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];
         byte[] replyBuffer = new byte[length];

         writeBuffer[0] = address &= RegisterAddressReadMask;

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);

         Array.Copy(readBuffer, 1, replyBuffer, 0, length);

         return replyBuffer;
      }

      public void WriteByte(byte address, byte value)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { address |= RegisterAddressWriteMask, value };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);
      }

      public void WriteWord(byte address, ushort value)
      {
         byte[] valueBytes = BitConverter.GetBytes(value);
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { address |= RegisterAddressWriteMask, valueBytes[0], valueBytes[1] };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);
      }

      public void WriteWordMsbLsb(byte address, ushort value)
      {
         byte[] valueBytes = BitConverter.GetBytes(value);
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { address |= RegisterAddressWriteMask, valueBytes[1], valueBytes[0] };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);
      }

      public void WriteBytes(byte address, byte[] bytes)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[1 + bytes.Length];
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         Array.Copy(bytes, 0, writeBuffer, 1, bytes.Length);
         writeBuffer[0] = address |= RegisterAddressWriteMask;

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);
      }

      public void RegisterDump()
      {
         Debug.WriteLine("Register dump");
         for (byte registerIndex = RegisterAddressMinimum; registerIndex <= RegisterAddressMaximum; registerIndex++)
         {
            byte registerValue = this.ReadByte(registerIndex);

            Debug.WriteLine($"Register 0x{registerIndex:x2} - Value 0X{registerValue:x2}");
         }

         Debug.WriteLine("");
      }
   }

   public class Program
   {
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
      private const int SpiBusId = 1;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif


      public static void Main()
      {
         byte[] frequencyBytes;
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL // No reset line for this device as it isn't connected on SX127X
         int chipSelectLine = Gpio.IO16;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
         // Arduino D10->PB10
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('B', 10);
         // Arduino D9->PE5
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('E', 5);
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
         // Arduino D10->PA11
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('A', 11);
         // Arduino D9->PH6
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('H', 6);
#endif

         Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127x.RegisterReadAndWrite starting");

         try
         {
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO12, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MISO);
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO13, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MOSI);
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO14, DeviceFunction.SPI1_CLOCK);

            SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine);
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
            SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, resetPinNumber);
#endif
            Thread.Sleep(500);

            sx127XDevice.RegisterDump();

            while (true)
            {
               Debug.WriteLine("Read RegOpMode (read byte)");
               Byte regOpMode1 = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x1);
               Debug.WriteLine($"RegOpMode 0x{regOpMode1:x2}");

               Debug.WriteLine("Set LoRa mode and sleep mode (write byte)");
               sx127XDevice.WriteByte(0x01, 0b10000000);

               Debug.WriteLine("Read RegOpMode (read byte)");
               Byte regOpMode2 = sx127XDevice.ReadByte(0x1);
               Debug.WriteLine($"RegOpMode 0x{regOpMode2:x2}");

               Debug.WriteLine("Read the preamble (read word)");
               ushort preamble = sx127XDevice.ReadWord(0x20);
               Debug.WriteLine($"Preamble 0x{preamble:x2}");

	            Console.WriteLine("Read the preamble (read word)"); // Should be 0x08
			      preamble = sx127XDevice.ReadWordMsbLsb(0x20);
               Debug.WriteLine($"Preamble 0x{preamble:x2}");

               Debug.WriteLine("Read the centre frequency (read byte array)");
               frequencyBytes = sx127XDevice.ReadBytes(0x06, 3);
               Debug.WriteLine($"Frequency Msb 0x{frequencyBytes[0]:x2} Mid 0x{frequencyBytes[1]:x2} Lsb 0x{frequencyBytes[2]:x2}");

               Debug.WriteLine("Set the centre frequency to 915MHz (write byte array)");
               byte[] frequencyWriteBytes = { 0xE4, 0xC0, 0x00 };
               sx127XDevice.WriteBytes(0x06, frequencyWriteBytes);

               Debug.WriteLine("Read the centre frequency (read byte array)");
               frequencyBytes = sx127XDevice.ReadBytes(0x06, 3);
               Debug.WriteLine($"Frequency Msb 0x{frequencyBytes[0]:x2} Mid 0x{frequencyBytes[1]:x2} Lsb 0x{frequencyBytes[2]:x2}");

               sx127XDevice.RegisterDump();

               Thread.Sleep(30000);
            }
         }
         catch (Exception ex)
         {
            Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
         }
      }

#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      static int PinNumber(char port, byte pin)
      {
         if (port < 'A' || port > 'J')
            throw new ArgumentException();

         return ((port - 'A') * 16) + pin;
      }
#endif
   }
}

The PinNumber helper is more user friendly that the raw numbers and is “inspired” by sample .NET nanoFramework General Purpose Input Output(GPIO) sample code.

Each method was tested by read/writing suitable register(s) in the device configuration (Needed to set it into LoRa mode first).

The next step is to extract the Serial Peripheral Interface(SPI) register access functionality into a module and configure the bare minimum of settings required to get the SX127X to receive and transmit messages.

.NET nanoFramework SX127X LoRa library Registers

Posted on March 8, 2022 by devmobilenz

Over the years I have ported my HopeRF RFM9X(Now a generic Semtech SX127X ) Windows 10 IoT Core (May 2018) library to .NET microFramework(May 2018), Wilderness Labs Meadow(Jan 2020), GHI Electronics TinyCLR-OS(July 2020), .NET nanoFramework V1(May 2020) and .NET Core(Aug 2021).

All this madness started because I wasn’t confident the frequency calculation of the Emmellsoft Dragino.Lora code was correct. Over the last couple of years I have also found bugs in my Transmit Power, InvertIQ RX/TX with many others yet to be discovered.

For my updated .NET nanoFramework port I have mainly used a half a dozen Dragino LoRa shields for Arduino and Netduino 3 Wifi devices I had lying around. I have also tested the code with SparkFun LoRa Gateway-1-Channel (ESP32) and ST 32F769IDiscovery devices.

STM32F769IDiscovery, Netduino 3 Wifi, and SparkFun LoRa Gateway-1-Channel (ESP32) devices

The Dragino shield uses D10 for chip select, D2 for RFM9X DI0 interrupt and D9 for Reset.

Netduino 3 Wifi pin mapping

D10->CS->PB10
D9->RST->E5

ST 32F769IDiscovery pin mapping

D10->CS->PA11
D9->RST->PH6

Sparkfun ESP32 1 Channel Gateway Schematic

SparkFun LoRa Gateway-1-Channel (ESP32) pin mapping(SX127X reset is not connected)

CS->PB10

The first step was to confirm I could read a single(ShieldSPI) then scan all the Semtech SX1276 registers with the new nanoFramework System.Device.SPI Nuget (which was”inspired by” .Net Core System.Device.SPI)

namespace devMobile.IoT.SX127x.ShieldSPI
{
   using System;
   using System.Diagnostics;
   using System.Threading;

   using System.Device.Gpio;
   using System.Device.Spi;

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
   using nanoFramework.Hardware.Esp32;
#endif

   public class Program
   {
      private const byte RegVersion = 0x42;
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
      private const int SpiBusId = 1;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif

      public static void Main()
      {
         GpioController gpioController = new GpioController();

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL // No reset line for this device as it isn't connected on SX127X
         int ledPinNumber = Gpio.IO17;
         int chipSelectLine = Gpio.IO16;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
         int ledPinNumber = PinNumber('A', 10);
         // Arduino D10->PB10
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('B', 10);
         // Arduino D9->PE5
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('E', 5);
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
         int ledPinNumber  = PinNumber('J', 5);
         // Arduino D10->PA11
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('A', 11);
         // Arduino D9->PH6
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('H', 6);
#endif
         Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127x.ShieldSPI starting");

         try
         {
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL || NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
            // Setup the onboard LED
            gpioController.OpenPin(ledPinNumber, PinMode.Output);
#endif

#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
            // Setup the reset pin
            gpioController.OpenPin(resetPinNumber, PinMode.Output);
            gpioController.Write(resetPinNumber, PinValue.High);
#endif

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO12, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MISO);
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO13, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MOSI);
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO14, DeviceFunction.SPI1_CLOCK);
#endif

            var settings = new SpiConnectionSettings(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine)
            {
               ClockFrequency = 1000000,
               Mode = SpiMode.Mode0,// From SemTech docs pg 80 CPOL=0, CPHA=0
               SharingMode = SpiSharingMode.Shared,
            };

            using (SpiDevice device = SpiDevice.Create(settings))
            {
               Thread.Sleep(500);

               while (true)
               {
                  byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { RegVersion, 0x0 };
                  byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

                  device.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);

                  Debug.WriteLine(String.Format("Register 0x{0:x2} - Value 0X{1:x2}", RegVersion, readBuffer[1]));

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL || NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
                  if ( gpioController.Read(ledPinNumber) == PinValue.High)
						{
                     gpioController.Write(ledPinNumber, PinValue.Low);
                  }
                  else
						{
                     gpioController.Write(ledPinNumber, PinValue.High);
                  }
#endif
                  Thread.Sleep(10000);
               }
            }
         }
         catch (Exception ex)
         {
            Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
         }
      }

#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      static int PinNumber(char port, byte pin)
      {
         if (port < 'A' || port > 'J')
            throw new ArgumentException();

         return ((port - 'A') * 16) + pin;
      }
#endif
   }
}

namespace devMobile.IoT.SX127x.RegisterScan
{
   using System;
   using System.Diagnostics;
   using System.Threading;

   using System.Device.Gpio;
   using System.Device.Spi;

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
   using nanoFramework.Hardware.Esp32;
#endif

   public sealed class SX127XDevice
   {
      private readonly SpiDevice SX127XTransceiver;

      public SX127XDevice(int busId, int chipSelectLine)
      {

         var settings = new SpiConnectionSettings(busId, chipSelectLine)
         {
            ClockFrequency = 1000000,
            Mode = SpiMode.Mode0,// From SemTech docs pg 80 CPOL=0, CPHA=0
            SharingMode = SpiSharingMode.Shared
         };

         SX127XTransceiver = new SpiDevice(settings);
      }

      public SX127XDevice(int busId, int chipSelectLine, int resetPin)
      {
         var settings = new SpiConnectionSettings(busId, chipSelectLine)
         {
            ClockFrequency = 1000000,
            Mode = SpiMode.Mode0,// From SemTech docs pg 80 CPOL=0, CPHA=0
            SharingMode = SpiSharingMode.Shared
         };

         SX127XTransceiver = new SpiDevice(settings);

         // Factory reset pin configuration
         GpioController gpioController = new GpioController();
         gpioController.OpenPin(resetPin, PinMode.Output);

         gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.Low);
         Thread.Sleep(20);
         gpioController.Write(resetPin, PinValue.High);
         Thread.Sleep(20);
      }

      public Byte RegisterReadByte(byte registerAddress)
      {
         byte[] writeBuffer = new byte[] { registerAddress, 0x0 };
         byte[] readBuffer = new byte[writeBuffer.Length];

         SX127XTransceiver.TransferFullDuplex(writeBuffer, readBuffer);

         return readBuffer[1];
      }
   }

   public class Program
   {
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
      private const int SpiBusId = 1;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      private const int SpiBusId = 2;
#endif

      public static void Main()
      {
#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
         int chipSelectLine = Gpio.IO16;
#endif
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI
         // Arduino D10->PB10
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('B', 10);
         // Arduino D9->PE5
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('E', 5);
#endif
#if ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
         // Arduino D10->PA11
         int chipSelectLine = PinNumber('A', 11);
         // Arduino D9->PH6
         int resetPinNumber = PinNumber('H', 6);
#endif

         Debug.WriteLine("devMobile.IoT.SX127x.RegisterScan starting");

         try
         {
#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
            SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine, resetPinNumber);
#endif

#if ESP32_WROOM_32_LORA_1_CHANNEL
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO12, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MISO);
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO13, DeviceFunction.SPI1_MOSI);
            Configuration.SetPinFunction(Gpio.IO14, DeviceFunction.SPI1_CLOCK);

            SX127XDevice sx127XDevice = new SX127XDevice(SpiBusId, chipSelectLine);
#endif

            Thread.Sleep(500);

            while (true)
            {
               for (byte registerIndex = 0; registerIndex <= 0x42; registerIndex++)
               {
                  byte registerValue = sx127XDevice.RegisterReadByte(registerIndex);

                  Debug.WriteLine($"Register 0x{registerIndex:x2} - Value 0X{registerValue:x2}");
               }
               Debug.WriteLine("");

               Thread.Sleep(10000);
            }
         }
         catch (Exception ex)
         {
            Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
         }
      }

#if NETDUINO3_WIFI || ST_STM32F769I_DISCOVERY
      static int PinNumber(char port, byte pin)
      {
         if (port < 'A' || port > 'J')
            throw new ArgumentException();

         return ((port - 'A') * 16) + pin;
      }
#endif
   }
}

There is some SparkFun LoRa Gateway-1-Channel (ESP32) specific configuration to map the Serial Peripheral Interface(SPI) pins and an additional NuGet for ESP32 has to be added. For the initial versions I have not used more advanced .NET nanoFramework functionality like SpanByte.

RFM9X.TinyCLR V2 RC2 on Github

Posted on July 20, 2020 by devmobilenz

The source code of RC2 of my GHI Electronics TinyCLR-0SV2RC1 RFM9X/SX127X library is live on GitHub. The sample application now supports Fezduino(dragino_LoRa shield for Arduino + others), Fezportal and the SC2010 Dev board (with CascoLogix LoRa Click) . I will add FezFeather and Fezstick support soon.

//---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// Copyright (c) March/April 2020, 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.
//
// Need one of TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV_MIKROBUS_1/TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV_MIKROBUS_2/TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO/TINYCLR_V2_FEZPORTAL defined
//---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
namespace devMobile.IoT.Rfm9x.LoRaDeviceClient
{
	using System;
	using System.Diagnostics;
	using System.Text;
	using System.Threading;

	using GHIElectronics.TinyCLR.Pins;

	using devMobile.IoT.Rfm9x;

	class Program
   {
      static void Main()
      {
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV_MIKROBUS_1 || TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV_MIKROBUS_2
			const string DeviceName = "SC20100DEVLoRa";
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
			const string DeviceName = "FezduinoLoRa";
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZPORTAL
			const string DeviceName = "FezportalLoRa";
#endif
#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
			const string HostName = "LoRaIoT1";
#endif
			const double Frequency = 915000000.0;
			byte MessageCount = System.Byte.MaxValue;
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV_MIKROBUS_1
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi3, SC20100.GpioPin.PD3, SC20100.GpioPin.PD4, SC20100.GpioPin.PC5);
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV_MIKROBUS_2
			Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi3, SC20100.GpioPin.PD14, SC20100.GpioPin.PD15, SC20100.GpioPin.PA8);
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
			Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi6, SC20100.GpioPin.PB1, SC20100.GpioPin.PA15, SC20100.GpioPin.PA1);
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZPORTAL
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi3, SC20100.GpioPin.PC13, SC20100.GpioPin.PD4,SC20100.GpioPin.PC2);
#endif

			rfm9XDevice.Initialise(Frequency, paBoost: true, rxPayloadCrcOn: true);
#if DEBUG
			rfm9XDevice.RegisterDump();
#endif

			rfm9XDevice.OnReceive += Rfm9XDevice_OnReceive;
#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
			rfm9XDevice.Receive(UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(DeviceName));
#else
			rfm9XDevice.Receive();
#endif
			rfm9XDevice.OnTransmit += Rfm9XDevice_OnTransmit;

			Thread.Sleep(10000);

			while (true)
			{
				string messageText = string.Format("Hello from {0} ! {1}", DeviceName, MessageCount);
				MessageCount -= 1;

				byte[] messageBytes = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(messageText);
				Debug.WriteLine($"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-TX {messageBytes.Length} byte message {messageText}");
#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
				rfm9XDevice.Send(UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(HostName), messageBytes);
#else
				rfm9XDevice.Send(messageBytes);
#endif
				Thread.Sleep(10000);
			}
		}

		private static void Rfm9XDevice_OnReceive(object sender, Rfm9XDevice.OnDataReceivedEventArgs e)
		{
			try
			{
				string messageText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(e.Data);

#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
				string addressText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(e.Address);

				Debug.WriteLine($@"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-RX From {addressText} PacketSnr {e.PacketSnr} Packet RSSI {e.PacketRssi}dBm RSSI {e.Rssi}dBm = {e.Data.Length} byte message ""{messageText}""");
#else
				Debug.WriteLine($@"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-RX PacketSnr {e.PacketSnr} Packet RSSI {e.PacketRssi}dBm RSSI {e.Rssi}dBm = {e.Data.Length} byte message ""{messageText}""");
#endif
			}
			catch (Exception ex)
			{
				Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
			}
		}

		private static void Rfm9XDevice_OnTransmit(object sender, Rfm9XDevice.OnDataTransmitedEventArgs e)
		{
			Debug.WriteLine($"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-TX Done");
		}
	}
}

The library works but should be treated as late beta.

RFM9X.TinyCLR V2 RC1 on Github

Posted on July 10, 2020 by devmobilenz

The source code of my GHI Electronics TinyCLR-0SV2RC1 RFM9X/SX127X library is live on GitHub. The test harness uses a Fezduino and a dragino technology LoRa shield for Arduino. I will add FezPortal, FezFeather and Fezstick support soon.

A sample application which shows how to send/receive address/un-addresses payloads

//---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// Copyright (c) March/April 2020, 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.
//
// Need one of TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV/TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO defined
//---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
namespace devMobile.IoT.Rfm9x.LoRaDeviceClient
{
	using System;
	using System.Diagnostics;
	using System.Text;
	using System.Threading;

	using GHIElectronics.TinyCLR.Pins;

	using devMobile.IoT.Rfm9x;

	class Program
   {
      static void Main()
      {
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV
			const string DeviceName = "SC20100DEVLoRa";
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
			const string DeviceName = "FezduinoLoRa";
#endif
#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
			const string HostName = "LoRaIoT1";
#endif
			const double Frequency = 915000000.0;
			byte MessageCount = System.Byte.MaxValue;
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi3, SC20100.GpioPin.PA13, SC20100.GpioPin.PA14, SC20100.GpioPin.PE4);
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi6, SC20100.GpioPin.PB1, SC20100.GpioPin.PA15, SC20100.GpioPin.PA1);
#endif
			
			rfm9XDevice.Initialise(Frequency, paBoost: true, rxPayloadCrcOn: true);
#if DEBUG
			rfm9XDevice.RegisterDump();
#endif

			rfm9XDevice.OnReceive += Rfm9XDevice_OnReceive;
#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
			rfm9XDevice.Receive(UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(DeviceName));
#else
			rfm9XDevice.Receive();
#endif
			rfm9XDevice.OnTransmit += Rfm9XDevice_OnTransmit;

			Thread.Sleep(10000);

			while (true)
			{
				string messageText = string.Format("Hello from {0} ! {1}", DeviceName, MessageCount);
				MessageCount -= 1;

				byte[] messageBytes = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(messageText);
				Debug.WriteLine($"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-TX {messageBytes.Length} byte message {messageText}");
#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
				rfm9XDevice.Send(UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(HostName), messageBytes);
#else
				rfm9XDevice.Send(messageBytes);
#endif
				Thread.Sleep(10000);
			}
		}

		private static void Rfm9XDevice_OnReceive(object sender, Rfm9XDevice.OnDataReceivedEventArgs e)
		{
			try
			{
				string messageText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(e.Data);

#if ADDRESSED_MESSAGES_PAYLOAD
				string addressText = UTF8Encoding.UTF8.GetString(e.Address);

				Debug.WriteLine($@"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-RX From {addressText} PacketSnr {e.PacketSnr} Packet RSSI {e.PacketRssi}dBm RSSI {e.Rssi}dBm = {e.Data.Length} byte message ""{messageText}""");
#else
				Debug.WriteLine($@"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-RX PacketSnr {e.PacketSnr} Packet RSSI {e.PacketRssi}dBm RSSI {e.Rssi}dBm = {e.Data.Length} byte message ""{messageText}""");
#endif
			}
			catch (Exception ex)
			{
				Debug.WriteLine(ex.Message);
			}
		}

		private static void Rfm9XDevice_OnTransmit(object sender, Rfm9XDevice.OnDataTransmitedEventArgs e)
		{
			Debug.WriteLine($"{DateTime.Now:HH:mm:ss}-TX Done");
		}
	}
}

The addressing support is pretty basic as my goal was a library that I could extend with optional functionality like tamper detection via signing and privacy via payload encryption, mesh network support etc.

The library works but should be treated as late beta.

TinyCLR OS V2 RC1 LoRa library Part1

Posted on July 8, 2020 by devmobilenz

The Basics

A week ago a selection of Single Board Computers(SBC) arrived from GHI Electronics. Previously I had been working with a SC20100 Dev board which has mikroBUS Click sockets which limited my peripheral options. There were several different device form factors in the package so I started with a Fezduino and Dragino LoRa shield for Arduino.

Need to be careful not to push the Dragino shield in too far as a couple of the pins (one is not connected and the other is IOREF) will contact the Micro SD card slot. (I have put a strip of Duct tape on the top of the Micro SD card socket)

The first step was to get basic connectivity sorted. I opened the RFM9XLoRa-TinyCLR repository and modified the Serial Peripheral Interface(SPI) and chip select(CS) settings of the ShieldSPI project, then updated the NuGet packages (public feed rather than my local preview files).

I have left the TinyCLR V1 configuration in for backward compatibility

#if TINYCLR_V1_FEZDUINO
            ChipSelectLine = FEZ.GpioPin.D10,
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV
            ChipSelectLine = GHIElectronics.TinyCLR.Devices.Gpio.GpioController.GetDefault().OpenPin(SC20100.GpioPin.PA13),
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
            ChipSelectLine = GHIElectronics.TinyCLR.Devices.Gpio.GpioController.GetDefault().OpenPin(GHIElectronics.TinyCLR.Pins.SC20100.GpioPin.PB1),
#endif

When I ran the application in Visual Studio I could reliably read the RegVersion register.

The thread '<No Name>' (0x2) has exited with code 0 (0x0).
Value = 0x00-12
Value = 0x00-12
Value = 0x00-12
Value = 0x00-12
Value = 0x00-12
Value = 0x00-12
The program '[5] TinyCLR application: Managed' has exited with code 0 (0x0).

The next step was to modify the RegisterScan project to check I could read all the SX127X configuration registers.

  class Program
   {
      static void Main()
      {
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi3, SC20100.GpioPin.PA13);
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi6, SC20100.GpioPin.PB1);
#endif

         while (true)
         {
            for (byte registerIndex = 0; registerIndex <= 0x42; registerIndex++)
            {
               byte registerValue = rfm9XDevice.RegisterReadByte(registerIndex);

               Debug.WriteLine($"Register 0x{registerIndex:x2} - Value 0X{registerValue:x2}");
            }
            Debug.WriteLine("");

            Thread.Sleep(10000);
         }
      }
   }

When I ran the application in Visual Studio I could reliably read the registers 0x00 through 0x42.

The thread '<No Name>' (0x2) has exited with code 0 (0x0).
Register 0x00 - Value 0X00
Register 0x01 - Value 0X09
Register 0x02 - Value 0X1a
Register 0x03 - Value 0X0b
Register 0x04 - Value 0X00
Register 0x05 - Value 0X52
Register 0x06 - Value 0X6c
Register 0x07 - Value 0X80
Register 0x08 - Value 0X00
Register 0x09 - Value 0X4f
Register 0x0a - Value 0X09
Register 0x0b - Value 0X2b
Register 0x0c - Value 0X20
Register 0x0d - Value 0X08
Register 0x0e - Value 0X02
Register 0x0f - Value 0X0a
Register 0x10 - Value 0Xff
Register 0x11 - Value 0X71
Register 0x12 - Value 0X15
Register 0x13 - Value 0X0b
Register 0x14 - Value 0X28
Register 0x15 - Value 0X0c
Register 0x16 - Value 0X12
Register 0x17 - Value 0X47
Register 0x18 - Value 0X32
Register 0x19 - Value 0X3e
Register 0x1a - Value 0X00
Register 0x1b - Value 0X00
Register 0x1c - Value 0X00
Register 0x1d - Value 0X00
Register 0x1e - Value 0X00
Register 0x1f - Value 0X40
Register 0x20 - Value 0X00
Register 0x21 - Value 0X00
Register 0x22 - Value 0X00
Register 0x23 - Value 0X00
Register 0x24 - Value 0X05
Register 0x25 - Value 0X00
Register 0x26 - Value 0X03
Register 0x27 - Value 0X93
Register 0x28 - Value 0X55
Register 0x29 - Value 0X55
Register 0x2a - Value 0X55
Register 0x2b - Value 0X55
Register 0x2c - Value 0X55
Register 0x2d - Value 0X55
Register 0x2e - Value 0X55
Register 0x2f - Value 0X55
Register 0x30 - Value 0X90
Register 0x31 - Value 0X40
Register 0x32 - Value 0X40
Register 0x33 - Value 0X00
Register 0x34 - Value 0X00
Register 0x35 - Value 0X0f
Register 0x36 - Value 0X00
Register 0x37 - Value 0X00
Register 0x38 - Value 0X00
Register 0x39 - Value 0Xf5
Register 0x3a - Value 0X20
Register 0x3b - Value 0X82
Register 0x3c - Value 0Xfb
Register 0x3d - Value 0X02
Register 0x3e - Value 0X80
Register 0x3f - Value 0X40
Register 0x40 - Value 0X00
Register 0x41 - Value 0X00
Register 0x42 - Value 0X12

The next step was to modify the RegisterReadAndWrite project to check I could read and write the SX127X configuration registers.

     class Program
   {
      static void Main()
      {
#if TINYCLR_V2_SC20100DEV
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi3, SC20100.GpioPin.PA13, SC20100.GpioPin.PA14);
#endif
#if TINYCLR_V2_FEZDUINO
         Rfm9XDevice rfm9XDevice = new Rfm9XDevice(SC20100.SpiBus.Spi6, SC20100.GpioPin.PB1, SC20100.GpioPin.PA15);
#endif

         rfm9XDevice.RegisterDump();

         while (true)
         {
            Debug.WriteLine("Read RegOpMode (read byte)");
            Byte regOpMode1 = rfm9XDevice.RegisterReadByte(0x1);
            Debug.WriteLine($"RegOpMode 0x{regOpMode1:x2}");

            Debug.WriteLine("Set LoRa mode and sleep mode (write byte)");
            rfm9XDevice.RegisterWriteByte(0x01, 0b10000000);

            Debug.WriteLine("Read RegOpMode (read byte)");
            Byte regOpMode2 = rfm9XDevice.RegisterReadByte(0x1);
            Debug.WriteLine($"RegOpMode 0x{regOpMode2:x2}");

            Debug.WriteLine("Read the preamble (read word)");
            ushort preamble = rfm9XDevice.RegisterReadWord(0x20);
            Debug.WriteLine($"Preamble 0x{preamble:x2}");

            Debug.WriteLine("Set the preamble to 0x80 (write word)");
            rfm9XDevice.RegisterWriteWord(0x20, 0x80);

            Debug.WriteLine("Read the center frequency (read byte array)");
            byte[] frequencyReadBytes = rfm9XDevice.RegisterRead(0x06, 3);
            Debug.WriteLine($"Frequency Msb 0x{frequencyReadBytes[0]:x2} Mid 0x{frequencyReadBytes[1]:x2} Lsb 0x{frequencyReadBytes[2]:x2}");

            Debug.WriteLine("Set the center frequency to 915MHz (write byte array)");
            byte[] frequencyWriteBytes = { 0xE4, 0xC0, 0x00 };
            rfm9XDevice.RegisterWrite(0x06, frequencyWriteBytes);

            rfm9XDevice.RegisterDump();

            Thread.Sleep(30000);
         }
      }

When I ran the application in Visual Studio I could read and write register values.

The thread '<No Name>' (0x2) has exited with code 0 (0x0).
Register dump
Register 0x00 - Value 0X00
Register 0x01 - Value 0X09
Register 0x02 - Value 0X1a
Register 0x03 - Value 0X0b
Register 0x04 - Value 0X00
Register 0x05 - Value 0X52
Register 0x06 - Value 0X6c
Register 0x07 - Value 0X80
Register 0x08 - Value 0X00
Register 0x09 - Value 0X4f
Register 0x0a - Value 0X09
Register 0x0b - Value 0X2b
Register 0x0c - Value 0X20
Register 0x0d - Value 0X08
Register 0x0e - Value 0X02
Register 0x0f - Value 0X0a
Register 0x10 - Value 0Xff
Register 0x11 - Value 0X71
Register 0x12 - Value 0X15
Register 0x13 - Value 0X0b
Register 0x14 - Value 0X28
Register 0x15 - Value 0X0c
Register 0x16 - Value 0X12
Register 0x17 - Value 0X47
Register 0x18 - Value 0X32
Register 0x19 - Value 0X3e
Register 0x1a - Value 0X00
Register 0x1b - Value 0X00
Register 0x1c - Value 0X00
Register 0x1d - Value 0X00
Register 0x1e - Value 0X00
Register 0x1f - Value 0X40
Register 0x20 - Value 0X00
Register 0x21 - Value 0X00
Register 0x22 - Value 0X00
Register 0x23 - Value 0X00
Register 0x24 - Value 0X05
Register 0x25 - Value 0X00
Register 0x26 - Value 0X03
Register 0x27 - Value 0X93
Register 0x28 - Value 0X55
Register 0x29 - Value 0X55
Register 0x2a - Value 0X55
Register 0x2b - Value 0X55
Register 0x2c - Value 0X55
Register 0x2d - Value 0X55
Register 0x2e - Value 0X55
Register 0x2f - Value 0X55
Register 0x30 - Value 0X90
Register 0x31 - Value 0X40
Register 0x32 - Value 0X40
Register 0x33 - Value 0X00
Register 0x34 - Value 0X00
Register 0x35 - Value 0X0f
Register 0x36 - Value 0X00
Register 0x37 - Value 0X00
Register 0x38 - Value 0X00
Register 0x39 - Value 0Xf5
Register 0x3a - Value 0X20
Register 0x3b - Value 0X82
Register 0x3c - Value 0Xfa
Register 0x3d - Value 0X02
Register 0x3e - Value 0X80
Register 0x3f - Value 0X40
Register 0x40 - Value 0X00
Register 0x41 - Value 0X00
Register 0x42 - Value 0X12
Read RegOpMode (read byte)
RegOpMode 0x09
Set LoRa mode and sleep mode (write byte)
Read RegOpMode (read byte)
RegOpMode 0x80
Read the preamble (read word)
Preamble 0x08
Set the preamble to 0x80 (write word)
Read the center frequency (read byte array)
Frequency Msb 0x6c Mid 0x80 Lsb 0x00
Set the center frequency to 915MHz (write byte array)
Register dump
Register 0x00 - Value 0Xc3
Register 0x01 - Value 0X80
Register 0x02 - Value 0X1a
Register 0x03 - Value 0X0b
Register 0x04 - Value 0X00
Register 0x05 - Value 0X52
Register 0x06 - Value 0Xe4
Register 0x07 - Value 0Xc0
Register 0x08 - Value 0X00
Register 0x09 - Value 0X4f
Register 0x0a - Value 0X09
Register 0x0b - Value 0X2b
Register 0x0c - Value 0X20
Register 0x0d - Value 0X01
Register 0x0e - Value 0X80
Register 0x0f - Value 0X00
Register 0x10 - Value 0X00
Register 0x11 - Value 0X00
Register 0x12 - Value 0X00
Register 0x13 - Value 0X00
Register 0x14 - Value 0X00
Register 0x15 - Value 0X00
Register 0x16 - Value 0X00
Register 0x17 - Value 0X00
Register 0x18 - Value 0X10
Register 0x19 - Value 0X00
Register 0x1a - Value 0X00
Register 0x1b - Value 0X00
Register 0x1c - Value 0X00
Register 0x1d - Value 0X72
Register 0x1e - Value 0X70
Register 0x1f - Value 0X64
Register 0x20 - Value 0X80
Register 0x21 - Value 0X00
Register 0x22 - Value 0X01
Register 0x23 - Value 0Xff
Register 0x24 - Value 0X00
Register 0x25 - Value 0X00
Register 0x26 - Value 0X04
Register 0x27 - Value 0X00
Register 0x28 - Value 0X00
Register 0x29 - Value 0X00
Register 0x2a - Value 0X00
Register 0x2b - Value 0X00
Register 0x2c - Value 0X00
Register 0x2d - Value 0X50
Register 0x2e - Value 0X14
Register 0x2f - Value 0X45
Register 0x30 - Value 0X55
Register 0x31 - Value 0Xc3
Register 0x32 - Value 0X05
Register 0x33 - Value 0X27
Register 0x34 - Value 0X1c
Register 0x35 - Value 0X0a
Register 0x36 - Value 0X03
Register 0x37 - Value 0X0a
Register 0x38 - Value 0X42
Register 0x39 - Value 0X12
Register 0x3a - Value 0X49
Register 0x3b - Value 0X1d
Register 0x3c - Value 0X00
Register 0x3d - Value 0Xaf
Register 0x3e - Value 0X00
Register 0x3f - Value 0X00
Register 0x40 - Value 0X00
Register 0x41 - Value 0X00
Register 0x42 - Value 0X12

At this point I was confident that I could hardware reset the shield and read/modify registers on the SX127X.

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Random wanderings through Microsoft Azure esp. the IoT bits, AI on Micro controllers, .NET nanoFramework, .NET Core on *nix, and GHI Electronics TinyCLR

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