XPLR-AOA-3 U-BLOX | Alldatasheet
Document overview
- Manufacturer or author: Provided By alldatasheet.com(free datasheet download site)
- PDF pages: 46
Technical content
Datasheet sections
- 1 Quick start guide
- 2 Product description
- 2.1 Kit includes
- 2.2 Assembling the kit
- 3 ANT-B10
- 3.1 Flashing ANT-B10 software
- 3.1.1 General
- 3.1.2 Flashing using s-center
- 3.1.3 Flashing from the Command line
- 3.2 ANT-B10 configuration and testing
- 3.3 Connecting to a PC
- 3.3.1 Overview
- 3.3.2 Pin description for UART connection
- 3.3.3 Suggested accessories
- 4 EVB-ANT-1
- 4.1 Introduction
- 4.2 EVB-ANT-1 overview
- 4.3 Main EVB-ANT-1 use cases
- 4.3.1 Anchor point
- 4.3.2 Custom antenna support
- 4.4 UART connections to board
- 4.5 EVB-ANT-1 software
- 4.5.1 Default software
- 4.5.2 Flashing
- 4.5.3 Web configuration interface
- 4.6 Boot options
- 4.7 Powering options
- 4.8 Mechanical specifications
- 4.9 Notes
- 4.9.1 Hardware and software revisions
- 4.9.2 Limitations and known issues
- 5 C209 tag
- 5.1 Overview
- 5.2 C209 Software and flashing
- 5.2.1 Installing tag software with the DFU bootloader using s-center
- 5.2.2 Installing tag software on the command line with the DFU bootloader
- 5.2.3 Installing tag software using a debugger
- 5.3 Configuration and handling
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 1 of 46 C1-Public XPLR-AOA-3 Evaluation kit for ANT -B10 antenna boards User guide Abstract Comprising an ANT-B10 antenna board, EVB -ANT-1 development platform , and C209 tag , t he XPLR-AOA-3 explorer kit provides a complete Angle of Arrival anchor point – and all you need for developing direction-finding and indoor positioning applications. This document describes the operation and assembly of the kit components and explains the procedures for loading the necessary software. It also includes a Quick start guide to get the XPLR- AOA-3 up and running as quickly as possible.
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 2 of 46 C1-Public Document information Title XPLR-AOA-3 Subtitle Evaluation kit for ANT-B10 antenna boards Document type User guide Document number UBX-22006906 Revision and date R05 23-May-2023 Disclosure restriction C1-Public This document applies to the following products: Product name Ordering code XPLR-AOA-3 XPLR-AOA-3-00 u- -blox or third parties may hold intellectual property rights in the products, names, logos and designs included in this document. Copying, reproduction, or modification of this document or any part thereof is only permitted with the express written permission of u-blox. Disclosure to third parties is permitted for clearly public documents only. The information contained herein is provided “as is”. No warranty of any kind, either express or implied, is made in relation to the accuracy, reliability, fitness for a particular purpose or content of this document. This document m ay be revised by u-blox at any time. For most recent documents, please visit www.u-blox.com. Copyright © u-blox AG.
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1 Quick start guide
Install s-center evaluation software s-center is a powerful and easy-to-use tool for evaluating, configuring, and testing u-blox short range modules. Running on Windows 10 operating systems, the software allows end users to configure and assess the performance of u-blox short range modules. Use the following procedure to download and install the s -center software and documentation. The software can be downloaded from the u-blox s-center product page and is available free of charge. 1. Download the latest s-center software to your computer. 2. Open the s-center setup installer to install the software. 3. Select Launch button in the installer or open the application from the Windows Start button. Install the serial port drivers EVB-ANT-1 includes a mounted FTDI chip that provides the serial port connectivity. The driver for the UART is normally installed automatically when the board is connected to the PC. If the driver does not start automatically, the driver files can be retrieved from the manufacturer’s web site at https://ftdichip.com/. Connect the ANT-B10 board Connect the ANT-B10 board to the EVB-ANT-1 board. Physically align the boards and gently plug the 20-pin, male and female header connectors together. See also Assembling the kit. Install u-connectLocate software on the ANT-B10 u-connectLocate is continuously improved with performance and quality enhancements and it is strongly recommended to always use the latest available version of the u -connectLocate software. See Flashing ANT-B10 software. Install host software on the EVB-ANT-1 See EVB-ANT-1 . Install tag software See C209 Software and flashing. Test the system See ANT-B10 configuration and testing for a description of setup and running of the system with the ANT-B10 connected directly to the PC, or EVB-ANT-1 software for a description on how to send the anchor events to a positioning engine over an ethernet or Wi-Fi network.
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2 Product description
Comprising an ANT-B10 antenna board, EVB -ANT-1 development platform and C209 tag , t he XPLR-AOA-3 explorer kit provides a complete Angle of Arrival anchor point – and all you need for developing direction-finding and indoor positioning applications. The antenna board runs developed u-connectLocate software, while the development board runs an open-source demonstration software that relays angle events from the antenna board. The C209 tag runs example, open -source, tag software. All the cables and adapters that are necessary for mechanically connecting the boards are also included in the kit. An off-the-shelf pin header on EVB-ANT-1 allows easy connection to ANT-B10. For an overview of the EVB-ANT-1 board and external connections, see also EVB-ANT-1 overview. ☞ The ANT -B11 antenna board [22] features an identical pin header to that used on ANT-B10. Consequently, all information referencing ANT-B10 in this document is also applicable for ANT-B11. Figure 1 shows the main components of the XPLR-AOA-3 kit with mounted ANT-B10 (left), ANT-B10 antenna board (center), and C209 tag (right). Figure 1: XLPR-AOA-3 kit showing the assembled XPLR-AOA-3 (left), ANT-B10 antenna board (center) and C209 tag (right) ☞ For information about using the XPLR-AOA-3 kit for indoor positioning and the positioning engine client software for Windows, see also the Bluetooth indoor positioning guide [21]. For general information about Bluetooth direction finding, watch the u -blox webinars [2] and study the Bluetooth SIG technical overview [3].
2.1 Kit includes
- EVB-ANT-1 board
- ANT-B10 antenna board (hosting the NINA-B411 Bluetooth Low Energy module)
- C209 tag (hosting the NINA-B406 Bluetooth Low Energy module)
- Mounting materials. For mounting instructions, see Assembling the kit. o Single plexiglass mounting panel o Four 30 mm M3 standoffs o Four 8 mm M3 standoffs o Four M3x6 screws
2.2 Assembling the kit
- Connect to the ANT -B10 board to the EVB -ANT-1 board. Physically align the boards and gently
header connectors on each board.
- Using the supplied standoffs and screws, assemble the two PCBs to the plexiglass , as shown in
Figure 3. The assembly order of the components (see Kit includes) are as follows: mount the anchor node to a wall or ceiling.
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3 ANT-B10
ANT-B10 provides a versatile Bluetooth® direction finding board equipped with eight, dual-polarized, patch antennas for direction finding, as shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5. Figure 4: ANT-B10 board – top view showing antennas, traces, and mounting holes Figure 5: ANT-B10 - bottom view showing NINA-B411 module, switch, and header
antennas and applies an angle calculation algorithm to the received signals to compute tag angles. u-connectLocate software releases are planned to support USB and SPI interfaces.
3.1 Flashing ANT-B10 software
strongly recommended to always use the latest available version of the u-connectLocate software.
3.1.1 General
The u-connectLocate software is flashed using s-center or flashed directly on the command line. (see UART connections to board) or connected directly to a PC (see Connecting to a PC). page [10] and u-connectLocate AT commands manual [18].
3.1.2 Flashing using s-center
ANT-B10 can be flashed over the UART using s-center [7]. ☞ Flashing over the UART requires s-center 6.1 or later.
- Download and unzip the u -connectLocate software container , as described in Command line
- Open s-center on the correct COM port.
- In the “Software Update” dialog , select the binary file in the software container, as shown in
Figure 6. Make sure the flashing speed is set to 115200.
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 10 of 46 C1-Public Figure 6: Updating the software on the board using s-center
3.1.3 Flashing from the Command line
Use the following procedure to flash the board over the UART connection. 1. Download the u-connectLocate software container from the u-connectLocate product page [4]. 2. Boot the board into S oftware Update mode by connecting the SWITCH_2 pin to ground while powering up the board. 3. Flash the u -connectLocate software using the bundled (Windows only) newtmgr executable. Alternatively, use the Newt Manager Guide [6] to install the newtmgr application tool for MAC OS, Linux, and Windows. 4. Use Newt Manager to install u-connectLocate on the NINA-B411 module: newtmgr --conntype=serial --connstring="COMXX,baud=115200" image upload <binary image> 5. Press the reset button to reset the application board or reset it with newtmgr: newtmgr --conntype=serial --connstring="COMXX,baud=115200" reset
3.2 ANT-B10 configuration and testing
A green LED light indicates that the board is powered on. Figure 8. The COM port can also be used with a terminal emulator to type in AT commands.
- Eddystone instance ID
- RSSI of 1st polarization
- Azimuth angle
- Elevation angle
- Reserved
- Detected advertising channel, that is, one of the normal Bluetooth Low Energy advertisement channels (37, 38 or 39)
- Anchor ID as set by AT+UDFCFG tag 4.
- User defined strings as set by AT+UDFCFG tag 2.
- Timestamp
- Periodic advertising sequence number For a de tailed description of the +UUDF event parameters, see the u -connectLocate AT commands manual [18]. In the angle calculation events shown above, the beacon is moving from one side of the anchor to the other as the azimuth angle. Given as the third parameter in the command (shown in bold), the beacon moves from a positive value (20) to a negative value (-10). ☞ The optimal distance between anchor nodes and tags is approximately 2–15 m. ☞ A slight degradation in the accuracy of the reported angle can be expected close to the outer limits of the angle range . To maximize accuracy, t he anchor should normally point to the center of the area of interest.
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3.3 Connecting to a PC
3.3.1 Overview
A host PC can communicate directly with ANT-B10 over UART interface (TX, RX, CTS, RTS) through EVB-ANT-1. The pin-headers connecting the two boards together is physically located in the center of each board. See also Assembling the kit. To test ANT-B10 as a standalone unit independently of EVB -ANT-1, the host PC can also attach to the UART interface through an expansion board fitted to the underside of the antenna board. Attaching a USB-to-TTL serial adapter to the expansion board with an adjoining cable harness allows convenient access and control of the UART interface from the PC through the ANT-B10 header. Figure 9 shows the USB adapter attached to ANT-B10 through the standard 1.27 mm pin header. Figure 9: ANT-B10 with UART to USB serial converter ☞ As ANT-B10 is powered by the USB-to-Serial Adapter there is no need for external power supply. To connect ANT-B10 to the host PC: 1. Plug in the USB-to-Serial adapter 2. Open the Windows Device Manager to identify the COM port number of the board. 3. Use s-center [7] or your preferred terminal emulator to establish the serial connection to the COM port. 4. Connect the COM port to the s-center tool [7] or the terminal emulator with the following port settings:
- 115200 kbps
- 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit (8N1)
- Flow control enabled using RTS/CTS
3.3.2 Pin description for UART connection
Using the cable harness, connect the following pins from the ANT -B10 header to USB -to-Serial adapter:
- UART_TXD (pin 16)
- UART_RXD (pin 18)
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- UART_CTS (pin 14) – optional for UART flow control
- UART_RTS (pin 12) – optional for UART flow control
- GND (pin 15 or 17)
- +3V3 (pin 2) ☞ If flow control is not used the UART_CTS pin is internally pulled down, but it is good practice to connect UART_CTS to GND. Figure 10 shows the pin positions on the ANT-B10 connector. Figure 10: ANT-B10 connector pin assignment (top view)
3.3.3 Suggested accessories
Figure 11 shows (from left to right) the components needed to connect ANT-B10 directly to the host PC.
- USB adapter cable with male USB Type-A connector to male mini-B connector
- FTDI FT232RL USB-to-TTL Serial Converter Adapter Module 5 V and 3.3 V for Arduino
- Female-to-female jumper set
- Dual-row, 1.27 mm pitch, 20-pin, female adapter (to avoid pin damage on the ANT-B10 board) Figure 11: Components required for PC connection
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4 EVB-ANT-1
The EVB-ANT-1 application board offers developers a quick and easy way to evaluate the ANT -B10 and ANT -B11 antenna board s. It features the NXP i.MX RT1062 Microcontroller Unit ( MCU) for configuring and developing direction finding applications, as well as an Ethernet PHY chip and u-blox MAYA-W1 Wi-Fi module. Figure 12 shows the modules, jumpers, and connectors on the board that are referenced throughout this document. J7: Custom antenna header SW3: Boot options (Internal boot/serial downloader) SW2: Manual button (NINA_SWITCH1) J13: USB type C SW4: Manual button (NINA_SWITCH2): J15: USB type C SW1: Manual button (NINA_RESET) J6: Barrel jack power connector (auxiliary jack, DC 9-57V) J11: Select NINA UART on-board EVB (remove) T1: RJ45 Ethernet connector (PoE) J12: Select NINA UART on ANT-B1 host (remove) Figure 12: EVB-ANT-1 board showing mounted plexiglass base enclosure, modules, jumpers, and connectors
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4.1 Introduction
EVB-ANT-1 is a versatile application board for evaluating a system setup , using the ANT-B10 board, or other antenna boards. The board can be used as:
- an anchor point passing raw or processed angle events from the antenna board to a server . See also Anchor point.
- a host board for evaluating other antenna boards,. See also Custom antenna support.
- a positioning engine server
- a preprocessor applying filtering or other reformatting of the angle events from the antenna board before passing them on to the network EVB-ANT-1 has a connector and mechanical dimensions that make it suitable for mounting an ANT-Bxx-board. The board is protected with an enclosed plexiglass, as shown in Figure 2.
4.2 EVB-ANT-1 overview
Figure 13 EVB-ANT-1 block diagram The main components of the EVB-ANT-1 include:
- MAYA-W1 Wi-Fi module for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity
- Arm® Cortex®-M7 Core MCU (NXP i.MX RT1060 family)
- Ethernet controller for ethernet connectivity
- Power over Ethernet (PoE) controller for powering the board using an Ethernet cable
- NINA-B411-40B Bluetooth module running u -connectLocate software for evaluating external antenna boards
- Quad UART-to-USB converter providing access to the serial interfaces of the MCU, ANT-B10, and the onboard NINA-B4 module Ethernet MCU SDIO MAYA-W1 UART UART SPI GPIO NINA-B4 GPIO RF UART SPI GPIO FTDI USB UART USB ANT-Bxx connector Custom antenna board FTDI USB connector ANT-Bxx USB connector Ethernet connector (PoE+) Power controller DC power connector Wi-Fi Bluetooth EVB-ANT-1
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4.3 Main EVB-ANT-1 use cases
4.3.1 Anchor point
In this use case, the EVB-ANT-1 primarily supports ANT-B family antenna boards and routes direction finding data to a position engine. F or this purpose, the microcontroller must communicate with the ANT-B family antenna board Bluetooth module using UART (or SPI) through the ANT-B family connector. Direction finding data is then forwarded through the chosen communication inter face – either Ethernet or Wi-Fi using the MAYA-W1 module. The highlighted areas in Figure 14 show the EVB-ANT-1 components involved in this use case. Figure 14: EVB-ANT-1 components involved in the anchor point use case
4.3.2 Custom antenna support
EVB-ANT-1 also supports custom antenna boards that contain an antenna array and an RF switch. To support the use case, an onboard NINA-B411 Bluetooth module can connect to a custom antenna board through a 2.54 mm pitch connector . The module includes the power, the RF switch cont rol signals, and the U.FL connector for the RF signals. The MCU connects to the onboard NINA -B411 through the UART or SPI (pending software support), and GPIOs. Direction finding data can be communicated to a host through the chosen communication interface – either Ethernet or Wi-Fi using the MAYA-W1 module. Ethernet MCU SDIO MAYA-W1 UART UART SPI GPIO NINA-B4 GPIO RF UART SPI GPIO FTDI USB UART USB ANT-Bxx connector Custom antenna board FTDI USB connector ANT-Bxx USB connector Ethernet connector (PoE+) Power controller DC power connector Wi-Fi Bluetooth EVB-ANT-1
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 18 of 46 C1-Public The highlighted areas in Figure 15 show the EVB-ANT-1 components involved in this use case. Figure 15: EVB-ANT-1 components involved in antenna evaluation High speed GPIOs from the onboard NINA -B411 module are broken out to a 20 pin (2x10), 2.54 mm pitch header along with 5 V and 3.3 V power supplies. These GPIOs can be used to drive RF switches that facilitate custom switching of the antenna array. The connector pinout is shown in Figure 16. Table 1 shows the available signals on the antenna header. These signals are the same as those used on the NINA-B411 hosted on ANT-B family antenna board. Access to these pins from the header pin make it easier to test custom antenna boards. NINA-B4 pin Pin name Header pin Note IO 47 SWITCH_D0 4 High speed GPIO IO 48 SWITCH_D1 8 IO 49 SWITCH_D2 12 IO 50 SWITCH_D3 16 IO 51 SWITCH_D4 18 IO 52 SWITCH_EN 12 IO 44 GPIO1 3 General purpose I/O IO 46 GPIO2 7 General purpose I/O IO 45 GPIO3 11 General purpose I/O Table 1: Pins on the NINA-B411 connected to the custom antenna header Ethernet MCU SDIO MAYA-W1 UART UART SPI GPIO NINA-B4 GPIO RF UART SPI GPIO FTDI USB UART USB ANT-Bxx connector Custom Antenna Board FTDI USB connector ANT-Bxx USB connector Ethernet connector (PoE+) Power controller DC Power connector WiFi Bluetooth EVB-ANT-1
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 19 of 46 C1-Public The RF signal can be connected to the antenna board through the onboard NINA-B4 U.FL connector, with control signals as shown in Figure 16. Figure 16: NINA-B4 connector to custom antenna board
4.4 UART connections to board
EVB-ANT-1 supports a quad-channel UART interface that connects to:
- MCU
- NINA-B411 module hosted on the ANT-B family
- onboard NINA-B411 module hosted on EVK-ANT-B1 Figure 17: UART connections over USB
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 20 of 46 C1-Public The UART connections on the ANT-B family and onboard NINA -B411 are connected to the MCU by default. It is possible to connect directly from the USB connector to either:
- NINA-B411 hosted on the ANT-B family board (with jumper J12 removed)
- onboard NINA-B411 (with jumper J11 removed) The connection options make it possible to perform software updates or configuration through the UART interface. For jumper locations, see Figure 12.
4.5 EVB-ANT-1 software
4.5.1 Default software
The board comes flashed with example software that implements the Anchor point use case. The software is developed using NXP’s MCUXpresso Software and Tools and is available as an open-source resource from the dedicated GitHub repository [19]. Follow the README file in the GitHub repository for further instructions.
4.5.2 Flashing
EVB-ANT-1 is normally flashed over the JTAG interface on the board. A debugger and a cable for the 19-pin JTAG interface is needed. The code is stored on a NOR flash connected to the MCU. It is also possible to use the Serial downloader over USB . This is done by changing the boot configuration to start up in Serial downloader mode, see Boot options.
4.5.3 Web configuration interface
EVB-ANT-1 supports an Ethernet web interface that is preconfigured with IP address 192.168.1.102 and subnet mask 255.255.255.0. To connect EVB -ANT-1 to a router or directly to a PC, enter "http://192.168.1.102/" in your browser and configure the platform with the same subnet as the connected device. The network parameters are configured from the web interface on port 80 of each device, as shown in Figure 18. For further information about configuring the platform, see also the README.md notes in EVB-ANT-1 software GitHub repository [19]. Figure 18: EVB-ANT-1 default software configuration interface with Ethernet network configuration ☞ The Anchor point is enabled in the default software on EVB-ANT-1.
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- Configure network settings for Wi-Fi and ethernet. The default IP address of EVB-ANT-1 is a fixed IP address of 192.168.1.102.
- Send UDP packets containing angle events generated by the anchor. It is often convenient to broadcast the address of the network, as shown in Figure 19.
- Configure the active NINA-B411 module as either the NINA-B411 mounted on the ANT-B10 board or the onboard NINA-B411 (connected to the custom antenna header). Figure 19: Configuring the active NINA-B411 and destination for angle events After updating the configuration, select Submit to send it to the MCU and save it to flash. Select Read to retrieve current configuration.
4.6 Boot options
Use the SW3 DIP switches to set the board in regular boot mode or serial downloader mode, as shown in Table 2. Switch/Boot option Switch 1 Switch 2 Switch 3 Switch 4 Boot from flash Off Off On Off Serial Downloader Off Off Off On Table 2 Boot options using SW3 switch
4.7 Powering options
EVB-ANT-1 is powered by either:
- Power over Ethernet
- An auxiliary jack (DC 9-57V)
- USB type C (2 connectors available on the board)
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 22 of 46 C1-Public The powering options for the platform are controlled with jumper J2, as shown in Figure 20. Figure 20: Jumper J2 powering options J2 jumper settings are described in Table 3. Jumper position Pins Power setting P 1–2 Power over Ethernet or barrel jack. When the barrel jack is present and connected to a voltage source, the device automatically gives priority to that, even if a PoE switch is also connected to the ethernet plug. N 3–4 USB connector J15 (USB interface of the ANT-B10). F 5–6 USB connector J13 (USB connector of the FTDI chip for UART connection to the processors on EVB-ANT-1 or the antenna board). Table 3 Jumper J2 settings
4.8 Mechanical specifications
EVB-ANT-1 Dimensions: 126.09 mm x 126.09 mm. EVB-ANT-1 has four mounting holes that match the four corner holes on the ANT-B family antenna board for screw mounting. Figure 21: EVB-ANT-1 mechanical dimensions
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4.9 Notes
4.9.1 Hardware and software revisions
The hardware revisions available for EVB-ANT-1 are shown in Table 4. Hardware revision Notes B Initial revision C Offers improved ethernet stability compared to revision B Table 4 EVB-ANT-1 hardware revisions The revisions of EVB-ANT-1 example software now available on GitHub [19] are shown in Table 5. Software revision Notes Compatibility
0.1 Initial version published Hardware revision B only
1.0 General updates Compatible with hardware revisions B and C
Table 5 EVB-ANT-1 example software revisions
4.9.2 Limitations and known issues
The issues described in this section relate to both the EVB-ANT-1 hardware and the example software from GitHub [19].
- The ethernet functionality works best if the ethernet cable is plugged to the board before startup.
- To implement changes in the configuration, EVB-ANT-1 must be rebooted.
- To reset EVB-ANT-1, press and hold the SW1 button for 1–2 during board bootup.
- The configuration web page is not using secure communication
- The Wi-Fi pass phrase is stored internally in the module in plain text and not encrypted ☞ The EVB -ANT-1 PCB is electrostatically sensitive and should not be handled without proper precautions.
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5 C209 tag
The C209 is a tag based on the NINA -B406 Bluetooth LE module. The tag runs software that sends Bluetooth 5.1 advertisement messages to the ANT -B10 antenna board, which determine the direction of the tag using the u-connectLocate software. ☞ C209 is an example implementation of a tag , which is not optimized nor available as a separate product.
5.1 Overview
The C209 provides a versatile beacon example that is suitable for use as an AoA tag. It is advisable to test ANT-B10 boards together with C209 tags and pre-loaded C209 tag software [12]. Figure 22: C209 tag in open plastic enclosure C209 tags are based on the open CPU NINA -B406 module variant. C209 tags run on custom tag software that advertises a n Eddystone beacon using extended advertising and periodic advertising with a Constant Tone Extension added to the periodic advertising packets . This CTE is used by the u-connectLocate direction finding software that runs on the antenna application board and calculates the Angle of Arrival. The namespace included in the transmitted Eddystone -UID beacon is 0x4E494E412D4234544147 and the instance ID is based on the MAC address of the NINA-B406 found on the module QR code label. C209 tags are powered by a single CR2032 battery (not included) or through the USB connector. C209 tags include several sensors for use in a multitude of different applications. The on -board sensors include:
- LIS2DW12 accelerometer
- APDS-9306 ambient light sensor
- BME280 humidity, pressure, and temperature sensor
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 25 of 46 C1-Public The main components of any C209 tag are shown in Figure 23. Figure 23: C209 main functional components The important pin definitions on the C209 application board are described in Table 6. No. Name I/O Description Remarks GPIO_1 RED O RED system status signal Active low GPIO_2 LIS_INT I Interrupt signal from Ambient Light Sensor May cause current leak in default configuration. See C209 GitHub repository [12] for more information. GPIO_7 GREEN O GREEN system status signal Active low GPIO_8 BLUE O BLUE system status signal Active low GPIO_18 SWITCH_2 I Switch_2 button Active low GPIO_20 UART_RTS O UART request to send control signal Used only when hardware flow control is enabled GPIO_21 UART_CTS I UART clear to send control signal Used only when hardware flow control is enabled GPIO_22 UART_TXD O UART data output GPIO_23 UART_RXD I UART data input GPIO_42 LIS_INT I Interrupt signal from accelerometer Table 6: Important pin definitions on the C209 For more information about programming the module, see also the NINA-B4 system integration manual [13] and NINA-B40 data sheet [14]. See also C209 schematics. ☞ Although the sensors on the C209 application board are not used in the latest direction -finding tag software from u-blox, the sensors can be utilized in any customer application.
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5.2 C209 Software and flashing
C209 tags are delivered with bootloader software only and do not include the tag software ( available from Github [12]) needed for the device to advertise Bluetooth beacons to anchor nodes. The bootloader on C209 tags is different than that supplied on anchor nodes, and the nrfutil [15] flashing tool is needed to install software over the UART interface with the boot loader. u-blox C209 tag software can be installed using the DFU bootloader or an external debugger. Precompiled packages for each installation option are available from the u -blox C209 software repository [12]. Figure 24: C209 with enclosure
5.2.1 Installing tag software with the DFU bootloader using s-center
The C209 tags can be flashed over the UART using s-center [7]. ☞ Flashing requires s-center 6.1 or later. Follow the flashing procedure outlined below when using s-center: 1. Download and unpack the c209_aoa_tag_<version>.zip file from the u-blox C209 software repository using this direct link, or go to the “Releases” section in the main GitHub repository page [12]. The unpacked file includes the NINA-B4-DF-TAG-SW-<version>.zip file used for the installation. 2. Press and hold the SW2 button on the C209 while resetting the board (by inserting the USB cable or clicking the RESET button) to set the bootloader in “download” mode. See also Figure 24. 3. Open s-center on the correct COM port once the module is in the software download mode. 4. Select Software Update. 5. In the “Software Update” dialog, select the NINA-B4-DF-TAG-SW-<version>.zip file from the software container, as shown in Figure 25. Make sure the flashing speed is set to 115200 , and that you select the zip from a folder with “for_dfu_boot” in the name. 6. Press Update.
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 27 of 46 C1-Public Figure 25: Updating the software on the C209 board using s-center
5.2.2 Installing tag software on the command line with the DFU bootloader
Install C209 tag software with the pre-flashed DFU bootloader on NINA-B406: 1. Download and install the nrfutil flashing tool from the Nordic Github repository [15]. 2. Download and unpack the c209_aoa_tag_<version>.zip file from the u-blox C209 software repository using this direct link, or go to the “Releases” section from the main GitHub repository page [12]. The unpacked file includes the NINA-B4-DF-TAG-SW-<version>.zip file used for the installation, in one of the folders with “for_dfu_boot” in the name. 3. Press and hold the SW2 button on the C209 while resetting the board (by inserting the USB cable or clicking the RESET button) to set the bootloader in “download” mode. See also Figure 24. 4. Use the following command to install the C209 tag software using nrfutil: nrfutil dfu serial -pkg NINA-B4-DF-TAG-SW-<version>.zip -p COMXX -b 115200 -fc 1 ☞ Replace COMXX with the appropriate COM port for your system and <version> with the current version.
5.2.3 Installing tag software using a debugger
C209 tag software can also be installed using a debugger connected through the J10 10-pin contact on the PCB. Install C209 tag software with the pre-flashed DFU bootloader on NINA-B406: 1. Download the c209_aoa_tag_<version>.zip from the u-blox C209 software repository [12] and read the releases section. 2. Unzip the downloaded file.
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 28 of 46 C1-Public 3. Connect the debugger to the 10-pin contact on the C209. 4. Flash the hex file from the folder named release_c209_aoa_tag_no_boot_required in the unpacked the zip using your debugger. ☞ This operation will ove rwrite the boot loader on the module. The C209 GitHub repository [12] includes instructions for restoring the boot loader.
5.3 Configuration and handling
5.3.1 Configuring advertising interval
Press the SW2 button on the C209 to change the advertising interval. When SW2 is pressed, the advertising interval cycles through the available advertising intervals. For best performance, it is advisable to use the fastest advertising interval. The LED will blink shortly to indicate the advertising interval, with 1 blink indicating the fastest advertising. Figure 26: C209 with cover and buttons C209 tags are simply configured over the UART interface using AT commands. The AT commands that can be used to configure the interface are described in Table 7. Command Description AT+UMLA=1 Read Local MAC address AT+GMM Read the model identifier, NINA-B4-TAG AT+TXPWR=<valid_tx_power> <valid_tx_power> can be one of: -40, -30, -20, -16, -12, -8, -4, 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 (dBm) AT+TXPWR? Query the set TX power Table 7: C209 AT commands ☞ For +TXPWR to take effect the software must be reset – either by pressing the reset button or power cycling the module. The configuration is persistently stored in flash. All commands are echoed and responded with either \\r\\nOK\\r\\n or \\r\\nERROR\\r\\n, and should be terminated with \\r. ☞ The UART interface is available for 10 seconds after reset with the settings 115200 bps, with no flow control.
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5.3.2 Enabling/disabling advertising
Press and hold the SW2 button for ~3 seconds to enable/disable advertising. If the tag is advertising, press and hold the button to stop it advertisi ng. The onboard RGB LED blinks blue when advertising is enabled. The blinking interval correlates to the advertising interval.
5.3.3 Restore Eddystone Instance ID
All u-blox modules are delivered with a u-blox MAC address, which is written into the UICR register. If the MAC address is accidentally erased, for example during a reflash of the software, this information is lost. If this happens, the Eddystone Instance ID transmitted in the C209 advertising beacon will not match the MAC address of the module. To correct this: 1. Scan the QR code on the module label. The information in the code includes a code that includes the MAC address (shown here in bold): H85(CCF9578E0D89)0400. 2. While having a debugger connected to the SWD interface of the board enter these commands to reinstate the MAC address CCF9578E0D89 into the UICR of the module: nrfjprog --memwr 0x10001080 --val 0x8E57F9CC nrfjprog --memwr 0x10001084 --val 0xFFFF890D Another example for which the MAC address given in the scan code is 0123456789AB: nrfjprog --memwr 0x10001080 --val 0x67452301 nrfjprog --memwr 0x10001084 --val 0xFFFFAB89 3. After writing the MAC address, reset the module. The module now transmi ts the correct Eddystone Instance ID for the C209 tag.
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 30 of 46 C1-Public 6 u-connectLocate software ☞ u-connectLocate is continuously improved with performance and quality enhancements and it is strongly recommended to always use the latest available version of the u -connectLocate software.
6.1 General information
u-connectLocate software can track a certain number of tags and report their angles in +UUDF events over the UART connection. The software employs an algorithm to detect the direction or angle of a moving tag. As the antenna array on the board detects the Constant Tone Extension (CTE) advertised in a tag beacon, the algorithm calculates the angles of the tag in two dimensions. The software runs on the NINA-B411-40B module, which is connected to the antenna array and Bluetooth receiver on the ANT-B10 board.
6.2 Configuration example
By default, u-connectLocate comes pre-configured to track all u -blox tags. The tags advertise with the Eddystone namespace 0x4E494E412D4234544147, which by default is tracked in u-connectLocate. So, if you are only using the u-blox C209 tags, no configuration is needed. Each anchor node can be configured with beacons to track. An example for how to set up the anchor to track two tags is shown below: AT+UDFFILT=1,2,”6E616D65737061636578” AT+UDFFILT=2,2,”CCF9578E0D8A” AT+UDFFILT=2,2,”CCF9578E0D8B” AT+UDFENABLE=1 (Tracking is enabled by default, so this is optional) These commands set up the anchor to track the two tags w ith the given MAC addresses in the Eddystone name space (6E616D65737061636578) used by the tags. The sequence described above reflects the most simplistic use case. Further configuration is possible using the AT+UDFCFG command. See the u -connectLocate AT command manual [18] for further information. The settings shall be saved using the AT&W command, followed by a restart (AT+CPWROFF).
UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 31 of 46 C1-Public Appendix A Glossary Abbreviation Definition AoA Angle of Arrival AoD Angle of Departure ASCII American Standard Code for Information Interchange ARM Arm (Advanced RISC Machines) Holdings CPU Central Processing Unit CTE Constant Tone Extension MCU Microcontroller Unit PoE Power over Ethernet RSSI Received Signal Strength Indication Table 8: Explanation of the abbreviations and terms used
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UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 33 of 46 C1-Public C EVB-ANT-1 schematics
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UBX-22006906 - R05 Page 45 of 46 C1-Public Related documentation [1] ANT-B10 data sheet, UBX-22008373 [2] u-blox webinars, https://www.u-blox.com/en/webinar [3] Bluetooth Direction Finding: A Technical Overview https://www.bluetooth.com/bluetooth-resources/bluetooth-direction-finding/ [4] https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-connectlocate [5] newtmgr download: https://mynewt.apache.org/latest/newtmgr/install/install_windows.html [6] Newt Manager Guide: https://mynewt.apache.org/latest/newtmgr/index.html [7] s-center, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/s-center [8] s-center user guide, UBX-16012261 [9] FTDI website https://ftdichip.com/drivers/ [10] u-connectLocate product page, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-connectlocate [11] u-connectXpress AT commands manual, UBX-14044127 [12] C209 tag software GitHub repository: https://github.com/u-blox/c209-aoa-tag [13] NINA-B4 system integration manual, UBX-19052230 [14] NINA-B40 series data sheet, UBX-19049405 [15] nrfutil, https://github.com/NordicSemiconductor/pc-nrfutil/releases [16] XPLR-AOA-3 product page, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/xplr-aoa-3-kit [17] ANT-B10 SIM, UBX-22025788 [18] u-connectLocate AT commands manual, UBX-22025586 [19] EVB-ANT-1 software GitHub repository: https://github.com/u-blox/evb-ant-1 [20] Serial Downloader user guide, https://spsdk.readthedocs.io/en/latest/apps/sdphost.html [21] Bluetooth indoor positioning application note, UBX-21006395 [22] ANT-B11 product page, https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/ant-b11-antenna-board ☞ For product change notifications and regular updates of u -blox documentation, register on our website, www.u-blox.com.
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Revision history
Revision Date Name Comments R01 29-Mar-2022 mape Initial release R02 3-May-2022 mape Noted the need to flash ANT-B10 with u-connectLocate in Software section. Minor change in Document information and other small corrections. R03 20-Jan-2023 mape Restructured document, moved content to u-connectLocate AT commands manual and ANT-B10 system integration manual. Renamed to XPLR-AOA-3 user guide. Added EVB-ANT-1 chapter and related schematics. R04 3-Mar-2023 mape Improvements in C209 Software and flashing. Minor corrections throughout document. R05 23-May-2023 mape Updated for software version 1.0 and hardware revision C. Added notes describing anchor accuracy and UUDF events in ANT-B10 configuration and testing. Corrected Cortex MCU references. Added information describing access to the Web configuration interface. Included notes describing Limitations and known issues. Updated flashing procedure in Installing tag software with the DFU bootloader using s-center. Updated images and added other minor editorial changes. Contact u-blox AG Address: Zürcherstrasse 68
8800 Thalwil
For further support and contact information, visit us at www.u-blox.com/support.