rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient Example

Example Summary

The WSN Node example illustrates how to create a Wireless Sensor Network Node device which sends packets to a concentrator. This example is meant to be used with the WSN Concentrator example to form a one-to-many network where the nodes send messages to the concentrator.

This examples showcases the use of several Tasks, Semaphores, and Events to get sensor updates and send packets with acknowledgment from the concentrator. For the radio layer, this example uses the EasyLink API which provides an easy-to-use API for the most frequently used radio operations.

Peripherals Exercised

Board_PIN_LED0 - Toggled when the a packet is sent
Board_ADCCHANNEL_A0 - Used to measure the Analog Light Sensor by the SCE task
Board_PIN_BUTTON0 - Selects fast report or slow report mode. In slow report mode the sensor data is sent every 5s or as fast as every 1s if there is a significant change in the ADC reading. The fast reporting mode sends the sensor data every 1s regardless of the change in ADC value. The default is slow reporting mode.

Resources & Jumper Settings

If you’re using an IDE (such as CCS or IAR), please refer to Board.html in your project directory for resources used and board-specific jumper settings. Otherwise, you can find Board.html in the directory <SDK_INSTALL_DIR>/source/ti/boards/<BOARD>.

Example Usage

Run the example. On another board run the WSN Concentrator example. This node should show up on the LCD of the Concentrator.

The example also supports Over The Air Download (OAD), where new FW can be transferred from the concentrator to the node. There must be an OAD Server, which is included in the concentrator project, and an OAD client, which is included in the node project.

Performing an OAD Image Transfer

To be safe the external flash of the Concentrator should be wiped before running the example. To do this, program both LP boards with erase_extflash_cc13x0lp.hex. The program will flash the LEDs while erasing the external flash. Allow the application to run until the LEDs stop flashing indicating the external flash has been erased.

The FW to erase the external flash can be found in below location and should be loaded using Uniflash programmer: <SDK_DIR>/examples/rtos/CC1310_LAUNCHXL/easylink/hexfiles/offChipOad/ccs/erase_extflash_cc13x0lp.hex

The Concentrator OAD Server and Node OAD Client FW should each be loaded into a CC1310LP/CC1350LP using the Uniflash programmer:

Load rfWsnConcentratorOadServer (.out) project into a CC1310LP/CC1350LP
Load <SDK_DIR>/examples/rtos/CC1310_LAUNCHXL/easylink/hexfiles/offChipOad/ccs/rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_all_v1.bin into a CC1310LP/CC1350LP The Concentrator will display the below on the UART terminal:

Nodes   Value   SW    RSSI
*0x0b    0887    0    -080
 0xdb    1036    0    -079
 0x91    0940    0    -079
Action: Update available FW
Info: Available FW unknown

Use the node display to identify the corresponding node ID:

Node ID: 0x91
Node ADC Reading: 1196

The node OAD image can be loaded into the external flash of the Concentrator through the UART with the oad_write_bin.py script. The action must first be selected using BTN-2. Press BTN-2 until the Action is set to Update available FW, then press BTN-1 and BTN-2 simultaneously to execute the action.

When “Available FW” is selected the terminal will display:

    Waiting for Node FW update...

The UART terminal must be closed to free the COM port before the script is run. Then the python script can be run using the following command:

    python <SDK>/tools/easylink/oad/oad_write_bin.py /dev/ttyS28 <SDK_DIR>/examples/rtos/CC1310_LAUNCHXL/easylink/hexfiles/offChipOad/ccs/rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_app_v2.bin

After the download the UART terminal can be re-opened and the “Info” menu line will be updated to reflect the new FW available for OAD to a node.

The current FW version running on the node can be requested using the Send FW Ver Req action. This is done by pressing BTN-1 until the desired node is selected (indicated by the *), then pressing BTN-2 until the Action is set to Send FW Ver Req. To execute the action, press BTN-1 and BTN-2 simultaneously.

The next time the node sends data to the concentrator, the FW version of the selected node will appear in the Info section.

Nodes   Value   SW    RSSI
 0x0b    0887    0    -080
 0xdb    1036    0    -079
*0x91    0940    0    -079
Action: Send FW Ver Req
Info: Node 0x91 FW v1.0

The node FW can now be updated to the image stored on the external flash of the concentrator. Press BTN-1 until the desired node is selected, then press BTN-2 until the Action is set to Update node FW. To execute the action, press BTN-1 and BTN-2 simultaneously.

The next time the node sends data, the OAD sequence will begin. As the node requests each image block from the concentrator the Concentrator display is updated to show the progress of the image transfer.

Nodes   Value   SW    RSSI
 0x0b    0887    0    -080
 0xdb    1036    0    -079
*0x91    0940    0    -079
Action: Update node FW
Info: OAD Block 14 of 1089

The node display also updates to show the status of the image transfer.

Node ID: 0x91
Node ADC Reading: 3093
OAD Block: 14 of 1089
OAD Block Retries: 0

Once the OAD has completed, the concentrator will indicate that the transfer has finished with an OAD Complete status. The node will reset itself with a new node ID. If the device does not reset itself a manual reset may be necessary.

Generating OAD Images

For generating the images the following tools are required:

Code Composer Studio – Download the latest version from https://processors.wiki.ti.com/index.php/Download_CCS
Simplelink CC13X0 SDK – Download the latest version from https://www.ti.com/tool/simplelink-cc13x0-sdk
Python 2.7
Python intelhex-2.1
Python crcmod-1.7

Creating the BIM Image

The BIM is generated from the SDK project: <SDK_DIR>/examples/rtos/CC1310_LAUNCHXL/easylink/bim_offchip/tirtos/ccs/bim_extflash_cc13x0lp_app.projectspec A prebuilt hex image is located in the SDK: <SDK_DIR>/examples/rtos/CC1310_LAUNCHXL/easylink/hexfiles/offChipOad/ccs/bim_extflash_cc13x0lp.hex

Note: When building examples for the CC1350STK Board

The bim_extflash_cc13x0lp project must be built with CC1350STK defined. This can be done by adding CC1350STK to the predefined symbols.
The following instructions will be based upon the CC1310_LAUNCHXL board. The same instructions apply to the CC1350STK board, only file names and directories will have applicable changes.

Creating the Application Image

To generate the application hex file, the project should be imported and built with the desired compiler. To change the FW version, update the following string in native_oad/oad_client.c

#define FW_VERSION "v1.0"

The OAD binary can be created from the application hex file using the OAD image tool found in the following location: <SDK_DIR>/tools/easylink/oad/oad_image_tool.py

To use the OAD image tool, execute the following command:

python oad_image_tool.py -t offchip -i app -v 0x0100 -m 0x1000 -ob rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_app_v1.bin rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_app_v1.hex

The following command-line arguments are used to build the image:

-t offchip selects the type of OAD between onchip and offchip
-i app is used to indicate the BIM is not in included, use production when the hex file also contains the BIM
-m 0x1000 indicates the start of the image
-v 0x0100 refers to the FW version with the format 0xXXYY where XX is the major version and YY the minor version (for example 2.3 would be 0x0203). Note: The FW Version is defined in native_oad/oad_client.c

Creating the Production Image

The production image (binary) is the image that should be flashed directly to the LP.

First, the application image (hex) is the merged with the BIM (hex) to create the production image (hex).

python /usr/bin/hexmerge.py -o rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_all_v1.hex 
"--overlap=error" rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_app_v1.hex
bim_extflash_cc13x0lp.hex

The oad_image_tool creates an OAD image header that contains information used by the application and the BIM. Therefore, the oad_image_tool is used to generate an OAD production binary that contains the offchip BIM, OAD image header, and application for flashing to the device.

python oad_image_tool.py -t offchip -i production -v 0x0100 -m 0x1000 -ob
rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_all_v1.bin 
rfWsnNodeExtFlashOadClient_CC1310_LAUNCHXL_all_v1.hex

The production image type (-i) is used so the oad_image_tool can accurately calculate the CRC of the image.

Application Design Details

This examples consists of two tasks, one application task and one radio protocol task. It also consists of a Sensor Controller Engine (SCE) Task which samples the ADC.
On initialization the CM3 application sets the minimum report interval and the minimum change value which is used by the SCE task to wake up the CM3. The ADC task on the SCE checks the ADC value once per second. If the ADC value has changed by the minimum change amount since the last time it notified the CM3, it wakes it up again. If the change is less than the masked value, then it does not wake up the CM3 unless the minimum report interval time has expired.
The NodeTask waits to be woken up by the SCE. When it wakes up it toggles Board_PIN_LED1 and sends the new ADC value to the NodeRadioTask.
The NodeRadioTask handles the radio protocol. This sets up the EasyLink API and uses it to send new ADC values to the concentrator. After each sent packet it waits for an ACK packet back. If it does not get one, then it retries three times. If it did not receive an ACK by then, then it gives up.
RadioProtocol.h can also be used to configure the PHY settings from the following options: IEEE 802.15.4g 50kbit (default), Long Range Mode or custom settings. In the case of custom settings, the smartrf_settings.c file is used. The configuration can be changed by exporting a new smartrf_settings.c file from Smart RF Studio or modifying the file directly.

References

For more information on the EasyLink API and usage refer to SimpleLink-EasyLink.