Roving Networks RN-131-PICTAIL, RN-171-PICTAIL User guide

! !

RN-131/171- PICTAIL-UM

RN-131-PICTAIL & RN-171-PICTAIL
Evaluation Boards

USER MANUAL

© 2012 Roving Networks. All rights reserved.

RN-131/171-PICTAIL-UM Version 1.1 9/20/2012

!

www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.1 9/20/2012 2

RN-131/171- PICTAIL- UM

OVERVIEW

The RN-131 and RN-171 WiFly radio modules are complete, standalone wireless LAN access devices. Each module
contains a TCIP/IP stack and related applications. After the module is configured, the radio can access the Wi-Fi network
automatically, and transmit and receive data over a UART.

General Description

The RN-131-PICTAIL and RN-171-PICTAIL evaluation boards work seamlessly with the Microchip Technology PIC18
Explorer Development Board. The evaluation boards plug into the PICtail™ modular connector on the PIC18 Explorer
Board, and add wireless functionality to PIC18-based microcontroller designs.

The evaluation boards are preloaded with firmware to simplify integration and minimize application development. In the
simplest configuration, the hardware only requires four connections (PWR, TX, RX, and GND) to create a wireless data
connection. The microcontroller can communicate with the boards via the UART and SPI interfaces, and can drive LEDs,
wake the boards, and reset them. The evaluation boards are updated and controlled with a simple ASCII command
language. Once the boards are set up, they can scan to find an access point, associate, authenticate, and connect over
any Wi-Fi network.

The PIC18 Explorer Board (DM183032) is a development platform equipped with a 28-pin PICtail connector and PIM that
can accommodate various versions of the 8-bit PIC16 and PIC18 microcontroller families. The PIC18 Explorer Board’s
8-bit microcontroller communicates with the RN-131-PICTAIL/RN-171-PICTAIL evaluation board via the PICtail connector.

This document describes how to use the RN-131-PICTAIL/RN-171-PICTAIL evaluation board connected to a PIC18
Explorer Board to associate with a Wi-Fi network and communicate with other devices within a LAN. Communication with
other LAN devices is performed using telnet.

RN-131-PICTAIL/RN-171-PICTAIL Module Features

• FCC/CE/IC certified 2.4-GHz IEEE 802.11b/g transceiver

• Plugs into the PICtail Plus connector on the PIC18 Explorer and Explorer 16 Development Boards

• Adds wireless capability to designs targeting the PIC18 Explorer and Explorer 16 boards

• Configurable transmit power: 0 to 10 dBm (RN-171-PICTAIL)

• PCB trace antenna (RN-171-PICTAIL) and on-board ceramic chip antenna (RN-131-PICTAIL)

• Ultra-low power

o 4-uA sleep, 38-mA Rx, 120-mA Tx at 0 dBm (RN-171-PICTAIL)

o 4 uA sleep, 40 mA Rx, 210 mA Tx (RN-131-PICTAIL)

• High throughput: 921 Kbps TX, 500 Kbps RX data rate with TCP/IP and WPA2 over UART, up to 2 Mbps over
SPI slave

• UART interface with hardware flow control

• SPI interface with slave interrupt

• Real-time clock for wakeup and time stamping

• 3 status LEDs (2 configurable)

• Powered by PIC18 Explorer and Explorer 16 boards

• Supports ad hoc and infrastructure networks

• Wi-Fi Alliance certified for WPA2-PSK

• Complete on-board TCP/IP networking stack

• Environmentally friendly: RoHS compliant

!

www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.1 9/20/2012 3

RN-131/171- PICTAIL- UM

Demo Applications

The example applications provided with this document include an MPLAB X project and 2 pre-compiled .hex files.

• The MPLAB X project files provide a sample 8-bit application framework that you can customize to configure and
control the RN-131/RN-171 from an 8-bit Microchip microcontroller.

• You use the pre-compiled sample application ConfigureInCmdMode.hex to configure the RN-131/RN-171
module.

• SampleTelnetApp.hex accepts specific telnet commands from a remote device and turns on/off the LEDs on
either the RN-131/RN-171 module or the PIC18 Explorer Development Board.

The following sections describe these applications in detail.

GETTING STARTED

This section describes how to setup up the PIC18 Explorer Board and to run the sample demo applications.

Hardware Requirements

To run the demo applications, you need the following hardware:

• RN-131-PICTAIL or RN-171-PICTAIL evaluation board

• PIC18 Explorer Development Board equipped with a PIC18F87J11 PIM (MA180020)

• Microchip programmer (e.g., ICD3 or Real Ice)

• 2 jumper wires to configure jumpers J4 and J13 on the PIC18 Explorer Board

NOTE: You cannot use the default jumper settings for J4 and J13. Instructions for configuring the jumpers are

provided in “Demo Setup” on page 4.

• 802.11b/g-compliant Wi-Fi access point

• Serial cable or USB-to-serial converter cable

Software Requirements

You need the following software tools/applications to run the demo applications:

• Terminal emulator application such as TeraTerm or CoolTerm—You will use the terminal emulator to send
configuration commands to the module over a UART interface. The emulator also displays information
transmitted from the module.

• MPLAB X version 1.2 or higher—You will use this application with the programmer to load the application into the
PIC, and to modify and customize the application.

• XC8 v1.10 compiler—You will use the compiler to build a customized application.

Sample Application Code

You can obtain the sample application code described in this user manual at www.microchip.com/wireless.

!

www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.1 9/20/2012 4

RN-131/171- PICTAIL- UM

Demo Applications

This section demonstrates how to use the demo applications to accomplish the following tasks:

• Configure the module to join a known, user-specified access point automatically.

• Communicate with the module via a telnet session to turn on/off LEDs using a command set that the application

running on the PIC recognizes.

Set Up Hardware

Perform the following steps to set up the hardware and prepare it for configuration:

1. Plug the RN-131-PICTAIL/RN-171-PICTAIL evaluation board into the PIC18 Explorer Board’s PICtail connector.
See Figure 1.

Figure 1. Modules Connected to PIC18 Explorer Board

RN-171-PICTAIL Connected to the PIC18 Board

RN-131-PICTAIL Connected to the PIC18 Board

!

!

2. Configure the PIC18 Explorer Board’s J4 and J13 jumpers as shown in Figure 2. This configuration is for
command mode operation.

!

www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.1 9/20/2012 5

RN-131/171- PICTAIL- UM

Figure 2. Jumper Selection for Command Mode Operation

!

3. Connect a serial cable from the PIC18 Explorer Board’s DE9 connector to the PC. If you are using a laptop that
does not have a serial connector, use a USB-to-serial converter cable to connect the serial cable to the laptop’s
USB port.

4. Connect the programmer to the PIC18 Explorer Board and apply power.

Program the PIC18F87J11 & Configure the RN-131/RN-171

In this step you configure the RN-131/RN-171 modules so that they automatically search for, and join, a preferred access
point. First, you use the following steps to program the PIC18F87J11 with software that allows the RN-131/RN-171 to be
configured for its current operating environment. These steps are specific to the PIC18 Explorer Board because of the way
in which the UARTs are connected on the board.

1. Using the MPLAB X IDE and the programmer, load the ConfigureInCmdMode.hex file into the PIC18F87J11.
This application performs two important tasks:

• It configures the PIC18F8i7J11 I/O pins appropriately.

• It allows the UART signal to traverse from the Explorer 18 board’s DE9 connector to the

RN-131-PICTAIL/RN-171-PICTAIL, temporarily bypassing the PIC (this step is specific to the PIC18 Explorer
Board).

2. Open your terminal emulator to the COM port of the PIC18 Explorer Board/RN-131-PICTAIL/RN-171-PICTAIL.
The serial port settings are 9600 baud, 8-bits data, no parity, 1-stop bit, and no flow control.