Sierra Wireless GX440, GX400 User Manual

AirLink GX Series

www.4Gon.co.uk [e-mail] Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]

User Guide

4114008

Rev 2

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Preface

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Important
Notice

Safety and
Hazards

Due to the nature of wireless communications, transmission and reception of data
can never be guaranteed. Data may be delayed, corrupted (i.e., have errors) or be
totally lost. Although significant delays or losses of data are rare when wireless
devices such as the Sierra Wireless modem are used in a normal manner with a
well-constructed network, the Sierra Wireless modem should not be used in
situations where failure to transmit or receive data could result in damage of any
kind to the user or any other party, including but not limited to personal injury,
death, or loss of property. Sierra Wireless accepts no responsibility for damages
of any kind resulting from delays or errors in data transmitted or received using
the Sierra Wireless modem, or for failure of the Sierra Wireless modem to
transmit or receive such data.

Do not operate the Sierra Wireless modem in areas where blasting is in progress,
where explosive atmospheres may be present, near medical equipment, near life
support equipment, or any equipment which may be susceptible to any form of
radio interference. In such areas, the Sierra Wireless modem MUST BE
POWERED OFF. The Sierra Wireless modem can transmit signals that could
interfere with this equipment.

The driver or operator of any vehicle should not operate the Sierra Wireless
modem while in control of a vehicle. Doing so will detract from the driver or
operator's control and operation of that vehicle. In some states and provinces,
operating such communications devices while in control of a vehicle is an offence.

Limitation of
Liability

The information in this manual is subject to change without notice and does not
represent a commitment on the part of Sierra Wireless. SIERRA WIRELESS AND
ITS AFFILIATES SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM LIABILITY FOR ANY AND ALL
DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, GENERAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL,
PUNITIVE OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
LOSS OF PROFITS OR REVENUE OR ANTICIPATED PROFITS OR REVENUE
ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE ANY SIERRA WIRELESS
PRODUCT, EVEN IF SIERRA WIRELESS AND/OR ITS AFFILIATES HAS BEEN
ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES OR THEY ARE
FORESEEABLE OR FOR CLAIMS BY ANY THIRD PARTY.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event shall Sierra Wireless and/or its
affiliates aggregate liability arising under or in connection with the Sierra Wireless
product, regardless of the number of events, occurrences, or claims giving rise to
liability, be in excess of the price paid by the purchaser for the Sierra Wireless
product.

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AirLink GX Series User Guide

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Patents This product may contain technology developed by or for Sierra Wireless Inc. This

®

product includes technology licensed from QUALCOMM
manufactured or sold by Sierra Wireless Inc. or its affiliates under one or more
patents licensed from InterDigital Group and MMP Portfolio Licensing.

. This product is

Copyright © 2013 Sierra Wireless. All rights reserved.

Trademarks Sierra Wireless

are registered trademarks of Sierra Wireless.

®

Contact

Watcher

Windows
Corporation.

Macintosh
the U.S. and other countries.

QUALCOMM
under license.

Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

International Contact Information

®

, AirPrime®, AirLink®, AirVantage® and the Sierra Wireless logo

is a registered trademark of Netgear, Inc., used under license.

®

and Windows Vista® are registered trademarks of Microsoft

®

and Mac OS X® are registered trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in

®

is a registered trademark of QUALCOMM Incorporated. Used

Information

AirLink Sales

[e-mail]

AirLink Support*
AirLink RMA Repairs*
AirLink Online Support

Knowledgebase
AirLink Software

Downloads
Corporate Web Site

* If you have purchased your product from an AirLink Distributor or Reseller,
please contact them for first line technical support.

[e-mail]

[e-mail]

www.sierrawireless.com/Support/SupportCenter

www.sierrawireless.com/Support/Downloads

www.sierrawireless.com

4 4114008

Preface

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Sierra Wireless Headquarters Contact Information

Sales
Headquarters:

Post: Sierra Wireless

Phone: [phone]
Hours: 8:00
E-mail: [e-mail]

13811 Wireless Way
Richmond, BC
Canada V6V 3A4

AM to 5:00 PM Pacific Time

Consult our website for up-to-date product descriptions, documentation,
application notes, firmware upgrades, troubleshooting tips, and press releases:

www.sierrawireless.com

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6 4114008

Contents

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Introduction to the AirLink GX Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Front Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Rear Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

X-Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

ALEOS Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

ACEmanager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

ACEview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

AirVantage Management Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Installation and Startup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Tools and Materials Required . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Installing the SIM Card. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Mounting the GX Series. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Vehicle Mounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Antenna Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Antenna Separation Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Antenna Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Mounting the GPS Antenna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Connecting the GX Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Starting the GX Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

LED Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Power Connector Description. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

X-Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Wi-Fi X-Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

I/O X-Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Configuring AirLink GX Series devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Connection Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

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Configuring with ACEmanager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Configuring with AirVantage Management Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Configuring with AT Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

AirLink GX Series Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Regulatory Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Federal Communications Commission Notice (FCC United States) . . . . 39

Notice for Canadian Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Important Information for North American Users on Radiation Exposure 40

EU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

8 4114008

1: Introduction to the AirLink GX Series

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1

This chapter describes the Sierra Wireless AirLink GX Series device,
including a description of ALEOS
AirVantage Management Service (AVMS) device management
platform.

TM

embedded software and the

Introduction

The AirLink GX Series device is a compact, intelligent and fully­featured cellular gateway that provides real-time wireless capabilities
for fixed and mobile applications such as:

• Public safety vehicle deployments

• Public transit systems

• Energy and utilities

• Remote asset monitoring

• Backup broadband connectivity

The AirLink GX Series device has multiple communication ports
including serial, Ethernet, and USB ports. The power connector has
one digital I/O pin for remote monitoring and control and one ignition
sense pin to turn the device on and off and trigger the low power
mode.

The AirLink GX Series device is available in the following variants:

• 4G LTE (GX440)

• 3G (GX400)

The AirLink GX Series device has several expansion options to add
more capability. The following options are available:

• WiFi (802.11 b/g/n)

• Input/Output (I/O) 15-pin connector which adds:

· One additional RS-232 port

· Four additional digital I/O pins

· Four analog voltage sensing pins

The AirLink GX Series device, when coupled with the rich embedded
intelligence provided by the embedded ALEOS software, is the
perfect choice for a broad set of machine to machine solutions.

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AirLink GX Series User Guide

LEDs

Reset Button

Antenna

Connector

Diversity/AUX
Antenna Connector

GPS Antenna

Connector

Power ConnectorUSB Port

Serial Port

Ethernet
Connector

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Description

Front Panel

The front panel has the following indicators and controls:

Figure 1-1: GX Series Front Panel

•LEDs – These show the device’s operating status. Each LED can be red,

• Reset Button – Pressing this button resets the device. All the LEDs turn solid

green, yellow or off. The LEDs are described in detail in LED Operation on
page 22. They are:

·Network – When green the device is connected to a cellular network with
an IP address assigned and a channel acquired

· Signal – When green it is receiving a cellular signal

· Activity – When green, the radio link is active

·Power – When green, the device is connected to power

red after this button is pushed.

Note: Holding the button down for 10 seconds resets the device to its default settings.

Rear Panel

The rear panel has the following connectors and controls:

Figure 1-2: GX Series Rear Panel

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Introduction to the AirLink GX Series

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• Antenna Connector – This is the radio’s receive and transmit port. The

device works with most cellular antennas with an SMA connector.

Note: For more information on antenna connection and use, see Antenna Installation on
page 18.

• GPS Antenna Connector – This connects an optional GPS antenna to the

device. It works with most antennas that have an SMA connector.

Note: The GPS antenna connector has a bias output and Sierra Wireless recommends
that you use an active antenna for better sensitivity.

• Diversity/AUX Antenna Connector – This connects an optional auxiliary

antenna to the device for backup reception capability. It works with most
antennas that have an SMA connector.

Note: The Diversity/AUX connector is receive only, it does not transmit.

• Ethernet Connector – This RJ-45 connector connects a standard Ethernet

cable to the device. This is used to connect a PC to the device for configu­ration and diagnostic purposes or attaching Ethernet equipment to the device.

• Power Connector – This connects power to the device and provides

additional inputs and outputs for the control and monitoring of external
devices as well as triggering the low power mode. More information on its
operation and how to use it is given in Power Connector Description on
page 24.

There are two types of optional power cables available from Sierra Wireless:

· Cables with an AC adapter that are usually used for indoor, fixed applica­tions where the device runs off line power

· DC cables that are usually used in vehicles or other installations where the
device runs off battery power

The device automatically starts when it senses qualified power on the power
connector as described in Starting the GX Series on page 21.

• Serial Port – This 9-pin connector provides standard RS-232 communication
with a standard straight-though serial cable. It is used to communicate with
industrial machines like motors, computers or controllers or for connection to
a computer to configure the device with AT commands. It also supports
features like TCP PAD and UDP PAD.

•USB Port – This Micro AB connector accepts Micro A and Micro B plugs. You
can connect a Windows PC to it to monitor and configure the device.

When connected to a PC, it becomes either a:

· Virtual serial port

· Virtual Ethernet port

Note: By default it is a virtual Ethernet port.

Windows drivers for this port are available at Sierra Wireless’s download web
site www.sierrawireless.com/en/Support/Downloads.aspx.

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X-Cards

The AirLink GX Series device has several optional, factory-installed, expansion
cards (X-Cards) available to add more functions to the basic device. They are
configurable with the ALEOS ACEmanager software and more information is
available in the ALEOS Configuration User Guide.

The options are:

•Wi-Fi – This adds Wi-Fi capability to the device using the 802.11b/g/n

•I/O – This has a 15-pin connector which adds to the device:

For a more complete description of each option, see X-Cards on page 28.

ALEOS Software

standard

· One additional RS-232 port

· Four additional digital I/O pins

· Four analog voltage sensing pins

Note: For detailed information on all of the features in ALEOS, see the ALEOS Configu­ration User Guide. It is available for downloading from the Sierra Wireless web site.

ALEOS, the embedded core technology of the AirLink product line provides:

• Simplified installation, operation and maintenance of any wireless solution

• An always-on, always-aware, intelligent two-way connection for mission-

critical applications

ALEOS enables:

• Persistent Network Connectivity

• Over-The-Air (OTA) Upgrades

• Wireless Optimized TCP/IP

• Real-Time Notification

• Real-Time GPS Reporting

• GPS Store and Forward

• Packet Level Diagnostics

• Device Management & Control

Sierra Wireless has three tools for monitoring and configuring AirLink devices.
They are:

• ACEmanager – A web-based configuration tool for configuring a single
AirLink device

•ACEview – A Windows application for monitoring the wireless connection
status when the PC is connected via Ethernet to the AirLink device

• AirVantage Management Service (AVMS) – A cloud based device
management service for monitoring and configuring fleets of AirLink devices

Contact your dealer or Sierra Wireless representative for more information.

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Introduction to the AirLink GX Series

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Download the applications and user guides from the Sierra Wireless AirLink
Solutions web site at www.sierrawireless.com/support.

ACEmanager

ACEmanager:

• Simplifies deployment

• Provides extensive monitoring, control and management capabilities

• Configures your device to meet your needs

• Monitors and controls your AirLink device remotely and in real-time

• Is accessed through a web browser connected to the device

See Configuring with ACEmanager on page 31 to learn how to access
ACEmanager.

Figure 1-3: ACEmanager Home Page

ACEview

ACEview is a Windows-based monitoring application for the PC with an easy to
read interface.

Figure 1-4: ACEview Screen

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Note: ACEview requires the Microsoft .NET Framework v.2.0 and Microsoft Windows XP
or later. Obtain the Microsoft .NET Framework from Microsoft at: http://www.microsoft.com.

AirVantage Management Service

AirLink devices can be managed with the AirVantage Management Service
(AVMS) available from Sierra Wireless. AVMS is a cloud-based application,
accessed from your web browser, that provides remote monitoring and
configuration for any number of AirLink ALEOS devices from a single computer.

AVMS features include:

• Device management with no software or hardware to buy and no ongoing

• Advanced monitoring dashboards and alert notifications ensuring you always

• Detailed configuration of all ALEOS parameters, including templates

• Over-the-air (OTA) firmware upgrades for all of your AirLink devices with a

maintenance required

know the status of your AirLink devices

providing batch updates of pre-set configurations across multiple devices

single operation

To connect with AVMS, see Configuring with AirVantage Management Service on
page 32.

To use AVMS, either call your AirLink reseller or visit: www.sierrawireless.com/en/

productsandservices/AirLink/Device_Management.aspx

14 4114008

2: Installation and Startup

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This chapter shows you how to connect, install and start the Sierra
Wireless AirLink GX Series device. It also describes the front panel
LEDs. Also described are the optional X-Cards available from Sierra
Wireless that add more functions to the basic device.

Tools and Materials Required

• If needed, a SIM card for your device as provided by your mobile
network operator

• If installing a SIM card, a M3, hex-head screwdriver with a 2mm
hardened and tempered Hex/Allen key or bit for removing the
cover

• Laptop computer with Ethernet cable

• Wireless antenna

• If used, a GPS antenna

• If used, a second wireless antenna

• If used, a straight-through 9-pin connection cable for the RS-232

port

• Power cable, either the DC cable or AC cable ordered from Sierra
Wireless or your own custom-made cable

2

Note: Custom-made cables must incorporate strain relief and use the correct
type of power connector to prevent intermittent connection to the device.

Note: The device has a hardened case for use in industrial and extreme
environments. If you are installing it in these types of environments, use
cables designed and specified for use in these types of environment to avoid
cable failure.

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