EVK-M8BZOE
Evaluation Kit
User Guide
Abstract
This document describes the structure and use of the EVK-M8BZOE
evaluation kit and provides information for evaluating and testing the u-
blox
ZOE-M8B ultra small super low power GNSS SiP.
www.u
-blox.com
UBX
-17053592 - R02
EVK-M8BZOE - User Guide
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Document Information
Title EVK-M8BZOE
Subtitle
Evaluation Kit
Document type
User Guide
Document number
UBX-17053592
Revision and Date
R03 23-Feb-2018
Document status
Early Production Information
Document status explanation
Objective Specification Document contains target values. Revised and supplementary data will be published later.
Advance Information Document contains data based on early testing. Revised and supplementary data will be published later.
Early Production Information
Document contains data from product verification. Revised and supplementary data may be published
later.
Production Information Document contains the final product specification.
European Union regulatory compliance
EVK-M8BZOE complies with all relevant requirements for RED 2014/53/EU. The EVK-M8BZOE Declaration of Conformity (DoC) is available at
www.u-blox.com within Support --> Product Resources --> Conformity Declaration.
This document applies to the following products:
Product name Type number Hardware Version ROM/FLASH version PCN reference
EVK-M8BZOE EVK-M8BZOE-0-00 C ROM SPG 3.51 N/A
u-blox reserves all rights to this document and the information contained herein. Products, names, logos and designs described herein may
in whole or in part be subject to intellectual property rights. Reproduction, use, modification or disclosure to third parties of this document
or any part thereof without the express permission of u-blox is strictly prohibited.
The information contained herein is provided “as is” and u-blox assumes no liability for the use of the information. No warranty, either
express or implied, is given, including but not limited, with respect to the accuracy, correctness, reliability and fitness for a particular purpose
of the information. This document may be revised by u-blox at any time. For most recent documents, visit www.u-blox.com.
Copyright © 2018, u-blox AG.
u-blox is a registered trademark of u-blox Holding AG in the EU and other countries.
EVK-M8BZOE User Guide
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Preface
Using this guide
This guide assumes, the user has basic computer skills and is familiar with the Windows Graphical User Interface
(GUI) and GNSS receiver environments.
The following symbols are used in the document to highlight information:
An index finger points out key information pertaining to device operation and performance.
Warnings and certifications
EVK-M8BZOE is an Electrostatic Sensitive Device (ESD).
CAUTION! RISK OF SHORT CIRCUIT OF THE BATTERY WHEN TOUCHING IT WITH
CONDUCTING PARTS. IN THE UNLIKELY EVENT OF A FAILURE IN THE INTERNAL
PROTECTION CIRCUITRY THERE IS A RISK OF AN EXPLOSION WHEN CHARGING
FULLY OR PARTIALLY DISCHARGED BATTERIES. REPLACE THE BATTERY IF IT NO
LONGER HAS SUFFICIENT CHARGE FOR UNIT OPERATION. CONTROL THE BATTERY
BEFORE USING IF THE DEVICE HAS NOT BEEN OPERATED FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD
OF TIME.
Products marked with this lead-free symbol on the product label comply with the “Directive
2002/95/EC and Directive 2011/65/EU of the European Parliament and the Council on the
Restriction of Use of certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment”
(RoHS).
EVK-M8BZOE evaluation kit is RoHS compliant.
EVK-M8BZOE User Guide
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Contents
Preface ................................................................................................................................ 3
Using this guide ............................................................................................................................................... 3
Warnings and certifications ............................................................................................................................. 3
Contents .............................................................................................................................. 4
1 Product description ...................................................................................................... 6
1.1 Overview .............................................................................................................................................. 6
1.1.1 Evaluation kit versions ................................................................................................................... 6
1.1.2 Features ........................................................................................................................................ 6
1.2 Kit includes ........................................................................................................................................... 6
1.3 Software and documentation ............................................................................................................... 7
1.4 u-center GNSS evaluation software ....................................................................................................... 7
1.5 System requirements ............................................................................................................................ 7
2 Specifications ................................................................................................................ 8
2.1 Safety precautions ................................................................................................................................ 8
3 Getting Started ............................................................................................................. 9
3.1 Software installation ............................................................................................................................. 9
3.2 Hardware installation ............................................................................................................................ 9
3.3 Interface default configuration ........................................................................................................... 10
4 Device description ...................................................................................................... 11
4.1 Power supply ...................................................................................................................................... 11
4.1.1 5V main power supply ................................................................................................................. 11
4.1.2 Backup power supply .................................................................................................................. 11
4.2 Interfaces ............................................................................................................................................ 11
4.2.1 Interface Switch........................................................................................................................... 11
4.2.2 USB 2.0 micro connector ............................................................................................................. 11
4.2.3 RS-232 connector ........................................................................................................................ 12
4.2.4 UART ........................................................................................................................................... 12
4.2.5 SPI ............................................................................................................................................... 12
4.2.6 DDC (I²C) .................................................................................................................................... 12
4.3 GNSS signal inputs.............................................................................................................................. 12
4.3.1 Active antenna input ................................................................................................................... 14
4.3.1 Simulator input............................................................................................................................ 14
4.4 Digital Connector ............................................................................................................................... 14
4.5 Flash ................................................................................................................................................... 15
4.6 RESET_N and SAFEBOOT_N ................................................................................................................ 15
4.7 EXTINT ................................................................................................................................................ 15
5 Testing Super-E mode ................................................................................................ 16
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5.1 Power Mode Setup message UBX-CFG-PMS ....................................................................................... 16
5.2 Extended Power Management message UBX-CFG-PM2 ...................................................................... 16
5.3 Other useful messages ........................................................................................................................ 18
6 Measuring current consumption ............................................................................... 20
6.1 Basic measurements with the shunt resistors ...................................................................................... 20
6.1.1 ZOE-M8B VCC current ................................................................................................................ 21
6.1.2 ZOE-M8B V_BCKP current ........................................................................................................... 22
6.1.3 ZOE-M8B optional Flash and logic current ................................................................................... 22
6.2 Measurement with an external current measuring power supply ........................................................ 23
7 Board assembly .......................................................................................................... 24
8 Schematic .................................................................................................................... 27
9 Troubleshooting ......................................................................................................... 29
10 Common evaluation pitfalls ...................................................................................... 31
Related documents........................................................................................................... 32
Revision history ................................................................................................................ 32
Contact .............................................................................................................................. 33
EVK-M8BZOE User Guide
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1 Product description
1.1 Overview
The EVK-M8BZOE evaluation kit simplifies the evaluation of ZOE-M8B, the u-blox ultra small super low power M8
concurrent GNSS S-LGA SiP (System-in-Package). The built-in USB interface provides both power supply and highspeed data transfer, and eliminates the need for an external power supply. The u-blox evaluation kits are compact,
and their user friendly interface and power supply make them ideally suited for use in laboratories or vehicles.
Furthermore, they can be used with a PDA or a notebook PC, making them the perfect companion through all
stages of design-in projects.
1.1.1 Evaluation kit versions
Evaluation Kit Description Suitable for
EVK-M8BZOE
(PCB version C)
u-blox M8 low power GNSS evaluation kit with ZOE-M8B SiP ZOE-M8B
Table 1: List of available evaluation kit
The version identification of the evaluation kit is printed on the PCB board.
1.1.2 Features
• Supports GNSS performance evaluation with simulator and active antenna
o 2 SMA connectors; one for simulator use case, one for external active antenna use case
• Populated optional flash
o Configuration can be saved permanently
o Logging can be done
o AssistNow
TM
Offline data can be saved
o Optimal performance of AssistNow
TM
Autonomous
• Current measurement shunt resistors and corresponding measurement pins
o 1 Ω shunt resistor makes it easy to convert measured voltage to actual power consumption
o Set of jumpers to bypass these shunt resistors for more advanced power measurements
• RTC crystal and backup supply to evaluate backup, hot start, and warm start functions
o 100 Ω shunt resistor to measure backup power consumption
o Super capacitor of 1 F for backup supply
• USB 2.0 connector for both power supply and data transfer
o ZOE-M8B SiP does not support USB connection. For this reason the EVK-M8BZOE board
contains a separate Silicon Labs CP2102 USB to UART Bridge
• RS-232 DB9 connector and digital connector for easy interfacing with UART, SPI and DDC (I²C) and for
evaluating other advanced scenarios
1.2 Kit includes
• EVK-M8BZOE evaluation board
• Active GNSS antenna with a 3 m cable
• USB cable
A plastic cap is attached on the top of the ZOE-M8B GNSS S-LGA SiP in EVK-M8BZOE. The purpose of the
cap is to prevent air flow at ZOE-M8B.
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1.3 Software and documentation
The EVK-M8BZOE installation software and documentation is available at https://www.u-blox.com/en/evaluationkits.
EVK-M8xZOE Quick Start Guide [5] is available at https://start.u-blox.com
u-center GNSS evaluation software and Windows driver for the evaluation board are available from web. See
Section 3.1 for details.
For more ZOE-M8B related documentation, see the ZOE-M8B Data Sheet [1], the ZOE-M8B System Integration
Manual [2] and the u-blox 8 / u-blox M8 Receiver Description including Protocol Specification [3].
1.4 u-center GNSS evaluation software
The installation software includes u-center, which is an interactive tool for configuration, testing, visualization and
data analysis of GNSS receivers. It provides useful assistance during all phases of a system integration project.
1.5 System requirements
• PC with USB or RS-232 interface
• Operating system: Windows 7 onwards (x86 and x64 versions)
• The EVK board includes Silicon Labs CP2102 USB to UART Bridge. Windows drivers for this interface are
available from Microsoft Windows Update service. See section 3.1 for details.
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2 Specifications
Parameter Specification
Serial Interfaces 1 USB V2.0
1 RS232, max. baud rate 460.8 kBd
- DB9: PC compatible
1 DDC (I2C compatible) max. 400 kHz
1 SPI , max. clock 1 MHz, max. data 125 kbytes/second
1 UART , max. baud rate 460.8 kBd
Dimensions 83 x 67 x 20 mm
Power Supply 5 V via micro USB connector or external powered via extra power supply pin 2 (V5_IN)
and pin 18 (GND) on digital connector
Normal Operating temperature -20°C to +70°C
Table 2: EVK-M8BZOE specification
2.1 Safety precautions
EVK-M8BZOE must be supplied by an external limited power source in compliance with the clause 2.5 of the
standard IEC 60950-1. This power source must be a Safety Extra-Low Voltage (SELV) circuit, and only SELV circuits
are to be connected to the evaluation kit interfaces and antennas.
For more information about SELV circuits see section 2.2 in Safety standard IEC 60950-1 [6]
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3 Getting Started
3.1 Software installation
Installation of the EVK-M8BZOE software and documentation requires internet access.
Download and install the u-center GNSS evaluation software from the u-blox website at
https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-center-windows
.
Once the zip file is downloaded, unzip it and double-click the extracted exe file. The u-center software will be
installed on your system and placed under the “u-blox” folder in the “Start Programs” menu.
Windows drivers for the Silicon Labs CP210x USB to UART Bridge of the EVK are available from Microsoft Windows
Update service. The Windows system driver search mechanism can download and install the USB drivers
automatically from Microsoft Windows Update service. If the automatic install fails, or if the PC already has an old
version of the drivers installed, the correct version of the driver can be downloaded and installed manually from
Silicon Labs at http://www.silabs.com/products/mcu/pages/usbtouartbridgevcpdrivers.aspx
.
Please make sure you select the driver version which does not include “Serial Enumeration” functionality.
3.2 Hardware installation
This section describes the evaluation board connectors and configuration settings that are required to get started.
Figure 1 shows an overview of EVK-M8BZOE board and its connectors.
Figure 1: Getting started overview
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1. Make sure the “Interface Switch” is at RS-232 / USB side (and not SPI side).
2. Connect the jumpers J4, J7 and J6 as above (There is a white box drawn around the pins of these jumpers).
3. Connect the evaluation board to a PC by micro USB cable and / or RS-232.
• If a USB cable is used the device is powered by the USB cable.
o A USB connection creates a virtual COM port to the PC.
• If an RS-232 interface is used, the device can be powered by USB cable or by the digital connector
connecting 5 V to pin 2 and GND to pin 18.
4. Connect the active antenna to the “Active” (Active antenna input) or the simulator to the “Passive” input
(Simulator input).
5. Start the u-center GNSS Evaluation Software and select the corresponding COM port and baud rate, 9600
Bd by default (refer to the u-center User Guide [4] for more information).
3.3 Interface default configuration
Parameter Description Remark
RS-232, Input UBX and NMEA protocol at 9’600 Bd
RS-232, Output UBX and NMEA protocol at 9’600 Bd Only NMEA messages are activated by default
USB, Input UBX and NMEA protocol
USB, Output UBX and NMEA protocol Only NMEA messages are activated by default
Table 3: Default configuration
There is also SPI, DDC and UART interface available for debugging and design-in purposes on the digital
connector J1.
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