RN-171-EK-DS   RN-171-EK Evaluation Board Features • Ultra-low power: 4-uA sleep, 40-mA Rx, 180-mA Tx at 10 dBm • Configurable transmit power: 0 to +12 dBm • UART hardware interfaces and SPI slave • Up to 1 Mbps data rate over UART • Powered by battery pack (2 AAA batteries) or via USB cable • Pushbuttons for AP/WPS mode and reset signals • 10 general-purpose digital I/O pins • 8 analog sensor interfaces; configurable sensor power outputs 0 to 3.3-V DC   • Real-time clock for wakeup and time stamping • Complete on-board TCP/IP networking stack Description • Wi-Fi Alliance certified for WPA2-PSK • FCC/CE/ICS certified and RoHS compliant The RN-171-EK evaluation board is a field-ready, Wi-Fi Alliance certified, 802.11 prototyping platform for the RN-171 module. The board has the flexibility to connect directly to PCs via a Applications standard USB interface (via FTDI chipset) or to embedded processors through the TTL UART interface. The RN-171-EK • Wireless serial connections contains a battery boost circuit, which makes it possible to • Remote sensors power the board using two AAA batteries (the input voltage can • Telemetry go down to 2.0 V DC when using the battery boost circuit). The • Security battery boost circuit makes the RN-171-EK perfect for battery- • Industrial sensors and controls powered applications such as sensors, data acquisition • Home automation systems, controllers, etc. The status LEDs and jumpers enable rapid prototyping and integration into existing systems. The RN-171-EK is based on the Roving Networks RN-171 module. The RN-171 module incorporates a 2.4-GHz radio, processor, full TCP/IP stack, real-time clock, and supports the FTP client, DHCP, DNS, and HTML client protocols. The module supports ad hoc and infrastructure networking modes. The analog sensor interface provides direct connections to read the sensors’ temperature, acceleration, and other analog data without requiring an external microprocessor. The RN-171 module is programmed and controlled from a console with a simple ASCII command language. Once the configuration is set up, the module can automatically scan to find an access point, associate, authenticate, and connect over any Wi-Fi network. Additionally, the module can automatically wake up, send data to a remote host, and go back to a low-power sleep state. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 1 RN-171-EK-DS   OVERVIEW • Host data rates up to 921 Kbps TX, 500 Kbps RX for UART • Intelligent, built-in power management with programmable wake-up events (timers and I/O) • Real-time clock for time stamping, auto-sleep, and auto-wakeup modes • Configuration over Wi-Fi or UART using simple ASCII commands • Over the air firmware upgrade via FTP • Secure Wi-Fi authentication: WEP, WPA-PSK (TKIP), and WPA2-PSK (AES) • Built-in networking applications: DHCP, DNS, ARP, ICMP UDP, Telnet, FTP client, and HTML client • Supports WPS push-button mode for easy network configuration • Can act as an access point The evaluation board’s moisture sensitivity level (MSL) is 1; its size and weight are: • Size—50.8 mm x 28 mm x 21 mm • Weight—13.5 g Tables 1 through 5 provide detailed specifications for the evaluation board. Table 1. Environmental Conditions Parameter Value o o Temperature range (operating) -45 C ~ 85 C o o Temperature range (storage) -45 C ~ 85 C Relative humidity (operating) ≤90% Relative humidity (storage) ≤90% Table 2. Electrical Characteristics Supply Voltage, Note (1) Min Typ. Max. Unit Power connector (J7) 2.0 (1) 3.3 16 (1) V UART interface (J4) 3.0 3.3 3.6 V USB interface (J6) 5.0 16 V Power consumption Sleep 4 uA Standby (doze) - 15 - mA Connected (idle, RX) 40 mA Connected (TX) 180 at 10 dBm mA Notes: 1. Supply voltage range varies depending upon the header used. See “Design Concerns” on page 5 for more details. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 2 RN-171-EK-DS   Table 3. Analog Sensor Inputs Parameter Value Sensor 0, 1, 2, and 3 wake-up detection threshold 500 mV AD sensor 0 - 7 measurement range 0 - 400 mV Precision 14 bits = 12 uV Accuracy 5% uncalibrated, .01% calibrated Minimum conversion time 35 us (5 kHz over Wi-Fi) Sensor power (pin 33) output resistance 3.3 V 10 ohms, maximum current = 50 mA Table 4. Radio Characteristics Parameter Specifications Frequency 2,402 ~ 2,480 MHz 802.11b compatibility: DSSS (CCK-11, CCK-5.5, DQPSK-2, and DBPSK-1) Modulation 802.11g: OFDM (default) Channel intervals 5 MHz Channels 1 - 14 Transmission rate (over the air) 1 – 11 Mbps for 802.11b / 6 – 54 Mbps for 802.11g Receive sensitivity -83 dBm typical Output level (Class1) 0 to +12 dBm (software configurable) Table 5. Transmit Power 802.11 b (2 Mbps) 802.11 g (24 Mbps) Output Power Current in mA Note (1) Current in mA Note (1) 0 120 135 2 130 150 4 170 190 6 175 200 8 180 210 10 185 225 12 190 240 Notes: 1. Measured at 3.3-V DC input. The power consumption is the average power, active during actual power consumption. BOARD DESCRIPTION Figure 1 describes the evaluation board’s connectors and interfaces. Table 6 describes the LED indicators. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 3 RN-171-EK-DS   Figure 1. RN-171-EK Evaluation Board LED Indicators UART Interface PCB Trace (J4) Antenna AP/WPS/Factory Reset Pushbutton (GPIO9) Sensor Reset Interface (J5) Pushbutton   RX - input to evaluation board Sensor Interface (J5) UART Interface TX - output from evaluation board (J4) 95 8 7 6 4 3 2 1   Pin Description 1 2 1 3.3 VDD Pin Description 3 4 2 GND 1 Sensor Power 5 3 UART RX 6 2 Sensor 4 (3.3-V tolerant) 7 4 UART TX 3 Sensor 5 (3.3-V tolerant) 8 9 5 UART RTS 4 Sensor 7 (1.2 V only) 10 6 UART CTS 11 5 Sensor 5 (1.2 V only) 12 7 GPIO4 6 Sensor 4 (1.2 V only) 13   8 GPIO5 7 Sensor 6 (1.2 V only) 9 GPIO6 8 Sensor 3 (1.2 V only) 10 GPIO7 9 GND 11 GPIO8, (1) WARNING: Voltage on pins marked 1.2 V 12 GPIO9 Only should not exceed 1.2 V or 13 RESET   permanent damage will occur. Note: 1. The RN-171 module drives GPIO8 HIGH on powerup, which overrides software configured powerup values, such as set sys value 0x0000 on GPIO8.   www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 4 RN-171-EK-DS   Table 6. RN-171-EK Evaluation Board LED Indicators Condition Blue LED Red LED Yellow LED Green LED On solid   Not used   Connected over TCP -­‐   -­‐   Fast blink   Not used   Not associated   Rx/Tx data transfer   No IP address Slow blink   Not used   Associated, no Internet   IP address OK -­‐   Off   Not used   Associated, Internet OK   - -­‐   PHYSICAL DIMENSIONS Figure 2 shows the evaluation board’s physical dimensions. Figure 2. RN-171-EK Physical Dimensions 28 50.8 21 Battery Pack All Dimensions Are in mm   DESIGN CONCERNS   This section provides design information, such as powering the evaluation board, sensor interface settings, ad hoc mode, and restoring factory settings. Powering the Module You power the RN-171-EK evaluation board from the USB cable, the UART interface, or via the battery pack, which holds 2 AAA batteries. NOTE: You can provide power via the USB cable while a battery pack is installed. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 5 RN-171-EK-DS   Sensor Interfaces The input voltage on the sensor inputs must not exceed 1.2 V. The ADC saturates at 400 mV. Roving Networks recommends that you use the sensor power output to drive any analog devices that are attached to the sensor pins. NOTE: Sensor pins 2 and 3 have a resistor network in front of sensors 4 and 5, respectively, so these pins can be driven with up to 3.3 V DC. GPIO9 Functions The AP pushbutton is connected to GPIO9. Depending on the state of GPIO9, the module goes into three different modes: access point (AP) mode, factory reset, and WPS mode. AP Mode To put the module into AP mode, GPIO9 must be high when the module powers up or wakes from a sleep state. Press the AP mode button to drive GPIO9 high, and then press the RESET button to reset the module. The module is in default AP mode, which creates a default access point network with the default parameters shown in Table 7. NOTE: This default mode overwrites any software settings. Table 7. Default AP Mode Settings Setting AP Mode Default SSID WiFlyAP-XX, where XX is the last two bytes of the module’s MAC address Channel 1 DHCP server Enabled IP address 1.2.3.4 Netmask 255.255.255.0 Gateway 1.2.3.4 After the module boots, other Wi-Fi-enabled devices (such as PCs, iPhones, iPads, Android tablets, etc.) should be able to find the module when they scan for access points. Factory Reset In this mode, the module is restored to the factory defaults. To restore the defaults, perform the following steps: 1. Put the module into default AP mode as described in “AP Mode”. 2. Press the AP Mode pushbutton 5 times (with 1 or more seconds between presses). The module is restored to the initial factory default configuration. This feature is useful for cases in which the module is misconfigured and is no longer responding. WPS Mode When the module is acting as a client (not in access point mode), you can invoke WPS functionality by pressing the AP pushbutton. Before you can invoke this mode, the WPS functionality must enabled in software using the command set sys trigger 0x10. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 6 RN-171-EK-DS   Reset The RESET pushbutton reboots the module. You can use the RESET and AP pushbuttons to toggle whether the module is in client or AP mode. If you press the AP pushbutton before pressing RESET, the module goes into default AP mode. If you press the RESET button only, the module goes into client mode. Drivers RN-171-EK board uses the FTDI chip set. When you connect the cable to your PC, the PC should install the drivers automatically. If not, you can download the drivers from the Support page on the Roving Networks website at http://www.rovingnetworks.com/support.php. ORDERING INFORMATION Table 8 provides ordering information for the RN-171-EK evaluation board. Table 8. Ordering Information Part Number Description RN-171-EK-P RN-171-EK board with PCB trace antenna, standard firmware For other configurations, contact Roving Networks directly. Visit http://www.rovingnetworks.com for current pricing and a list of distributors carrying our products. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 7 RN-171-EK-DS   Copyright © 2012 Roving Networks. All rights reserved. Roving Networks is a registered trademark of Roving Networks. Apple Inc., iPhone, iPad, iTunes, Made for iPhone are registered trademarks of Apple Computer. Roving Networks reserves the right to make corrections, modifications, and other changes to its products, documentation and services at any time. Customers should obtain the latest relevant information before placing orders and should verify that such information is current and complete. Roving Networks assumes no liability for applications assistance or customer’s product design. Customers are responsible for their products and applications which use Roving Networks components. To minimize customer product risks, Roving Networks, Inc. customers should provide adequate design and operating safeguards. 102 Cooper Court Roving Networks products are not authorized for use in safety-critical applications Los Gatos, CA 95032 (such as life support) where a failure of the Roving Networks product would +1 (408) 395-5300 reasonably be expected to cause severe personal injury or death, unless officers of www.rovingnetworks.com the parties have executed an agreement specifically governing such use. www.rovingnetworks.com Version 1.0 9/18/2012 8