JN5168 and association issues

[fredfred]

Hello,

I have found an exemple that describe "how to create a wireless serial link based on IEEE 802.15.4, using two sensor boards from a JN516x evaluation kit." (JN-AN-1178).

I have programmed my modules with the .bin provided ( AN1178_154_WUART_Coord_JN5168_NO_FLOW_CTRL.bin and AN1178_154_WUART_EndD_JN5168_NO_FLOW_CTRL.bin).

I know the firmware is running because the first led on DIO16 is flashing but the 2 modules do not associate each other.

PS: sorry for my bad english.

[davidashraf]

Hello fredfred‌
Have you found a solution to this problem yet ? 
I'm facing the same problem 

[fredfred]

David Ashraf a écrit:

Hello fred fred
Have you found a solution to this problem yet ? 
I'm facing the same problem 

No, unfortunately i've not found the solution :smileysad:.

instead, i use an other kind of hardware : HC-12 module.

[davidashraf]

fredfred‌ 
Thanks for replying 
I am thinking of migrating too 
What's your experience with HC-12 in terms of ( range , power consumption ) ? 

Thanks 

[francoisrobbe]

Hi Fred

Do you need to have the two modules very close only for association or for communication also?

I don't know JN-AN-1178, but in some other ANs the transmit power and/or the LQI threshold are changed during association procedure (power reduced and LQI threshold increased) to make sure that only modules that are close to the coordinator can join the network. This is for security reason.

If it is the case in the AN that you are using, you should have problem (put the two modules very close) only during the association procedure. But you should be able to use it with a good range after association has been passed.

If the problem is still present after association, this is not the reason of it.

Best regards 

[fredfred]

Yes, unfortunately, i need to have the two modules very close (with antenna) also for communication.

Thank you

[fredfred]

Without antennas the devices can not communicate. With antennas the devices must be verry close (less than 5cm (1.97inches) ) to perform the association process and communicate !

[tom_jacobson]

I'm afraid I'm out of ideas, short of trying a different pair of modules to see if there's something wrong with one of the devices

[fredfred]

I finally succeed to associate my two JN5168-001-M05. It seems to be an antenna issue so the two antenna (ufl) must almost tounching each other to be able to communicate...

How to solve this ?

[tom_jacobson]

Hi fred fred,

What kind of antenna are you using? I believe ZigBee requires a 2.4GHz antenna (that's what I'm using), so if yours is not rated for that, you may need a different antenna.

If your antenna is correct, the next thing I'd check is if your signal is actually going out through the antenna. I ran into an issue one time with a Wifi chip that had a UFL pad on it, but wasn't used for communications, which had me confused for over a month!

- Thomas

[fredfred]

Thomas Jacobson a écrit:

Hi fred fred,

What kind of antenna are you using? I believe ZigBee requires a 2.4GHz antenna (that's what I'm using), so if yours is not rated for that, you may need a different antenna.

That's what i'm using too (the same antenna than my Xbee pro devices). It should working in the same way...

Thomas Jacobson a écrit:

If your antenna is correct, the next thing I'd check is if your signal is actually going out through the antenna. I ran into an issue one time with a Wifi chip that had a UFL pad on it, but wasn't used for communications, which had me confused for over a month!

How can i do that concretely ?

Anyway, according to the JN5168-001-Myy datasheet, the UFL connector is used for communication.

[tom_jacobson]

I'm not sure how to test that well. However, wireless devices can still communicate without an antenna, it's just that the range is severely limited. In the story I mentioned, I could have two wireless devices communicate without an antenna, but they needed to be in the same room.

I would first suggest removing the antenna and see if the communications range remains the same. If it does remain the same, then the antenna is not doing anything.