nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

RE: nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

dejans — Tue, 10 Dec 2024 11:53:45 GMT

Hi Abdullah,

RRC connection release is controlled by the network. You cannot force modem to keep connection alive because modem always releases the connection when requested by the network.
If you are using some kind of tester/simulator, it might be possible to achieve what you want from the tester side. Another possibility is to use Production Test Image (PTI) modem firmware which is intended for production testing. It supports AT commands for Tx and Rx RF testing. This is common way of doing RF testing.

Best regards,
Dejan

RE: nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

AkbarShah — Mon, 09 Dec 2024 07:13:19 GMT

Hello dejans ,
I hope you will be doing great.

First we are not allowed to have any activity as the test lab use their own sim cards and network so we can not have any internet activity. so is it possible to stay connected to the network for 30 minutes without going to idle state or disconnected state?

Can we achieve this on the firmware side? if so how?

is this possible on the network side? if so how?

This is the Requirement for the Radio Test:

Radio Test: 1 Device with communication to the base station. No need for the scale functionalty

Best Regards,
Akbar shah

RE: nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

Abdullah Javed — Mon, 09 Dec 2024 06:48:47 GMT

Hi Achim,

This firmware is specifically for radio testing of the LTE connection (nRF9160). Power consumption is not an issue here, as we have a separate main firmware that handles that aspect.

For this radio test firmware, transitioning to the Idle state affects our testing, so we need the RRC to remain active for at least 30 minutes. Currently, we are not explicitly sending or receiving any data, and it spends quite a long time in the Idle state.

Best regards,
Abdullah

RE: nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

Abdullah Javed — Mon, 09 Dec 2024 06:40:38 GMT

Hi Dejan,

Thanks for the answer.
We are not using eDRX or PSM mode; they are not enabled in our firmware.
And yes, we can transmit or receive any data, but will that keep RRC active for the entire 30 minutes of testing?
What do you suggest as an activity that could best address this issue?

Thanks and regards,
Abdullah

RE: nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

Achim Kraus — Sun, 08 Dec 2024 08:54:06 GMT

Not sure, what you consider to achieve.

In "RRC Active" (connected), the delays receiving data are pretty short. In "RRC Idle", these delays are longer (depends on eDRX or not), in my experience (south germany) it's about 2.5s without eDRX.

If your device doesn't transmit something for these 30 minutes, why do you consider, that 2.5s delay will harm? And did you measure the energy consumption in "RRC active"? If you really need to stay "RRC active", you will need quite a lot of energy.

RE: nRF9160 Modem transition to Idle state

dejans — Fri, 06 Dec 2024 15:31:16 GMT

Hi Abdullah,

This blog specifies that it is the network who determines RRC Inactivity Timer value and UE cannot negotiate that.

Is any activity allowed for these 30 minutes? Does your firmware allow that UE receives any messages or send any data to stay connected?

Do you use eDRX or PSM?

Best regards,
Dejan