Hello, guys!
We are excited to start a new product prototyping by using Thingy:91 board. Consequently, I would have a few questions related to Thingy:91 configuration and possibilities:
1) According to some threads (e.g. here), nRF9160 SiP should be programmed/debugged with nRF9160-DK board. Can we use the same nRF9160-DK board to program/debug nRF52840 BLE SoC that is on the Thingy board?
2) We develop a firmware for nRF9160 by the help of nRF Connect SDK whereas the code for nRF52840 is developed by using nRF52 SDK. We can develop the code for those two units (nRF9160 and nRF52840) separately and mutually independently. Do we need to use the switch SW2 on the Thingy:91 board to select which of the two modules we want to debug/program?
3) How nRF9160 SiP and nRF52840 SoC module can communicate between each other? I see there is an I2C bus that connects many peripherals on the board with both nRF9160 and nRF52840 modules. Can those modules use I2C link to communicate with each other? I also see some connection between the modules through MCU_IF and COEX pins. Can I use those pins to establish communication between nRF9160 and nRF52840 modules? What is the purpose of COEX pins?
4) We would need some more GPIOs of nRF9160 and/or nRF52840 modules to connect some external devices to the Thingy:91. I imagine we can connect some more devices on I2C network through the test points TP9 and TP10 on the Thingy:91 board. Is that correct? nRF52840 GPIOs can be accessed through P6 connector (nRF52_SPARE)? What about nRF9160 GPIOs that we can use for a connection with external devices? I don't see any connector (I don't count P7). Can we cut the jumpers SB7 - SB11 on the Thingy:91 board, break the connection between nRF9160 and nRF52840 and use those points as nRF9160 GPIOs?
5) Finally, there is an on-board LTE-M/NB-IOT/GPS antenna but also a connectors for external LTE and GPS antennas. Can you recommend us some appropriate external antennas (for the case we want to have better sensitivity)?
Thank you very much for your time and efforts. It is really appreciated.
Sincerely,
Bojan.
