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Need help on NRF9160 Development of Hardware & firmware

hello,

we are developing a product, in which it needs BLE, LTE,GPS. we are planning to choose Nrf9160 for LTE & GPS. we need following support during development

1. what is the best suitable antenna for NRF9160 for both LTE & GPS, we don't  have hardcore RF expertise, so we need help on this , we have some flex antennas 

  a.https://www.molex.com/molex/products/part-detail/antennas/2072350100

 b.https://www.molex.com/molex/products/part-detail/antennas/2065600100

 can above antennas be used by just connecting via UFL connector with out any matching components etc , or any smaller chip antenna available

2.what is the smallest size PCB we can have when NRF9160 with including antennas . remaining BLE & power circuits we can manage

3. we are not interested in 2 firmware for 9160 separately and ble separately. so we are planning to choose BLE processor as main MCU , and NRF9160 will be used with out any custom firmware, so AT command based. so any suggestions on this

4.  our goal will be to extract the GPS from 9160 to BLE main mcu, and then send it via MQTT. does NRF9160 supports MQTT, any code examples via AT. with out implementing MQTT protocol on BLE main mCU, does NRF9160 supports any quick command. as of now, only publishing, in future might need subscribe also.

5. Does NRF9160 modules selling in online have embedded sim enabled, if so how to activate it with carrier.

6. lets say, if LTE is connected to carrier, then with out disconnecting from carrier, can we get GPS information, if so how?  any examples.

we are already running late to finalize the module.need help from Nordic officials.Thank you

with regards

Dr.N.Chandra sekhar, Phd

Parents
  • Hi! Carl Richard is actually a previous and coming Nordic employee so please consider his response as well. 

    1. what is the best suitable antenna for NRF9160 for both LTE & GPS, we don't  have hardcore RF expertise, so we need help on this , we have some flex antennas 

      a.https://www.molex.com/molex/products/part-detail/antennas/2072350100

     b.https://www.molex.com/molex/products/part-detail/antennas/2065600100

     can above antennas be used by just connecting via UFL connector with out any matching components etc , or any smaller chip antenna available

    The first antenna you linked (2072350100) does not cover the correct frequency for GPS as we use 1257 MHz, so the other one is the most suitable. And yes, they can be used by just connecting via the UFL connector.

     

    2.what is the smallest size PCB we can have when NRF9160 with including antennas . remaining BLE & power circuits we can manage

    This depends on the antenna you're using, and how good performance you want. The antenna requires a minimum size on a ground plane, and the larger the ground plane, the better performance - generally speaking. 

    3. we are not interested in 2 firmware for 9160 separately and ble separately. so we are planning to choose BLE processor as main MCU , and NRF9160 will be used with out any custom firmware, so AT command based. so any suggestions on this

    I agree with Carl Richard - the nRF9160 should be used as the main MCU. If you take a look at the hardware for our nRF9160 module, the nRF9160 development kit, the nRF9160 is used as the main MCU while the nRF52840 (our BLE chip) is running the HCI UART FW, to expose the Zephyr BLE controller over UART.

    4.  our goal will be to extract the GPS from 9160 to BLE main mcu, and then send it via MQTT. does NRF9160 supports MQTT, any code examples via AT. with out implementing MQTT protocol on BLE main mCU, does NRF9160 supports any quick command. as of now, only publishing, in future might need subscribe also.

    Yes, nRF9160 supports MQTT. We have this Simple MQTT sample, available in NCS, which connects the nRF9160 to an MQTT broker.

    We also have the Serial LTE Modem sample, which has support for MQTT Client proprietary AT commands, so a step simpler than the simple MQTT sample. The serial LTE modem sample is a demonstration on how to send AT commands between a host (nRF9160) and a client device, which sounds relevant to your application description.

    5. Does NRF9160 modules selling in online have embedded sim enabled, if so how to activate it with carrier.

    The nRF9160 DK and Thingy:91, which are the nRF9160 modules sold by Nordic, do not have support for an embedded SIM. As for other modules sold, you would have to ask the producer. I found this module for instance which has support for eSim installation at production time. 

    6. lets say, if LTE is connected to carrier, then with out disconnecting from carrier, can we get GPS information, if so how?  any examples.

    Yes, this is possible and the nRF9160 Pathfinder project that Carl Richard and a few other summer students worked on last summer demonstrates this. By putting the modem in power saving mode, you can operate the GPS and don't have to completely deactivate the modem.

Reply
  • Hi! Carl Richard is actually a previous and coming Nordic employee so please consider his response as well. 

    1. what is the best suitable antenna for NRF9160 for both LTE & GPS, we don't  have hardcore RF expertise, so we need help on this , we have some flex antennas 

      a.https://www.molex.com/molex/products/part-detail/antennas/2072350100

     b.https://www.molex.com/molex/products/part-detail/antennas/2065600100

     can above antennas be used by just connecting via UFL connector with out any matching components etc , or any smaller chip antenna available

    The first antenna you linked (2072350100) does not cover the correct frequency for GPS as we use 1257 MHz, so the other one is the most suitable. And yes, they can be used by just connecting via the UFL connector.

     

    2.what is the smallest size PCB we can have when NRF9160 with including antennas . remaining BLE & power circuits we can manage

    This depends on the antenna you're using, and how good performance you want. The antenna requires a minimum size on a ground plane, and the larger the ground plane, the better performance - generally speaking. 

    3. we are not interested in 2 firmware for 9160 separately and ble separately. so we are planning to choose BLE processor as main MCU , and NRF9160 will be used with out any custom firmware, so AT command based. so any suggestions on this

    I agree with Carl Richard - the nRF9160 should be used as the main MCU. If you take a look at the hardware for our nRF9160 module, the nRF9160 development kit, the nRF9160 is used as the main MCU while the nRF52840 (our BLE chip) is running the HCI UART FW, to expose the Zephyr BLE controller over UART.

    4.  our goal will be to extract the GPS from 9160 to BLE main mcu, and then send it via MQTT. does NRF9160 supports MQTT, any code examples via AT. with out implementing MQTT protocol on BLE main mCU, does NRF9160 supports any quick command. as of now, only publishing, in future might need subscribe also.

    Yes, nRF9160 supports MQTT. We have this Simple MQTT sample, available in NCS, which connects the nRF9160 to an MQTT broker.

    We also have the Serial LTE Modem sample, which has support for MQTT Client proprietary AT commands, so a step simpler than the simple MQTT sample. The serial LTE modem sample is a demonstration on how to send AT commands between a host (nRF9160) and a client device, which sounds relevant to your application description.

    5. Does NRF9160 modules selling in online have embedded sim enabled, if so how to activate it with carrier.

    The nRF9160 DK and Thingy:91, which are the nRF9160 modules sold by Nordic, do not have support for an embedded SIM. As for other modules sold, you would have to ask the producer. I found this module for instance which has support for eSim installation at production time. 

    6. lets say, if LTE is connected to carrier, then with out disconnecting from carrier, can we get GPS information, if so how?  any examples.

    Yes, this is possible and the nRF9160 Pathfinder project that Carl Richard and a few other summer students worked on last summer demonstrates this. By putting the modem in power saving mode, you can operate the GPS and don't have to completely deactivate the modem.

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