Board: nrf52dk_nrf52832 Do not work with Zephyr

[Jan Ove]

I want to try Zephyr on the nrf52dk_nrf52832. (PCA10040)

I can not get it to work.

If I try to use -DBOARD=nrf52dk_nrf52810 All is OK

Here is what I do:

cd ~/zephyr_test/hello_world
mkdir _bld; cd _bld
cmake -DBOARD=nrf52dk_nrf52810 ..

The Output is:

Including boilerplate (Freestanding): /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/cmake/app/boilerplate.cmake
-- Application: /home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world
-- Zephyr version: 2.4.99 (/home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr)
-- Found Python3: /usr/bin/python3.7 (found suitable exact version "3.7.3") found components:  Interpreter  
-- Found west (found suitable version "0.8.0", minimum required is "0.7.1")
-- Board: nrf52dk_nrf52810
-- Cache files will be written to: /home/joe/.cache/zephyr
ZEPHYR_TOOLCHAIN_VARIANT not set, trying to locate Zephyr SDK
-- Found toolchain: zephyr (/home/joe/zephyr-sdk-0.11.4)
-- Found dtc: /home/joe/zephyr-sdk-0.11.4/sysroots/x86_64-pokysdk-linux/usr/bin/dtc (found suitable version "1.5.0", minimum required is "1.4.6")
-- Found BOARD.dts: /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/boards/arm/nrf52dk_nrf52810/nrf52dk_nrf52810.dts
-- Generated zephyr.dts: /home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world/_bld/zephyr/zephyr.dts
-- Generated devicetree_unfixed.h: /home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world/_bld/zephyr/include/generated/devicetree_unfixed.h
Parsing /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/Kconfig
Loaded configuration '/home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/boards/arm/nrf52dk_nrf52810/nrf52dk_nrf52810_defconfig'
Merged configuration '/home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world/prj.conf'
Configuration saved to '/home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world/_bld/zephyr/.config'
Kconfig header saved to '/home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world/_bld/zephyr/include/generated/autoconf.h'
-- The C compiler identification is GNU 9.2.0
-- The CXX compiler identification is GNU 9.2.0
-- The ASM compiler identification is GNU
-- Found assembler: /home/joe/zephyr-sdk-0.11.4/arm-zephyr-eabi/bin/arm-zephyr-eabi-gcc
-- Configuring done
-- Generating done
-- Build files have been written to: /home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world/_bld

I then run make and all is OK.

Than (in another terminal window):
minicom -D /dev/ttyACM0 -b 115200

I'm Flashing the board:
nrfjprog -f nrf52 --program ./zephyr/zephyr.hex --sectorerase
And reset it:
nrfjprog -f nrf52 --reset

In minicom I get:
*** Booting Zephyr OS build zephyr-v2.4.0-1657-g5a58ad508cb3  ***
Hello World! nrf52dk_nrf52810

So far All is OK.

*****************

I then do:
rm -r *
cmake -DBOARD=nrf52dk_nrf52832 ..

And The Output is:

Including boilerplate (Freestanding): /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/cmake/app/boilerplate.cmake
-- Application: /home/joe/zephyr_test/hello_world
-- Zephyr version: 2.4.99 (/home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr)
-- Found Python3: /usr/bin/python3.7 (found suitable exact version "3.7.3") found components:  Interpreter  
-- Found west (found suitable version "0.8.0", minimum required is "0.7.1")
-- Board: nrf52dk_nrf52832
-- Cache files will be written to: /home/joe/.cache/zephyr
ZEPHYR_TOOLCHAIN_VARIANT not set, trying to locate Zephyr SDK
-- Found toolchain: zephyr (/home/joe/zephyr-sdk-0.11.4)
-- Found dtc: /home/joe/zephyr-sdk-0.11.4/sysroots/x86_64-pokysdk-linux/usr/bin/dtc (found suitable version "1.5.0", minimum required is "1.4.6")
-- Found BOARD.dts: /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/boards/arm/nrf52dk_nrf52832/nrf52dk_nrf52832.dts
Error: nrf52dk_nrf52832.dts.pre.tmp:415.3-4 syntax error
FATAL ERROR: Unable to parse input tree
CMake Error at /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/cmake/dts.cmake:206 (message):
 command failed with return code: 1
Call Stack (most recent call first):
 /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/cmake/app/boilerplate.cmake:589 (include)
 /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/share/zephyr-package/cmake/ZephyrConfig.cmake:24 (include)
 /home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/share/zephyr-package/cmake/ZephyrConfig.cmake:102 (include_boilerplate)
 CMakeLists.txt:5 (find_package)


****** And this is the end of the show ******

What is wrong?

Same Error with samples/basic/blinky   and   samples/bluetooth/beacon (the one I tested).
Guess it is the same with ALL "samples" that use "nrf52dk_nrf52832",
When I test with "nrf52dk_nrf52810", it is OK

[helsing]

Hi Jan Ove,

I will be looking into your case this afternoon.

Best regards,

Håkon

[helsing]

Hi Jan Ove,

Sorry for keeping you waiting. Is it possible that you have several versions of Zephyr installed, and that some of the tools are referencing one version and some are referencing another version. Are you able to install Toolchain Manager? If so, and you then run into problems, it will be easier for us to reproduce the error.

Building for both nrf52dk_nrf52832 and nrf52_nrf52832 works here.

Håkon

[Jan Ove]

No.
I did not do anything but install Linux and then Zephyr according to the installation procedure at the Zephyr site. When I try something new, I like to make it as clean as possible.

[helsing]

Thank you for getting back quickly.

I just had a brief chat with the team. One suggestion/recommendation was to try the latest tagged release of the SDK, v2.4.0.

https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr/tree/zephyr-v2.4.0

[Jan Ove]

I had the latest release installed (at least I thought so), I tried to update it, in every way I could think of.
Nothing helped.
I then made a new Zephyr install on a different PC (with the same OS). This worked as it should.
I then copied the "~/zephyrproject/zephyr" directory from the new Zephyr installation to the PC with the faulty installation. And after that the "nrf52dk_nrf52832target" worked as it should.
I have no idea of what might have gone wrong, but it seems like all is OK now.

So now I can start on what I wanted to do with Zephyr:
Get the "zephyr/samples/lorawan/class_a/" to compile for the "nrf52dk_nrf52832target".

What do I have to change to achieve this?

I do not expect it to work, but if I can get it to compile, I can then start with the configuration and "twisting" to, hopefully, get it to run on nrf52832.
I think I know enough about LoRaWan and nrf52832 to manage this, but I do NOT know much about Zephyr.
So a little help to get this started would be nice.

I think it should be easier to get the LoRaWan Stack run on Zephyr, then it was to get LoRaWan run on "bare metal" nrf52832 (with my tiny little "jos").
But I need a decent starting point.
I have done a lot of work to get this far with LoRawan and nrf52832, and if I can get it to run with Zephyr, this should be a BIG step forward with my project.

I know that all I want and need is already in place in mbed, but I do not know much about mbed either. But the little I have seen from both mbed and Zephyr, I think Zephyr is far closer to what I feel comfortable with. But sadly, it have little support for LoRaWan.

[helsing]

Good to hear that you are now able to build without any errors. However, I do not know exactly what may have caused the error. One thing you could try though is to compare the .dts files from your working and non-working installation folders (/home/joe/zephyrproject/zephyr/boards/arm/nrf52dk_nrf52832/nrf52dk_nrf52832.dts). Like suggested by Eirik Aanonsen, there might be a clue in this file. When I insert a syntax error myself in this file I see a similar error as you do in the output.


In general it is recommended to work on the latest tagged release(at the moment v1.4.0), and only work on the master branch when specific new features are to be explored.

I will get back to you regarding the new topic, LoRaWan.

[Jan Ove]

There was an erroneous line in the "nrf52dk_nrf52832.dts" file, and it was an painful and embarrassing discovery to see it. I changed the line;
compatible = "nordic,nrf-uarte";
to;
compatible = "nordic,nrf-uart";
And when I should put back the original line, I commented out the one I changed, and .... I used WRONG comment character, it feels like I want to disappear in a hole in the ground, almost ....

Well, it was all my fault, sorry about that.

But I'm still eager to run LoRaWan on Zephyr and nrf52dk (PCA_10040).

During the LoRaWan porting to nrf52832, I used the "NucleoL476" with a "SX1276MB1MAS" shield as a reference, I compared my various nRF52 boards to this (made some timestamp code in the drivers to compere the timing of the various drivers).
I tested on my own hardware, the ee02 board from Telenor and the PCA_10040 with the SX1276MB1MAS shield. All of them run the latest Semtech LoRaWan Stack .

I want to be able to communicate with my LoRaWan nodes via BLE as well.
And then I'm in need for Zephyr.
Zephyr can also give me filesystem, near-field com and over the air firmware update. Something I think all LoRaWan nodes should have...
I want to use BLE as a kind of keyboard and display into the node. And use it for setup, config, maintenance and debugging.

So what I should like to see is some kind of tutorial on how to port the "zephyr/samples/lorawan/class_a/" from stm32 to nRF52.
Do I have to rewrite the radio drivers for nRF52?
Or other parts?
Or a list of things that need modification...

[helsing]

That could happen to the best of us. Luckily we were able to rule out a few things so that we may move on to the next tasks.

Thank you for the description of what you plan to do. I am now looking for some general guidelines for porting samples. Will you be using the SX1276MB1MAS together with nRF52 this time as well?

[Jan Ove]

Yes,
If I can do it here, "I can do it anywhere"
I did a small modification on the SX1276MB1MAS, I removed "J2_pin_1" and "J2_pin_2". They were in conflict with led3 and led4 on PCA_10040.
And made a strap from "J2_pin_2" to "J4_pin_3" for "SX1276_GPIO5" to connect to "p2_pin_3" (p0.28) on PCA_10040.

#ifndef pca_10040_mas_h
#define pca_10040_mas_h

#ifdef __cplusplus
extern "C" {
#endif

#include "nrf_gpio.h"

// UART pins connected to Rpi
// NB!!! CFLAGS += -DCONFIG_NFCT_PINS_AS_GPIOS		For å kunne bruke p0.9 og p0.10 som gpio
// NB!!! CFLAGS += -DCONFIG_GPIO_AS_PINRESET		Fjern For å bruke p.21 som gpio

// LEDs definitions for PCA10040
#define LEDS_NUMBER    4

#define LED_START      17
#define LED_1          17
#define LED_2          18
#define LED_3          19
#define LED_4          20
#define LED_STOP       20

#define LEDS_ACTIVE_STATE 0

#define LEDS_INV_MASK  LEDS_MASK

#define LEDS_LIST { LED_1, LED_2, LED_3, LED_4 }

#define BSP_LED_0      LED_1
#define BSP_LED_1      LED_2
#define BSP_LED_2      LED_3
#define BSP_LED_3      LED_4

#define BUTTONS_NUMBER 4

#define BUTTON_START   13
#define BUTTON_1       13
#define BUTTON_2       14
#define BUTTON_3       15
#define BUTTON_4       16
#define BUTTON_STOP    16
#define BUTTON_PULL    NRF_GPIO_PIN_PULLUP

#define BUTTONS_ACTIVE_STATE 0

#define BUTTONS_LIST { BUTTON_1, BUTTON_2, BUTTON_3, BUTTON_4 }

#define BSP_BUTTON_0   BUTTON_1
#define BSP_BUTTON_1   BUTTON_2
#define BSP_BUTTON_2   BUTTON_3
#define BSP_BUTTON_3   BUTTON_4

#define RX_PIN_NUMBER  8
#define TX_PIN_NUMBER  6
#define CTS_PIN_NUMBER 7
#define RTS_PIN_NUMBER 5
#define HWFC           true

#define SPIS_MISO_PIN   28  // SPI MISO signal.
#define SPIS_CSN_PIN    12  // SPI CSN signal.
#define SPIS_MOSI_PIN   25  // SPI MOSI signal.
#define SPIS_SCK_PIN    29  // SPI SCK signal.

#define SPIM0_SCK_PIN   29  // SPI clock GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM0_MOSI_PIN  25  // SPI Master Out Slave In GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM0_MISO_PIN  28  // SPI Master In Slave Out GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM0_SS_PIN    12  // SPI Slave Select GPIO pin number.

#define SPIM1_SCK_PIN   2   // SPI clock GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM1_MOSI_PIN  3   // SPI Master Out Slave In GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM1_MISO_PIN  4   // SPI Master In Slave Out GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM1_SS_PIN    5   // SPI Slave Select GPIO pin number.

#define SPIM2_SCK_PIN   12  // SPI clock GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM2_MOSI_PIN  13  // SPI Master Out Slave In GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM2_MISO_PIN  14  // SPI Master In Slave Out GPIO pin number.
#define SPIM2_SS_PIN    15  // SPI Slave Select GPIO pin number.

// serialization APPLICATION board - temp. setup for running serialized MEMU tests
#define SER_APP_RX_PIN              23    // UART RX pin number.
#define SER_APP_TX_PIN              24    // UART TX pin number.
#define SER_APP_CTS_PIN             2     // UART Clear To Send pin number.
#define SER_APP_RTS_PIN             25    // UART Request To Send pin number.

#define SER_APP_SPIM0_SCK_PIN       27     // SPI clock GPIO pin number.
#define SER_APP_SPIM0_MOSI_PIN      2      // SPI Master Out Slave In GPIO pin number
#define SER_APP_SPIM0_MISO_PIN      26     // SPI Master In Slave Out GPIO pin number
#define SER_APP_SPIM0_SS_PIN        23     // SPI Slave Select GPIO pin number
#define SER_APP_SPIM0_RDY_PIN       25     // SPI READY GPIO pin number
#define SER_APP_SPIM0_REQ_PIN       24     // SPI REQUEST GPIO pin number

// serialization CONNECTIVITY board
#define SER_CON_RX_PIN              24    // UART RX pin number.
#define SER_CON_TX_PIN              23    // UART TX pin number.
#define SER_CON_CTS_PIN             25    // UART Clear To Send pin number. Not used if HWFC is set to false.
#define SER_CON_RTS_PIN             2     // UART Request To Send pin number. Not used if HWFC is set to false.


#define SER_CON_SPIS_SCK_PIN        27    // SPI SCK signal.
#define SER_CON_SPIS_MOSI_PIN       2     // SPI MOSI signal.
#define SER_CON_SPIS_MISO_PIN       26    // SPI MISO signal.
#define SER_CON_SPIS_CSN_PIN        23    // SPI CSN signal.
#define SER_CON_SPIS_RDY_PIN        25    // SPI READY GPIO pin number.
#define SER_CON_SPIS_REQ_PIN        24    // SPI REQUEST GPIO pin number.

#define SER_CONN_CHIP_RESET_PIN     11    // Pin used to reset connectivity chip


// Arduino board mappings
#define ARDUINO_SCL_PIN             27    // SCL signal pin
#define ARDUINO_SDA_PIN             26    // SDA signal pin
#define ARDUINO_AREF_PIN            2     // Aref pin
#define ARDUINO_13_PIN              25    // Digital pin 13
#define ARDUINO_12_PIN              24    // Digital pin 12
#define ARDUINO_11_PIN              23    // Digital pin 11
#define ARDUINO_10_PIN              22    // Digital pin 10
#define ARDUINO_9_PIN               20    // Digital pin 9
#define ARDUINO_8_PIN               19    // Digital pin 8

#define ARDUINO_7_PIN               18    // Digital pin 7
#define ARDUINO_6_PIN               17    // Digital pin 6
#define ARDUINO_5_PIN               16    // Digital pin 5
#define ARDUINO_4_PIN               15    // Digital pin 4
#define ARDUINO_3_PIN               14    // Digital pin 3
#define ARDUINO_2_PIN               13    // Digital pin 2
#define ARDUINO_1_PIN               12    // Digital pin 1
#define ARDUINO_0_PIN               11    // Digital pin 0

#define ARDUINO_A0_PIN              3     // Analog channel 0
#define ARDUINO_A1_PIN              4     // Analog channel 1
#define ARDUINO_A2_PIN              28    // Analog channel 2
#define ARDUINO_A3_PIN              29    // Analog channel 3
#define ARDUINO_A4_PIN              30    // Analog channel 4
#define ARDUINO_A5_PIN              31    // Analog channel 5


// *******************************************************************
// *******************************************************************
// *******************************************************************
// 	sx1276 Radio	 			SX1276MB1MAS 				nRF52832
// *******************************************************************
#define SX1276_GPIO0	13		/* J1_pin_3 */				/* BUTTON_1 */
#define SX1276_GPIO1	14		/* J1_pin_4 */				/* BUTTON_2 */
#define SX1276_GPIO2	15		/* J1_pin_5 */				/* BUTTON_3 */
#define SX1276_GPIO3	16		/* J1_pin_6 */				/* BUTTON_4 */
#define SX1276_GPIO4	29		/* J4_pin_4  (Remove J2_pin_1, (conflict with led_3 (p0.19) on pca_10040),
												gpio_4 is on both J2_pin_1 and J4_pin_4) */
#define SX1276_GPIO5	28		/* J4_pin_3  (Remove J2_pin_2, (conflict with led_4 (p0.20) on pca_10040),
												strapp from J2_pin_2 to J4_pin_3 to route gpio_5 to p0.28) */

#define SX1276_CLK		25		/* J2_pin_6 */
#define SX1276_MISO		24		/* J2_pin_5 */
#define SX1276_MOSI		23		/* J2_pin_4 */

#define SX1276_NSEL		22		/* J2_pin_3 */
#define SX1276_RES		3		/* J4_pin_1 */
	
#define SX1276_RXTX		30		/* J4_pin_5 */
	
								/* J2_pin_7		gnd  */
								/* J3_pin_4		3.3v */
								/* J3_pin_6		gnd  */
								/* J3_pin_7		gnd  */

// https://docs.zephyrproject.org/latest/boards/arm/nrf52dk_nrf52832/doc/index.html
// https://www.semtech.com/products/wireless-rf/lora-transceivers/sx1276mb1mas

		/* ********** sx1276mb1mas_e315v01a_sch.pdf *********** 	##		************* nRF52_DK_User_Guide_v1.2.pdf ******** */
		/* J1_pin_1		x  				/* J2_pin_1		GPIO4		##		p3_pin_1	p0.11			/* p4_pin_1		p0.19	*/
		/* J1_pin_2		x 				/* J2_pin_2		GPIO5		##		p3_pin_2	p0.12			/* p4_pin_2		p0.20	*/
		/* J1_pin_3		GPIO0			/* J2_pin_3		NSS			##		p3_pin_3	p0.13			/* p4_pin_3		p0.22	*/
		/* J1_pin_4		GPIO1			/* J2_pin_4		MOSI		##		p3_pin_4	p0.14			/* p4_pin_4		p0.23	*/
		/* J1_pin_5		GPIO2	 		/* J2_pin_5		MISO		##		p3_pin_5	p0.15	 		/* p4_pin_5		p0.24	*/
		/* J1_pin_6		GPIO3			/* J2_pin_6		SCK			##		p3_pin_6	p0.16			/* p4_pin_6		p0.25	*/
		/* J1_pin_7		x				/* J2_pin_7		gnd			##		p3_pin_7	p0.17			/* p4_pin_7		gnd		*/
		/* J1_pin_8		x		 		/* J2_pin_8		x			##		p3_pin_8	p0.18	 		/* p4_pin_8		p0.02	*/
										/* J2_pin_9		x			##									/* p4_pin_9		p0.26	*/
										/* J2_pin_10	x			##									/* p4_pin_10	p0.27	*/

		/* J3_pin_1		x  				/* J4_pin_1		NRESET		##		p1_pin_1	vdd				/* p2_pin_1		p0.03 (a0) */
		/* J3_pin_2		x 				/* J4_pin_2		x			##		p1_pin_2	vdd				/* p2_pin_2		p0.04	*/
		/* J3_pin_3		x				/* J4_pin_3		x			##		p1_pin_3	reset			/* p2_pin_3		p0.28	*/
		/* J3_pin_4		VDD_RF			/* J4_pin_4		GPIO4		##		p1_pin_4	vdd				/* p2_pin_4		p0.29	*/
		/* J3_pin_5		x	 			/* J4_pin_5		RXTX_EXT	##		p1_pin_5	5v	 			/* p2_pin_5		p0.30	*/
		/* J3_pin_6		gnd				/* J4_pin_6		x			##		p1_pin_6	gnd				/* p2_pin_6		p0.31	*/
		/* J3_pin_7		gnd											##		p1_pin_7	gnd										*/
		/* J3_pin_8		x											##		p1_pin_8	x										*/
						
#ifdef __cplusplus
}
#endif

#endif // pca_10040_mas_h

I'm not sure how to attach a file, but I tried to insert some code.
It is the "board" file "boards/pca_10040_mas.h" that I use with "nRF5_SDK_17.0.2_d674dde".
At the end you find the pin defs for the sx1276.

[Jan Ove]

By the way, I plan to use the
CBTLRM01 "">www.cwdin.com/CBTLRM01.html"
for the final product, but I have not been able to get hold of the modules.
So my prototype boards are equipped with modules from E-byte.

[helsing]

Thank you for the notification regarding the CBTLRM01, this helps me understand where you are going.

Another question I have: Is there any particular reason why you are not using the nRF Connect SDK? Nordic provide many extra features for Bluetooth LE as well as the SoftDevice controller(not the same as the SoftDevice for nRF5 SDK).

In case you have not seen it, we often recommend the nRF Connect SDK Tutorial | NCS v1.4.0 Part 0 to 3.

Part 3: nRF Connect SDK Tutorial - Part 3 | NCS v1.4.0 has a section covering NCS for a custom board. Also check out the Board Porting Guide.

Have you checked with the people behind the CBTLRM01 if they have any material/sw available that perhaps could save you some work? You might also want to check with Semtech to see if they have any relevant material.

[Jan Ove]

The reason why I'm not using "nRF Connect SDK" is because it seemed to me like it is a nRF91 and nRF53 thing, nRF52 is not mentioned at all in its documentation. And I can not find the "loramac-node" library in the "nrfconnect/sdk-zephyr" repository. Which is the reason that I wanted to try Zephyr in the first place.

I can, of course, try to "reverse engineer" the lorawan for Zephyr implementation on the "96b_wistrio" board (which runs on a STM32L151CB-A mcu), and modify it for the nRF52832. But when I'm unfamiliar with both Zephyr and BLE, I find this "hill" a bit steep. The easier way is to skip Zephyr and continue with what I already have, but then I miss out on all the good things that comes with Zephyr.

I have tried a few times to get in contact with CWD Innovations that make the CBTLRM01 module, but nothing useful came out of that.
But, the Hard Ware is not the problem, there are several modules out there that use nRF52832 (I have made a few prototypes myself as well). The problem is to find proper Soft Ware for them. And have LoRaWan run PROPERLY together with BLE.
And here is where I thought Nordic could do something...