BLE MESH and ESB dual mode

[Tom.Fu]

Dear Support Team

Can this nRF5 SDK for MESH support 64 Nodes and each node can be developed to support mesh node and ESB dual mode? Many thanks.

nRF5 SDK for Mesh Downloads - nordicsemi.com

[tesc]

Hi,

With the older nRF5 SDK, it is not possible to combine Bluetooth mesh and ESB, no. The reason for this is both use SoftDevice timeslots for parts or all of the protocol implementation, and there is no way to combine the timeslot usage between the two protocol.

With the newer nRF Connect SDK, it should be possible to combine the two protocols, however it does come at a performance cost due to how the protocols work: If you want to combine an ESB receiver with a Bluetooth mesh node, both will want to be in RX as close to 100 % of the time as possible, but if combining the two, you must tradeoff which protocol gets to operate what percentage of time. For an example combining ESB with BLE, see https://github.com/too1/ncs-esb-ble-mpsl-demo. This example is provided as-is and is not tested for production. Bluetooth mesh in nRF Connect SDK builds on top of the BLE stack, so adding ESB to a mesh project would bi similar to what you see in that example.

For more on the differences between nRF5 SDK and nRF Connect SDK, see our nRF Connect SDK and nRF5 SDK statement.

Regards,
Terje

[Tom.Fu]

Hi Terje

Many thanks for detailed explain.

Could it be implemented BLE MESH node and ESB separate operation like the picture below sample If I use nRF5 SDK for Mesh?  This sample can be switched BLE mode and Gezell mode by pressing a button and it run BLE or Gezell separately. Is it possible to be implemented to run BLE MESH node and ESB separately like this sample?. Many thanks.

[tesc]

Hi,

The Multiprotocol Application in nRF5 SDK is an example of a proprietary protocol running concurrently with a BLE device. Unfortunately it is not possible to run a proprietary protocol concurrently with Bluetooth mesh the same way. The Bluetooth mesh stack is already itself using the timeslot API, so it is not available to use for the proprietary protocol.

It should be possible to combine Bluetooth mesh and ESB in nRF Connect SDK, since in that SDK the Bluetooth mesh stack fully builds on top of the BLE stack. The example I referred to in my last reply uses BLE and ESB concurrently, and unlike the multiprotocol example in nRF5 SDK, the nRF Connect SDK example can be modified to use Bluetooth mesh instead of BLE.

Regards,
Terje

[Tom.Fu]

Hi Terje

Ok, is this Bluetooth mesh and ESB combined application recommended to run on nRF52832? Many thanks.

[tesc]

Hi,

Depending on the application you may find the amount of Flash and RAM on the nRF52832 to be a bit on the low end for a combined Bluetooth mesh + another protocol solution. For example, the Bluetooth mesh light switch sample from the SDK already uses almost 65 % of Flash and almost 90 % of RAM on the nRF52832.

You may be able to develop the application on nRF52832, or you may have to find a device with more Flash and/or RAM, such as the nRF52840. It all depends on the requirements of your application.

Regards,
Terje

[Tom.Fu]

Hi Terje

Ok, I would like to test the light dimmer sample, but I couldn't find it in the NCS folder.

[tesc]

Hi,

The Bluetooth: Mesh light dimmer and scene selector sample is new in nRF Connect SDK 2.4.0, so you will not find it in older instances of the SDK.

Regards,
Terje