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Thingy:91 FAQ

Peder Rand

Thingy:91 FAQ

Should I update to the latest firmware?

Yes, it's recommended to update the firmware to get the latest and greatest functionality. See Update Thingy:91 firmware.

What if I want to try it on NB-IoT?

Due to restrictions in the use of TCP and direct internet access in some NB-IoT networks, this may not be an option for your chosen network. The modem firmware supports both LTE-M and NB-IoT modes, but the application is adopted differently among network types and will need to be re-flashed. You will find two NB-IoT images in the "Thingy91 Application" images zip. One is for networks with legacy PCO handling and one is for the rest. With very few exceptions, the "thingy91_nbiot_v*.hex" will be correct. Flash per the instructions above.

Where will the Thingy:91 work?

If you are in a country where LTE-M is enabled on one of the supported bands, you should be able to connect. Check this list from iBasis for countries that have confirmed coverage with the included card. Currently, certified bands are listed in the user guide and the restriction is set in the application code using the %XBANDLOCK AT command.

What to do if I can’t get GPS fixes

First of all: go outside. Good signal levels are important, especially for the first fix.

Be aware that some carriers put limitations on the use of IoT features with roaming SIM cards. Power Saving Mode (PSM) is a feature that is not always available with roaming cards, and the Thingy:91 battery life and GPS functionality depend on it. If you can’t connect and get GPS with the included SIM card, please order an IoT SIM from your local carrier.

Is the source code available for the Thingy:91 application?

Yes, Thingy:91 ships with the asset tracker application found in nRF Connect SDK. Source code is found in this GitHub repository applications/asset_tracker.

I get "Socket error: POLLHUP" when running the Thingy:91 example. What should I do? 

You have probably paired your Thingy:91 to the nRF Cloud with an old version of the firmware (pre-release) using different certificates. Delete the Thingy:91 from nRF Cloud and add it again.

If deleting the device from nRF Cloud does not work, then try to update the certificates on your Thingy:91 following this guide.

What should I do when getting "nrf_cloud_connect failed: -111" when trying to connect to nRF Cloud?

First, check that there is still data left on the SIM card by going into nRF Cloud SIM cards view. If there is no data left, then you have to buy more and restart your device. If you have data left, error -111 might indicate that your certificates have been deleted or overwritten, and you should try to update the certificates by following this guide.

What can I do with the nRF52840 on the board? 

The current demo application for Thingy:91 is with the Thingy:91 itself being the sensor end-node in the system. An alternate use is to let Thingy:91 be the gateway between short-range sensors and the cloud. We haven't made this demo for the Thingy:91 yet, but it will be very similar to the "LTE BLE Gateway" sample in nRF Connect SDK that was written for the nRF9160 DK: https://github.com/NordicPlayground/fw-nrfconnect-nrf/tree/master/samples/nrf9160/lte_ble_gateway

How do I update the firmware on the Thingy:91?

There are two important blogs to review Thingy:91 Firmware Update using MCUboot and How to add DFU support to a Thingy:91 Project 

Parents

  • Dear Peter Rand
    I have tried the thingy:91 with iBasis SIM card
    1. Used the new FW ncs_v1.0.0
    2. Updated the certificate to connect to the nrfcloud
    3. Flash the thingy91_ltem_v0.2.2.hex( PR 943)
    4. And put the thingy:91 outside to test
    It connected to LTE and the nrfcloud but couldn't get the position from GPS:

    GPS initialized
[00:00:12.872,283] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf_cloud_transport.nct_mqtt_evt_handler: MQTT_EVT_PUBACK: id=1 result=0[1B][0m
Starting GPS
Enabling PSM
PSM enabled
[00:02:09.352,355] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.enable_gps: GPS mode is enabled[1B][0m
[00:02:09.359,497] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.enable_gps: Functional mode: 1[1B][0m
[00:02:09.366,394] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.start: GPS socket created[1B][0m
[00:02:09.376,586] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.start: GPS operational[1B][0m
GPS started successfully.
Searching for satellites to get position fix. This may take several minutes.
The device will attempt to get a fix for 360 seconds, before the GPS is stopped.
GPS operation started
[00:08:09.406,280] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.stop: Stopping GPS[1B][0m


    The report said: PSM enabled
    This is a "fake report", iBasis does NOT work with PSM mode in my place( Norway), so GPS couldn't start.
    I changed to Telenor sim card, it works. It took me many days :(. You should mention this problem in your document.

    BR, 

Comment

  • Dear Peter Rand
    I have tried the thingy:91 with iBasis SIM card
    1. Used the new FW ncs_v1.0.0
    2. Updated the certificate to connect to the nrfcloud
    3. Flash the thingy91_ltem_v0.2.2.hex( PR 943)
    4. And put the thingy:91 outside to test
    It connected to LTE and the nrfcloud but couldn't get the position from GPS:

    GPS initialized
[00:00:12.872,283] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf_cloud_transport.nct_mqtt_evt_handler: MQTT_EVT_PUBACK: id=1 result=0[1B][0m
Starting GPS
Enabling PSM
PSM enabled
[00:02:09.352,355] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.enable_gps: GPS mode is enabled[1B][0m
[00:02:09.359,497] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.enable_gps: Functional mode: 1[1B][0m
[00:02:09.366,394] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.start: GPS socket created[1B][0m
[00:02:09.376,586] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.start: GPS operational[1B][0m
GPS started successfully.
Searching for satellites to get position fix. This may take several minutes.
The device will attempt to get a fix for 360 seconds, before the GPS is stopped.
GPS operation started
[00:08:09.406,280] [1B][0m<dbg> nrf9160_gps.stop: Stopping GPS[1B][0m


    The report said: PSM enabled
    This is a "fake report", iBasis does NOT work with PSM mode in my place( Norway), so GPS couldn't start.
    I changed to Telenor sim card, it works. It took me many days :(. You should mention this problem in your document.

    BR, 

Children
  • in reply to Hoang

    Hi Hoang,

    I agree that the "PSM Enabled" debug message is misleading. At that point it just means that the application has successfully requested the modem to request PSM mode from the network. This issue with some networks not allowing PSM for roaming cards is quite new and has not been taken properly into account in the code. 

    Please also note that thingy91_item_v0.2.2.hex and PR943 in github are not the same version of the code. PR943 is outdated and we're working on getting the 0.2.2 code into github.

    Peder