Adding both Wifi And GPS to an RAK19007

LPWAN Modules / EVBs
1

I have the RAK19007/4631 Starter kit with Bluetooth and LoRa. I would like to add GPS and WiFi. Which module(s) would I need.

Thank you.

2

Welcome to the forum @phodara

For WiFi it is the RAK2305
For GPS it is the RAK12500

Examples for the two modules are in our WisBlock repo

In case you want to use Meshtastic firmware, the RAK2305 is not supported by Meshtastic (as far as I know).

3

Thanks for your response. Since the RAK19007/4631 already has bluetooth i am also worried about a conflict, but since it doesn’t support meshtastic its a mute point. I need Wifi for MQTT since i don’t think i am in LoRa range of any other nodes, but who knows if i mount high enough outside with a solar charger maybe i can find another node and get MQTT updates. For now i get MQTT from the proxy connection to my IPhone.
I will look into the GPS module you recommended.

This is all new to me. Thanks so much for your advice!

4

If you need MQTT and WiFi, check the ESP32 module RAK11200, I made a sensor network test ==> Meshtastic-Sensor-Network

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Wow! That looks like a great project something in the direction i would like to go. I will definitely save the link.

The main core i am using the RAK4631 already has Bluetooth. Is the RAK11200 with WiFi and Bluetooth a direct replacement for the RAK4631? If not can i have two bluetooth transceivers installed but leave one disabled, without any conflicts?

Thanks for your patience with a newbie.

6

If you want to use the RAK11200 with LoRa, you need the RAK13300 LoRa module because the RAK11200 doesn’t have an internal LoRa transceiver.

You can replace the RAK4631 with an RAK11200, but of course you have to flash the matching Meshtastic firmware.

You cannot combine the RAK4631 and the RAK11200, our WisBlock system allows only one Core module.

7

Thanks i’ll take a look at those modules. I hate to bother you but i have a new problem. So i am using the the 19007 and the 4631 and i just installed the RAK12500 GPS module. It seems to have enabled itself snd is working, however i loose bluetooth connectivity from my phone app after 10-15 minutes. I also moved the GPS to another 19007/4631 install and i am having the same problem. Is my GPS unit defective or am I missing something?

8

Bluetooth is inside the Core module and I am not aware that any outside module can influence it.
I think that is more a problem on the Meshtastic side.

Can you flash the attached test firmware, it is a simple hardware test. It will keep BLE active and the GNSS module active. Test if you get the same symptoms.

To flash it, unzip the file, double push the reset button on the device and drag the UF2 file to the new drive that is showing up.
Let it run and check the log output (Serial terminal on your PC, connected to the USB port, baudrate 115200 8N1)
WB_HW_Test_V1.1.6.uf2.zip (186.2 KB)

9

THANK YOU!!! The diagnostic utility provided great info over serial port showing all hardware initialized and ran correctly.

I went back and wiped the firmware and reinstalled 2.5.5 again. This time I kept my terminal software running and I saw after about 15 minutes ‘Shutdown from long press’ even though I did not press the button. So as you said, I thought it was probably something in software as well. Next I started researching shutdowns with the GPS module. Even though I read the recommended slot was ‘D’ I found more information that the recommended slot ‘A’ for GPS on my board. I moved the GPS to slot ‘A’ and it’s been running for about two hours with no problems.

A couple of related questions:

  1. I have not researched any of the hardware architecture yet but I am wondering if there could be some sort of IRQ conflict?

  2. With MQTT enabled and over 700 nodes discovered can this overwhelm storage, memory or processor and also possibly cause a shutdown or crash?

  3. When this was shutting down with the GPS in slot ‘D’ sometimes on reboot I would loose my entire config, my Bluetooth password, my region settings, my network name. Does this make sense?

Here is the syslog with the GPS in slot ‘D’:
INFO | 15:55:00 379 [GPS] updatePosition LOCAL pos@67094a55 time=1728662100 lat=412173026 lon=-737404028 alt=128
DEBUG | 15:55:00 379 [GPS] Setting local position: lat=412173026 lon=-737404028 time=1728662100 timestamp=1728662101
DEBUG | 15:55:00 379 [GPS] Node status update: 1 online, 1 total
INFO | 15:55:01 379 [Button] Shutdown from long press
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] Shutting down
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] Entering deep sleep forever
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] Disable NRF52 bluetooth
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] NRF52 bluetooth disconnecting handle 0
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] BLE Disconnected, reason = 0x16
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] PhoneAPI::close()
DEBUG | 15:55:04 382 [Button] SX126x entering sleep mode
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] GPS deep sleep!
INFO | 15:55:04 382 [Button] GPS power state moving from HARDSLEEP to OFF
INFO | 15:55:04 383 [Button] Saving /prefs/config.proto
INFO | 15:55:05 383 [Button] Saving /prefs/module.proto
INFO | 15:55:06 384 [Button] Saving /prefs/channels.proto
INFO | 15:55:07 385 [Button] Saving /prefs/db.proto

10

The GNSS module has two outputs, an interrupt and a time pulse.
One of them is connected to the default button GPIO of Meshtastic when used in slot D. That’s why you get the problem.

Regarding 700 nodes running over MQTT, you have to test or ask Meshtastic. I have no idea how they handle it.

Loosing settings with GPS in Slot D makes no sense to me unless the Meshtastic firmware does something strange with the false button pulses. Again something to ask Meshtastic.

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