Please include the following information, in order for us to help you as effectively as possible.
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What product do you wish to discuss? RAK6421 + RAK13302
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Computer OS? (MacOS, Linux, Windows) Linux (Raspberry Pi)
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What Computer OS version? Debian GNU/Linux 13.4 (trixie)
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How often does the problem happen? consistently
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How can we replicate the problem?
- Put the RAK13302 module on a RAK6421 pi hat, and set the jumper pins for the EXT option
- Connect the external battery connector to the RAK13302 and connect to a 5V 2.5A+ power supply (not turned on yet) and connect an antenna using a UFL to SMA or N cable adapter
- Image a microSD card with the raspian OS - Debian trixie 13.4 and put it in the raspberry Pi
- Put the 6421 on the raspberry Pi GPIO pins, connect the RPi to a video monitor and keyboard/mouse, and network cable connected to an internet router and turn on the power supply
- Set up the raspberry Pi with local settings (mine is US/english)
- Install the pyMC_repeater: GitHub - pyMC-dev/pyMC_Repeater: A lightweight Repeater Daemon implemented in Python, built using the pymc_core library. · GitHub
follow instructions to enable SPI on the RPi and then git clone the code
A) set it up for the RAK6421+1330x option
B) use the US/Canada radio settings option
c) Finish the configuration from the web interface http://[RPi IP address]:8000 - Look at the power consumption with the system idle
- Advert the repeater and look at the power consumption
9.Under “Configuration”, “Radio configuration”, adjust the tx power and repeat - try using small increments from 18dbm to 30 dbm - Check the current usage with an advert transmission after each adjustment
In my case, the power sits at ~290mA while idle, and only goes up to a max of around 400mA on transmit. This means the RAK board is only using ~110mA, which is way too low for having the power amplifier engage.
I have sufficient current available, so it isn’t a power supply issue.
I suspect either something is missing in the pyMC code to actually get the PA to engage, or there is an issue with my RAK13302
Please help me understand what the problem might be,
Thank you,
Brett-
