Testing Raspberry Pi + SIM7000E NB-IoT Hat + Maxis NB-IoT¶

NB-IoT AT command testing¶

AT command test is basic step to check if NB-IoT is working in good condition.

Prerequisite¶

• Raspberry Pi
• SIM7000E NB-IoT HAT
• MicroUSB Type B Cable

Steps¶

1. Insert and lock the NB-IoT SIM card onto NB-IoT HAT (Back). Connect the NB-IoT HAT to Raspberry Pi Board via USB cable.

2. Run the command below on Raspberry Pi to check availability of HAT. It will show /dev/ttyUSB2 if it exists.

   ls /dev/ttyUSB2
   

3. Run the command below to install screen utility on Raspberry Pi, which allows us to communicate to HAT via UART.

   sudo apt-get install screen
   

4. Run below command to start.

   screen /dev/ttyUSB2 115200
   

5. Type and enter AT command repeatedly until you see OK in return.

6. Run AT commands below to test connection with Internet.

   ->: User input
   
   # test using AT
   -> AT
   OK
   
   # check firmware version, make sure it contains SIM7000E
   -> AT+GSV
   SIMCOM_Ltd
   SIMCOM_SIM7000E
   Revision:1351B06SIM7000E
   
   # check service, result might be different
   -> AT+CPSI?
   +CPSI: GSM,Online,502-12,0x1054,62168,512 DCS 1800,-71,0,32-32
   -> AT+CPSI?
   +CPSI: NO SERVICE,Online
   
   # check signal quality
   -> AT+CSQ
   +CSQ: 23,99
   
   # configure to use NB-IoT
   -> AT+CMNB=2
   OK
   
   -> AT+CNMP=38
   OK
   
   -> AT+CBANDCFG="NB-IOT",8
   OK
   
   -> AT+CSTT="M2MXNBIOT"
   OK
   
   -> AT+CPSI?
   +CPSI: LTE NB-IOT,Online,502-12,0x74CE,28185722,12,EUTRAN-BAND8,3702,0,0,-10,-82,-72,15
   
   # check establish connection
   -> AT+CIPSTATUS
   OK
   
   STATE: IP START
   
   # start establish connection
   -> AT+CIICR
   OK
   
   -> AT+CIPSTATUS
   OK
   
   STATE: IP GPRSACT
   
   # get IP address
   -> AT+CIFSR
   10.247.96.227
   
   # ping www.google.com
   -> AT+CIPPING="www.google.com"
   +CIPPING: 1,"172.217.166.132",111,52
   +CIPPING: 2,"172.217.166.132",170,52
   +CIPPING: 3,"172.217.166.132",110,52
   +CIPPING: 4,"172.217.166.132",128,52
   

7. Run Ctrl-a then Ctrl-d to minimise the screen. To Resume the screen run screen -r.

8. Run Ctrl-a then type :quit to quit the screen.

PPP Installation on Raspberry Pi¶

NB-IoT HAT offers PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) for us to connect Raspberry Pi to Internet easily. The following steps show how to establish Internet connection with Raspberry Pi.

Prerequisite¶

• Raspberry Pi
• SIM7000E NB-IoT HAT
• MicroUSB Type B Cable

Steps¶

1. Plug the NB-IoT HAT into Raspberry Pi Board using USB. Ensure the Maxis SIM card is inserted and secured on the HAT.

2. Run the command below on Raspberry Pi to check availability of HAT. It will show /dev/ttyUSB2 if it exists.

   ls /dev/ttyUSB2
   

3. Go to directory where you have downloaded the GIT respository. E.g. /home/pi/maxis-nbiot-hackathon

   cd /home/pi/maxis-nbiot-hackathon
   

4. Run the commands below to install PPP on Raspberry Pi.

   $ cd "Raspberry Pi/PPP Installer"
   $ sudo chmod +x install.sh
   $ sudo ./install.sh
   

5. Run command below to start the connection.

   sudo systemctl start nbiot.service
   

6. Run command below to check if interface ppp0 exists.

   ifconfig
   

7. If it is successful, you should see IP exists in interface ppp0 from ifconfig command.

8. Run command below to stop the connection.

   sudo systemctl stop nbiot.service
   

9. To automate the connection during Raspberry Pi boot-up, run command sudo systemctl enable nbiot.service. To see the effect, run sudo reboot to restart Raspberry Pi.

References¶

For more references, please visit https://www.rhydolabz.com/wiki/?p=16325

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