I thought I'd share a part of my 'workshhop'. Only part of it due the rest being in a bit of a mess at the moment, so here is the 'good' bit......

I would really like to get OTA working here as it's freezing outside and I have to go there to update the software in the greenhouse control system.

So please, can we have a 'how to' step-by-step guide to OTA? Please?

S.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of you on (or behind) this forum.

Here's to 2018 and a much better year for us all!

Seasons greeting to all of you. Hope you have a nice festive season.

@bc123 said in I am in need of some programming help.:

I have a cool project

So does everyone else

I hired someone to do about a year ago, but it never worked entirely.

Why is that?

need some help with the programming.

Then post your code and the issues you are facing and someone might help you out.

Project: Driveway alert system, looooong driveway.

So it's just a basic 'alert system' - good.

I have 4 sensor beams shooting across the driveway and they are spaced about 100' apart from each other.

That is good if that is what you want/need for your cool project.

Each can provide a NO or NC contact.

Good.

I have conduit running between all 4 points

Good idea if you don't want jammable RF.....

and was planning to run Ethernet wire between them

So only empty conduit at the moment then?

The board has a LORA radio on it

Good.

and is transmitting to my Arduino receiver, which is tied to a pi running Domoticz.

Good.

I hired someone a year ago to build a system for me using 4 transmitters (one for each sensor),

You already told us this bit.

but I don't think he knew what he was doing.

Why is that?

We got several running temperature/humidity data

That wasn't the original 'alert' spec was it? Or maybe it was? Maybe it is supposed to be a driveway alert system with temperature and humidity sensors 100 feet apart? Who knows? What are you 'really' wanting to do here?

but, the input pins don’t work like they’re supposed to.

So is this faulty hardware issue then?

Why 4 sensors on the driveway? Eventually I’ll install my railroad signals and be able to direct one way traffic up and down the driveway! How cool is that!

If you really have that much traffic on your driveway then it might be a better idea to have a 2-lane driveway.

Help anyone? Happy to compensate for your efforts!

How can we help? You posted an 'alert' dream that later included temperature and humidity. Then it morphed into a traffic control system (either automatic or manually controlled, we don't know which at this stage).
Then you ask for programming help and don't even post a single line of code.

Yes that was all a bit 'tounge-in-cheek' but hopefully you get the idea.

First define what you actually want.
Post code you are trying to get working.
Post drawings of how it is all connected up.
Post photos of the project.

Where is the project located on this once fine planet?
Where do I get my compensation from?

The current NRF24 set up is more secure than bluetooth or wifi from attack.

I say this based on the fact that anyone with a laptop, mobile etc can have software to crack/hack/spoof/inject into bluetooth or wifi. It is not that difficult for kids to do.

The NRF is another matter as to achieve this on that radio module would require acquiring a module, setting it up with a pc/phone and then getting software to attack it.

People often go the easiest route and I am less worried about nrf24 than I would be if the system used bluetooth/wifi or cloud.

Just my thoughts on a dark and wet Monday morning.....

@ben999 said in nrf24+ module with stick antenna:

@skywatch oh great thanks for that !

by removing the smd then the signal becomes "compatible" with a 2.4ghz stick antenna ?

It completely removes the strip antenna on the pcb as well as the matching stub. The component is likely a zero ohm resistor. So you will be taking the RF from the point before the antenna and it should work.

or shall i go with wire and adjust length ?

That is up to you! You could always try both and see what works best for you. It's only a few minutes work. Don't forget to post your findings for others to learn from...

@Stevanov

Your best bet is still to simply change to a different unused channel.

Nrf24l01+ has over 100 channels available, why insist on using one in use by someone else nearby?

Even if you do encrypt all data the radios will still suffer due the the high level of signals around swamping the receiver front ends and reducing sensitivity adn increasing liklihood of packet collisions.

Far better to find a clear channel and use that, but it's up to you at the end of the day.

@TheStaticTurtle You are using an older version of mysensors. 2.3.2 is current so first of all upgrade to that.

Second, looking at the node log it never finds the gateway. FPAR is "find parent" and it never does, so nowhere to send the data. The "!TSM:FPAR:FAIL" is also a clue as to no comms with the gateway.

Why this is I don't know as you haven't posted your code.

Just to say I wish you all good health in 2021 and thanks for the stimulating discussions and friendly forum.

god Jul och Gott Nytt År!

Nice work there!

Thank you for sharing your success, I am sure there will be others who have an interest in this type of set up.

I found this if it is of interest (or not)...

https://www.hackster.io/TMRh20/iot-home-automation-w-nrf24l01-raspberry-pi-9ee904

@kiesel This is just my impression, nothing has been announced so it is guess work. But it took a week to get even one response to your question, and that says a lot.

Nothing comparable that I know of, but this all still works just as it always did and I have invested too much in hardware to leave it all and risk the same thing happening again.

I guess that at best the project has 'stalled' and at worst it is abandoned.

@NielBierman Simply add another RF gateway on a different frequency.

@DIY89 20cm is close - try moving them at least 2m apart - make sure all use sane radio channel - check wiring - use quality power supply - check no 'fake' components in the mix - use unique names for different nodes.

That's about all i can think of with the info you have provided.

Maybe the UNO is out of range of the GW? I don't see any problem with mixing different arduinos (or anything else) on the network so long as the network uses the same protocol and frequency....

Post the code for the nano working and the uno not working.

@nekitoss
I used 3.3V pro mini with regulator removed and powered by Vin pin. Also removed leds from the pro mini.

I used minicore bootloader.

I used the small pir sensors and again removed the regulator to power directly from the pro mini outputs.

After that sleep the node and trigger on interrupt.

Send battery level once a day.

Use inbuilt battery level monitor and not external components that constantly drain power to get battery level.

1.8V is 0% on the graph (not visible yet!) but I have had nodes working below 1.7V It's a matter of luck with that it seems.

Hope this helps you on the right track. I'll try and help if you want.

This is the latest image and still going strong after 18 months. Voltage is at 2.903V

Here is photo of the test example - I need to make a case and produce more of them over winter.....

Here is the same build/code of a window sensor. Similar time frame but hardly triggered.....

@NeverDie Thanks - Interestingly they show a free version on their site still. Did they revert due to bad publicity?

https://www.linuxfx.org/

@NeverDie So how is it going for you? Have you tried USB devices with it? Did they work well? I am thinking of being able to run Win x64 SDR software on this but still wonder if it will work - Will try it out as soon as I can and report back. Meantime any hints or opinions you have would be good if you can share.