Posts made by hlehoux

Well, i've swiched all my sensors from nRF24 to RFM69 for longer range

Thank you @CodeGarage , you really thrive !

As for the suggestions, i would say most important point would be to look at the project code base.
I guess the development branch has quiet evolved since the 2.3.2 release.

Next would be to sort the features and decide a roadmap for mysensors because the project can live only if it evolves

Long live MySensors!

excellent!

you will for sure also find many other "display" node example in the forum.

OK, for the receiver you could use this example: https://www.mysensors.org/build/display

you will have to adapt the example code which is displaying the current time.

and add the receive function
void receive(const MyMessage &message)
{
}

and inside the receive function extract the the values you want and display it through lcd.print()

hope this helps

@Emmanuel-Abraham sorry but i’m not sure i understand what you want to achieve.
i think you already have a working water pulse sensor but can you explain what you want to do ? why another node ? what do you want this node to do ? what data do you want to send to the node ?

what is your programming knowledge ?

Hello @Emmanuel-Abraham , i've never used this pulse meter sensor.

as far as i can see, it's sending 3 different values to the gateaway:

flow value : send(flowMsg.set(flow, 2));
pulse count : send(lastCounterMsg.set(pulseCount));
volume : send(volumeMsg.set(volume, 3));

so if you want to send say the flow value to another node, let's say node 34
you should
flowMsg.setDestination(34);

and you have to add the
void receive(const MyMessage &message)
{
}
function in the code of your node n°34

Hello here is an example i use at home: sending value 99 to node n°1

#define TARGET_NODE 1 // Id node Relay entree et couloir au tableau electrique

MyMessage MsgRelayGlobal(0,V_STATUS); // Message for the Relay actuator on node id 1, sensor 0

  // set the Destination of message to the node id of the relay actuator
  MsgRelayGlobal.setDestination(TARGET_NODE);

      MsgRelayGlobal.set( (const uint8_t ) 99 );
      Serial.println("Send Message to node 1");
      send(MsgRelayGlobal); // send message to node id 1

and here an example of how to deal with the message at target node:

void MyRelay::Receive(const MyMessage &message) {
  uint8_t payload= 0;

  payload= message.getByte();
  if  (message.type==V_STATUS) {
      if (payload==99) {
      // do something

What is also most interesting with zigbee is a very important number of devices, and low price of them compared to zwave for instance.

more info here https://www.mysensors.org/build/select_gateway

You need to connect a MySensors Gateaway to your home assistant home automation controler.

usually you can build a gateaway based on an arduino uno and connect it through serial port USB to the machine running your home assistant.

alternatively you can build an ethernet gateaway (for instance with an ethernet enabled arduino) and communicate with your home assistant through tcp/ip

Maybe try E01-ML01DP5 Long Range SPI nRF24L01P 2.4Ghz 100mW SMA Antenna IoT Wireless Transceiver

After several years of usage, i can tell i sometimes need to reboot a node after several weeks or months… hard to tell why because i don’t have logs and when node is restarted usely everything works well.

On some nodes i have setup a routine to reboot once a day; difficult to have clues if this is far better or not.

Sometimes, you can have the case where your node finds an unusual « parent id » because the regular parent is not responding so
if you are confident with your topology gateaway and repeaters then you can #define the prefered parent id of each node
especially if some repeaters have a better antenna than others

@mariusl i use the pcb from @sundberg84 EasyPCB RFM69 version and it works very well

Maybe try E01-ML01DP5 Long Range SPI nRF24L01P 2.4Ghz 100mW SMA Antenna IoT Wireless Transceiver Transmitter Receiver RF Module

In my experience with an antenna it provided far better results.

Anymay, i have swiched my sensors to RFM69, which works better, if not perfect

@NeverDie avoid tuya devices: they are intendly made to work only with the tuya app.
people try to work this around , for instance in ZHA quirks, but this is a nightmare of reverse engineering

I confirm care has to be taken: some brands want to lock you, the worst being Tuya, their devices are programmed in a way for them to work only with their gateway.

I’m very happy with the « silvercrest » gateway ; it works well and there is an « easy » hack to gain control of it there: https://paulbanks.org/projects/lidl-zigbee/#overview

(and here for french speaking people: https://faire-ca-soi-meme.fr/domotique/2021/03/22/hack-detournement-de-la-passerelle-lidl-silvercrest/)

@sundberg84

For those who use this wonderfull PCB, it is possible to use it with a regulated 5V input or with a lithium 3.7V battery :: with the following two actions:

• as a booster use a "1.8V 3V 3.7V 5V to 3.3V Boost & Buck Low Noise Regulated Charge Pump 2 in 1 DC/DC Converter"
  This will convert anything between 1.8 - 5V to 3.3V

  • works with regulated 5V down to 3.3V
  • works with lithium battery that start at 3.7V above 3.3, and then after sometime the battery goes down less than 3.3 and is boosted to 3.3

• connect the "BAT" jumper so that input goes through you DC/DC converter

@hlehoux BTW, in my case this seems to be related to the battery being very low.

Hi all, discovered today this thread while i was searching for a problem of message received twice.

Even though i've been using mySensors for several years, this is the first time i encounter this.

I was not aware there is no guarantee that a message is sent only once....

Unfortunatly, the message is sent to an actuator to tell to "toggle" the light: so if received twice, the effect is not very efficient.

I will have to implement something...

@mfalkvidd You're right: For production i'm going to build isolation for the sensor not to be in contact

Anyway: The flash point of domestic fuel oil is 55 ° C, which means that fuel oil cannot ignite below this temperature. In addition, in its liquid form, fuel oil is non-flammable at room temperature.

My first RFM69 Battery sensor: an ultrasonic sonar to measure the level of my fuel tank (don't laugh, winters can be cold in Burgundy )

Many thanks to @sundberg84 and @mfalkvidd for advice to the Newbie i am and to @Gerator for the RFM69 gateway

Thank you @sundberg84 !
Well the node's been working for a whole day without loosing any message, and it reports its battery so everything seems fine.

By the way, i have my first RFm69 node based on easyPCB now working (a sonar to measure fuel tank) connected to the gateway of @Gerator : works great

@sundberg84 Thank you for your advice.

Yes, i guess this battery has a too high voltage. But the advantage is that the battery is small.
If i understand correctly, since i did not set the BAT jumper, the radio is not fed directly from the battery ; i measure 3.3V at the radio .
If i would set the BAT jumper , the radio would be directly fed by the battery, so with 3,85V which could kill the radio.

I don't have space for 2xAA , I understand finding a small 3.3V battery would be clever so i'm gonna search for that.
I will test during a full night with one hour sleep to check if i really occurs often or not.

Do you suggest i should remove the booster ? I have very little experience regarding how long my node will workwith this battery.

Ah Ah, electronics is a strange world for us simple software programmers.

Thank you again for EasyPCB

I will run it with extended debug mode for a few hours to get more insights

@mfalkvidd thank you for your help.

The node is a EasyNewbie-PCB-for-MySensors thanks to @sundberg84 in battery mode

Maybe i have a noise problem: i did not set the "BAT" jumper because my battery might be a bit to powerfull (3.7-4V) a little above what the radio may be able to receive.

Hello, this might be a question from beginner only, but i'm wondering if i needed to do something specific after a long sleep of my node before being able to send a message.

I have from time to time send error when my node wakes up to send a message after a long period of sleep.

So my question is wether i have to execute anything special to get my node ready to send() a message after waking up from this long sleep() ?

Many thank for the advice

Here is a log when it works perfectly:

22:06:44.169 -> 6807 MCO:SLP:MS=14400000,SMS=0,I1=0,M1=1,I2=255,M2=255
22:06:44.169 -> 6813 TSF:TDI:TSL
22:06:48.121 -> 6815 MCO:SLP:WUP=0
22:06:48.121 -> 6817 TSF:TRI:TSB
22:06:48.121 -> Loop
22:06:48.121 -> analogRead: 18/933
22:06:48.121 -> digitalRead:1
22:06:48.121 -> Interrupt received for switch:1
22:06:48.121 -> 6828 MCO:SLP:MS=150,SMS=0,I1=0,M1=1,I2=255,M2=255
22:06:48.155 -> 6836 TSF:TDI:TSL
22:06:48.255 -> 6838 MCO:SLP:WUP=0
22:06:48.289 -> 6840 TSF:TRI:TSB
22:06:48.289 -> Loop
22:06:48.289 -> analogRead: 18/219
22:06:48.289 -> digitalRead:0
22:06:48.289 -> Interrupt received for switch:-1
22:06:48.461 -> Code=1
22:06:48.461 -> 6871 TSF:MSG:SEND,9-9-8-0,s=1,c=1,t=47,pt=0,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:1
22:06:48.498 -> 6881 TSF:MSG:SEND,9-9-8-8,s=1,c=1,t=2,pt=0,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:1
22:06:48.498 -> 6889 TSF:RTE:N2N OK

and Here an example of failure (30 minutes later)

22:06:48.498 -> 6891 MCO:SLP:MS=14400000,SMS=0,I1=0,M1=1,I2=255,M2=255
22:06:48.498 -> 6897 TSF:TDI:TSL
22:35:31.596 -> 12425 MCO:SLP:WUP=0
22:35:31.596 -> 12427 TSF:TRI:TSB
22:35:31.596 -> Loop
22:35:31.596 -> analogRead: 18/861
22:35:31.596 -> digitalRead:1
22:35:31.596 -> Interrupt received for switch:3
22:35:31.596 -> 12435 MCO:SLP:MS=150,SMS=0,I1=0,M1=1,I2=255,M2=255
22:35:31.596 -> 12443 TSF:TDI:TSL
22:35:31.797 -> 12447 MCO:SLP:WUP=-1
22:35:31.797 -> 12449 TSF:TRI:TSB
22:35:31.797 -> Loop
22:35:31.797 -> Code=3
22:35:31.797 -> 12457 !TSF:MSG:SEND,9-9-8-0,s=1,c=1,t=47,pt=0,l=1,sg=0,ft=2,st=NACK:3
22:35:31.797 -> 12468 !TSF:MSG:SEND,9-9-8-8,s=1,c=1,t=2,pt=0,l=1,sg=0,ft=3,st=NACK:3
22:35:31.797 -> 12476 !TSF:RTE:N2N FAIL
22:35:31.797 -> 12482 !TSF:MSG:SEND,9-9-8-8,s=1,c=1,t=2,pt=0,l=1,sg=0,ft=3,st=NACK:3

Here is the code i use to wait:

int8_t MySDJ::sleep(const uint32_t _long) {
    return ::sleep(digitalPinToInterrupt(GetdigitalPin()), CHANGE, wait_next() ? 150 : _long , false);
}

and my loop():

  if (tripped==0) {   
    the_switch= sdj.get();
    DPR("Interrupt received for switch:"); DPRLN(the_switch);
  } else if (tripped==MY_WAKE_UP_BY_TIMER) {
    if (sdj.wait_next()) {
      // timeout, We should send this code to someone
      Serial.print("Code="); Serial.println(sdj.getCode());

      send(msg.set( sdj.getCode() )); // send to controller
      send(MsgRelayGlobal.set( sdj.getCode() )); // send message to node relay actuator
      
      sdj.resetCode();
    } else {
    // on ne mesure la batterie que si pas d'action pendant le délai
    bm.MeasureBattery();
    }
  }
  
  // Sleep until something happens with the sensor or timeout
  tripped= sdj.sleep(WAIT_LOOP);

Works perfectly ! So many thanks to @Gerator

Hi all, for the sake of beginners like myself and to get advice on it, here is the code i have done to measure the battery of my sensors

based on @sundberg84 here: EasyNewbie-PCB-for-MySensors and articles i've read here

Please provide advice on how to manage switching analogReference()

Here is the class definition:

class MyBM {
  public:
    MyBM();
    MyBM(const float _VMIN, const float _VMAX);
    void setup(void);
    void MeasureBattery(void); //The battery calculations
  private:
    void burnreadings(void);
    float VBAT_PER_BITS;
    float VMIN;                          //  Vmin (radio Min Volt)=1.9V (564v)
    float VMAX;                          //  Vmax = (2xAA bat)=3.0V (892v)
    int batteryPcnt = 0;                 // Calc value for battery %
    int batLoop = 0;                     // Loop to help calc average
    int batArray[3];                     // Array to store value for average calc.
    unsigned int BATTERY_SENSE_PIN = A0; // select the input pin for the battery sense point
    int sValue;
    float Vbat;
};

You can change the values in the constructor MyBM() ; by default it is the resistors 1M and 470k for EasyPCB.

Following advice found on stackoverflow, i make 8 readings in burnreadings() when switching from analogReference(INTERNAL) to analogReference(DEFAULT) back & forth

MyBM::MyBM() {
  this->VMIN= 2.0 ;                   //  Vmin (radio Min Volt)=1.9V (564v)
  this->VMAX= 3.3;                    //  Vmax = (2xAA bat)=3.0V (892v)
  this->VBAT_PER_BITS= (1470/470)*(1.1/1024);
}

MyBM::MyBM(const float _VMIN, const float _VMAX) {
  MyBM();
  this->VMIN= _VMIN;
  this->VMAX= _VMAX;
}

void MyBM::burnreadings(void)
{
  for (int i = 0; i < 8; i++)
  {
    analogRead(BATTERY_SENSE_PIN);
  }
}

void MyBM::setup(void) {
  //=========================
  // BATTERY MEASURER
  
  //DEFAULT: the default analog reference of 5 volts (on 5V Arduino boards) or 3.3 volts (on 3.3V Arduino boards)
  //INTERNAL: an built-in reference, equal to 1.1 volts on the ATmega168 or ATmega328 and 2.56 volts on the ATmega8 (not available on the Arduino Mega)
  //EXTERNAL: the voltage applied to the AREF pin (0 to 5V only) is used as the reference.

  analogReference(INTERNAL);    // set the ADC reference to 1.1V
  burnreadings();            // make 8 readings but don't use them
  delay(10);                    // idle some time
 
  //Battery inital calc
  DPR("With Battery VMax (100%) = "); DPR(VMAX); DPR("volts and Vmin (0%) = "); DPR(VMIN); DPRLN(" volts");
  DPR("Battery Percent 25%/50%/75% calculates to: "); DPR(((VMAX - VMIN) / 4) + VMIN); DPR("/"); DPR(((VMAX - VMIN) / 2) + VMIN); DPR("/"); DPRLN(VMAX - ((VMAX - VMIN) / 4));
  sValue = analogRead(BATTERY_SENSE_PIN);
  DPR("Batterysens :"); DPRLN(sValue);
  Vbat  = sValue * VBAT_PER_BITS;
  batteryPcnt = static_cast<int>(((Vbat - VMIN) / (VMAX - VMIN)) * 100.);
  DPR("Current battery are measured to (please confirm!): "); DPR(batteryPcnt); DPR(" % - Or "); DPRLN(Vbat); DPRLN(" Volts");

  analogReference(DEFAULT);     // set the ADC reference back to internal
  burnreadings();            // make 8 readings but don't use them
  delay(10);                    // idle again
  
  //=========================
}

void MyBM::MeasureBattery() {
  analogReference(INTERNAL);    // set the ADC reference to 1.1V
  burnreadings();            // make 8 readings but don't use them
  delay(10);                    // idle some time
 
  // Battery monitoring reading
  sValue = analogRead(BATTERY_SENSE_PIN);
  DPR("Batterysens :"); DPRLN(sValue);
  //delay(500);

  // Calculate the battery in %
  Vbat  = sValue * VBAT_PER_BITS;
  batteryPcnt = static_cast<int>(((Vbat - VMIN) / (VMAX - VMIN)) * 100.);

  DPR("Battery percent: "); DPR(batteryPcnt); DPR(" %"); DPR("Battery Voltage: "); DPR(Vbat); DPRLN(" Volts");
  
  // Add it to array so we get an average of 3 (3x20min)
  batArray[batLoop] = batteryPcnt;

  if (batLoop > 2) {
    batteryPcnt = (batArray[0] + batArray[1] + batArray[2]);
    batteryPcnt = batteryPcnt / 3;

    if (batteryPcnt > 100) {
      batteryPcnt = 100;
    }
    DPR("Battery Average (Send): "); DPR(batteryPcnt); DPRLN(" %");
    sendBatteryLevel(batteryPcnt);
    batLoop = 0;
  }
  else
  {
    batLoop++;
  }

  analogReference(DEFAULT);     // set the ADC reference back to internal
  burnreadings();            // make 8 readings but don't use them
  delay(10);                    // idle again
}

Here is how i use it with a sensor that manages both interrupts and a sensor-specific timeout

// sdj is an object representing the sensor
MyBM bm;

void setup()
{
  sdj.setup();
  bm.setup();
}

void loop()
{
  if (tripped==0) {   
    the_switch= sdj.get();
  } else if (tripped==MY_WAKE_UP_BY_TIMER) {
    if (sdj.wait_next()) {
      // timeout needs to do something for the sensor
      sdj.resetCode();
    } else {
    // timeout , nothing occured for sensor
    bm.MeasureBattery();
    }
  }
  
  // Sleep until something happens with the sensor or timeout
  tripped= sdj.sleep(WAIT_LOOP);
}

Hello, i'm making some progress; received the components this week.

Unfortunately it doesn't work... yet
For now i have SanityCheck failure in to logs.

I'm afraid my soldering of all these little components is not good. I tested with a multimeter the 4 pins and i have continuity on one of them but maybe not the others so i guess i will have to try remelting all these small regulators ???

This project is very cool!

I received my pcbs to try it this morning , i'll tell you if i can make it work

@sundberg84 thank you.

i have ordered the components such as BSS138 so i will test when they arrive.I don't need ethernet

@sundberg84 Hello, coming back to this RFM GW, so i will try it

I have soldered between the two 3.3v rails , i confirm now i have 3.3v on the RFM module

I will test with the softwareSPIs and report.

I will give a try to your "quickfix" for hardwire : could you please explain or post a photo of what needs to be done for the hardwiring ?

Thank you!

Thanks to @sundberg84

My Nrf24 gateaway is know quasi professionnal !

Can't wait to test the RFM69 version

Hello, i don't see progress when connecting a 10uF decoupling capacitor.

On my node i get

4452 TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=24,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:1
4673 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=0,RSSI=-19
4677 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-110
4683 TSF:MSG:READ,0-0-1,s=255,c=3,t=25,pt=1,l=1,sg=0:1
4689 TSF:MSG:PONG RECV,HP=1
4691 TSM:UPL:OK
4694 TSM:READY:ID=1,PAR=0,DIS=1
4698 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=5,RETRY=0
4704 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
4911 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
4913 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=1
4917 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
5124 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5126 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=2
5130 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
5337 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5339 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=3
5343 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
5550 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5552 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=4
5556 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
5763 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5765 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=15,pt=6,l=2,sg=0,ft=0,st=NACK:0100

and on the gateaway

5919 TSM:READY:NWD REQ
5921 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=255,SEQ=0,RETRY=0
5926 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108

63949 TSF:MSG:READ,1-1-255,s=255,c=3,t=7,pt=0,l=0,sg=0:
63954 TSF:MSG:BC
63956 TSF:MSG:FPAR REQ,ID=1
63958 TSF:PNG:SEND,TO=0
63960 TSF:CKU:OK
63962 TSF:MSG:GWL OK
64440 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=1,SEQ=1,RETRY=0
64445 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-95
64447 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-96
64463 RFM69:SWR:ACK,FROM=1,SEQ=2,RSSI=-34
64467 TSF:MSG:SEND,0-0-1-1,s=255,c=3,t=8,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:0
Loop 0
66524 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=1,RSSI=-70
66528 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
66533 TSF:MSG:READ,1-1-0,s=255,c=3,t=24,pt=1,l=1,sg=0:1
66538 TSF:MSG:PINGED,ID=1,HP=1
66546 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=1,SEQ=3,RETRY=0
66551 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
66754 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
66756 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=1,SEQ=4,RETRY=1
66760 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-97
66777 RFM69:SWR:ACK,FROM=1,SEQ=4,RSSI=-35
66781 TSF:MSG:SEND,0-0-1-1,s=255,c=3,t=25,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:1
Loop 0
68837 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=1,RSSI=-69
68842 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-95
68844 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-96
68849 TSF:MSG:READ,1-1-0,s=255,c=3,t=15,pt=6,l=2,sg=0:0100
68855 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=1,SEQ=5,RETRY=0
68859 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
69062 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
69064 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=1,SEQ=6,RETRY=1
69069 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-101
69085 RFM69:SWR:ACK,FROM=1,SEQ=6,RSSI=-35
69089 TSF:MSG:SEND,0-0-1-1,s=255,c=3,t=15,pt=6,l=2,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:0100
Loop 0
71146 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=1,RSSI=-70
71151 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
71156 TSF:MSG:READ,1-1-0,s=255,c=0,t=17,pt=0,l=5,sg=0:2.3.2
Loop 0
Loop 0
75212 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=1,RSSI=-88
75217 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
75222 TSF:MSG:READ,1-1-0,s=255,c=3,t=11,pt=0,l=13,sg=0:RFM69 Sensor 
Loop 0
77279 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=1,RSSI=-85
77283 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107

Could you explain the difference between
RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=0,RSSI=-19
RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-110

When RSSI=-19 then RSSI=-110 ; which one is bad and is it on the node or on the gateaway ?

Thank you again

@sundberg84 Thank you
My knowledge being very limited, i understand this might be difficult for my to go on the RFM69 version ?

Hopefully, my nrf24 network based on your designs works well

@scalz @Sasquatch Thank you for suggestions, i will test next week-end
My gateaway is an esp8266 adafruit huzzah feather and my node arduino mini pro (8mhz 3v) using the psb of @sundberg84 ([here])(https://www.openhardware.io/view/389/EasyNewbie-PCB-RFM69-HWW-edition-for-MySensors)

I did not place any capacitor on the gateway, which is usb powered in my tests.
I will try to connect a decoupling capacitor like explained here like 47uF

Strangely, i also have another bunch of RFM69s that are marked as H but not W. What does it mean ?

@scalz Thank you very much!
Unfortunatly, the antenna seems shorted to ground only because this is the "head" of the pliers i used to take the photo.

i use esp8266 because i received for free a lot of many adafruit huzzah feathers

i will try your suggestion to hook two straight wires as a dipole antenna and report if this is better.

For sure my "development" setup is devboard+dupont cable+external rf and this should not be the final version ; anyway loosing 50% of messages with distance of 1 meter is disappointing.

@electrik Thank you! What you see is the "head" of the pliers i used to hold the RFM69. I will check again my soldering but definitly ANT and ground should not be connected

@hakha4 i also have several NRF24 nodes and gateaway
After trying several antenna/tranceiver, i recommend using
"E01-ML01DP5 Long Range SPI nRF24L01P 2.4Ghz 100mW SMA Antenna IoT Wireless Transceiver Transmitter Receiver nRF24L01P RF Module"

as a repeater
It gives far better range results

Anyway i wanted to try RFM69 to avoid having many repeaters

Hello, here are 2 photos

one from the back:

I'm not sure what the "W" means, i read chinese copy don't have it ?

one from the antenna:

It should be the good size for 868 MHz

I don't use "ground plane" or sort of, would this explain so bad RSSI ?

Thank you again for your help and patience

Thank you @electrik
My intent is to use RFM69HW 868Mhz
I compared with photos on the internet like here

mine is:

as far as i understand my reading my RSSI values seem to tell my signal is very weak and noisy ?
I tried to provide the pwr to the rfm69 with an external source instead of the esp8266 but i was not better.

I'm also reading a few posts like this one trying to understand a bit more ....

Thank you for offering help!

Here is the output of my node "AT Startup" with MY_DEBUG_VERBOSE_RFM69

 
 __  __       ____
|  \/  |_   _/ ___|  ___ _ __  ___  ___  _ __ ___
| |\/| | | | \___ \ / _ \ `_ \/ __|/ _ \| `__/ __|
| |  | | |_| |___| |  __/ | | \__ \  _  | |  \__ \
|_|  |_|\__, |____/ \___|_| |_|___/\___/|_|  |___/
        |___/                      2.3.2

16 MCO:BGN:INIT NODE,CP=RPNNA---,FQ=8,REL=255,VER=2.3.2
28 TSM:INIT
28 TSF:WUR:MS=0
30 RFM69:INIT
32 RFM69:INIT:PIN,CS=10,IQP=2,IQN=0
36 RFM69:PTX:LEVEL=5 dBm
38 TSM:INIT:TSP OK
40 TSF:SID:OK,ID=1
43 TSM:FPAR
45 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=255,SEQ=0,RETRY=0
51 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
55 ?TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-255-255,s=255,c=3,t=7,pt=0,l=0,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:
2064 !TSM:FPAR:NO REPLY
2066 TSM:FPAR
2068 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=255,SEQ=1,RETRY=0
2072 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
2078 ?TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-255-255,s=255,c=3,t=7,pt=0,l=0,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:
2838 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=0,RSSI=-30
2842 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-111
2848 TSF:MSG:READ,0-0-1,s=255,c=3,t=8,pt=1,l=1,sg=0:0
2854 TSF:MSG:FPAR OK,ID=0,D=1
4087 TSM:FPAR:OK
4087 TSM:ID
4089 TSM:ID:OK
4091 TSM:UPL
4093 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=3,RETRY=0
4098 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
4304 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
4306 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=4,RETRY=1
4311 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
4517 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
4519 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=4,RETRY=2
4524 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
4730 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
4732 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=4,RETRY=3
4737 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
4923 RFM69:SWR:ACK,FROM=0,SEQ=4,RSSI=-74
4927 RFM69:ATC:ADJ TXL,cR=-74,tR=-78..-82,TXL=5
4931 RFM69:PTX:LEVEL=4 dBm
4935 TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=24,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:1
5156 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=0,RSSI=-29
5160 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
5167 TSF:MSG:READ,0-0-1,s=255,c=3,t=25,pt=1,l=1,sg=0:1
5173 TSF:MSG:PONG RECV,HP=1
5175 TSM:UPL:OK
5177 TSM:READY:ID=1,PAR=0,DIS=1
5181 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=5,RETRY=0
5185 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
5392 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5394 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=1
5398 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
5605 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5607 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=2
5611 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
5818 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
5820 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=3
5824 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-111
6031 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
6033 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=6,RETRY=4
6037 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
6244 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
6246 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=15,pt=6,l=2,sg=0,ft=0,st=NACK:0100
7464 RFM69:SAC:SEND ACK,TO=0,RSSI=-29
7471 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
7475 TSF:MSG:READ,0-0-1,s=255,c=3,t=15,pt=6,l=2,sg=0:0100
7481 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=7,RETRY=0
7487 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
7694 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
7696 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=8,RETRY=1
7700 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
7907 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
7909 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=8,RETRY=2
7913 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
8120 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
8122 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=8,RETRY=3
8126 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
8333 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
8335 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=8,RETRY=4
8339 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
8546 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
8548 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=0,t=17,pt=0,l=5,sg=0,ft=1,st=NACK:2.3.2
8556 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=8,RETRY=0
8560 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
8767 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
8769 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=9,RETRY=1
8773 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
8980 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
8982 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=9,RETRY=2
8986 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
9193 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
9195 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=9,RETRY=3
9199 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
9406 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
9408 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=9,RETRY=4
9412 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
9619 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
9621 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=6,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=2,st=NACK:0
Presentation
11628 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=9,RETRY=0
11634 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-110
11841 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
11843 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=10,RETRY=1
11847 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
12056 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
12058 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=10,RETRY=2
12062 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
12271 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
12273 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=10,RETRY=3
12277 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-110
12486 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
12488 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=10,RETRY=4
12492 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
12701 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
12703 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=11,pt=0,l=13,sg=0,ft=3,st=NACK:RFM69 Sensor 
12711 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=10,RETRY=0
12718 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
12924 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
12926 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=11,RETRY=1
12931 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
13139 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
13142 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=11,RETRY=2
13146 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
13355 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
13357 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=11,RETRY=3
13361 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
13570 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
13572 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=11,RETRY=4
13576 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
13785 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
13787 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=12,pt=0,l=3,sg=0,ft=4,st=NACK:1.0
13795 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=11,RETRY=0
13799 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-111
14006 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
14008 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=12,RETRY=1
14012 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
14219 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
14221 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=12,RETRY=2
14225 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
14432 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
14434 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=12,RETRY=3
14438 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
14645 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
14647 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=12,RETRY=4
14651 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
14858 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
14860 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=0,c=0,t=23,pt=0,l=0,sg=0,ft=5,st=NACK:
14866 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=12,RETRY=0
14872 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
15079 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
15081 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=13,RETRY=1
15085 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
15292 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
15294 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=13,RETRY=2
15298 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
15505 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
15507 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=13,RETRY=3
15511 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
15718 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
15720 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=13,RETRY=4
15724 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
15931 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
15933 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=1,c=0,t=0,pt=0,l=0,sg=0,ft=6,st=NACK:
15939 MCO:REG:REQ
15941 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=13,RETRY=0
15947 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
16154 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
16156 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=14,RETRY=1
16160 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
16367 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
16369 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=14,RETRY=2
16373 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
16580 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
16582 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=14,RETRY=3
16586 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
16793 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
16795 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=14,RETRY=4
16799 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
17006 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
17008 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=255,c=3,t=26,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=7,st=NACK:2
17016 !TSM:READY:UPL FAIL,SNP

And while executing loop() every 2 seconds:

Loop
478496 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=80,RETRY=0
478502 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
478707 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
478709 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=81,RETRY=1
478715 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
478922 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
478924 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=81,RETRY=2
478930 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
479137 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
479139 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=81,RETRY=3
479145 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
479352 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
479354 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=81,RETRY=4
479361 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-104
479526 RFM69:SWR:ACK,FROM=0,SEQ=81,RSSI=-90
479533 RFM69:ATC:ADJ TXL,cR=-90,tR=-78..-82,TXL=11
479537 RFM69:PTX:LEVEL=12 dBm
479541 TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=1,c=1,t=16,pt=2,l=2,sg=0,ft=1,st=OK:1
Loop
481548 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=81,RETRY=0
481554 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
481761 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
481763 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=82,RETRY=1
481769 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
481976 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
481978 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=82,RETRY=2
481984 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-106
482191 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
482193 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=82,RETRY=3
482199 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
482406 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
482408 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=82,RETRY=4
482414 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
482621 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
482623 !TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=1,c=1,t=16,pt=2,l=2,sg=0,ft=0,st=NACK:1
Loop
484630 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=82,RETRY=0
484636 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-109
484841 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
484843 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=83,RETRY=1
484849 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
485056 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
485058 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=83,RETRY=2
485064 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-108
485271 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
485273 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=83,RETRY=3
485279 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-105
485486 !RFM69:SWR:NACK
485488 RFM69:SWR:SEND,TO=0,SEQ=83,RETRY=4
485494 RFM69:CSMA:RSSI=-107
485662 RFM69:SWR:ACK,FROM=0,SEQ=83,RSSI=-88
485666 RFM69:ATC:ADJ TXL,cR=-88,tR=-78..-82,TXL=12
485672 RFM69:PTX:LEVEL=13 dBm
485675 TSF:MSG:SEND,1-1-0-0,s=1,c=1,t=16,pt=2,l=2,sg=0,ft=1,st=OK:1

And my Sketch :

// Enable debug prints to serial monitor
#define MY_DEBUG

// Enable and select radio type attached
#define MY_RADIO_RFM69
#define MY_IS_RFM69HW
#define MY_DEBUG_VERBOSE
#define MY_DEBUG_VERBOSE_RFM69
//#define MY_DEBUG_VERBOSE_RFM69_REGISTERS
#define MY_RFM69_NEW_DRIVER
//#define MY_RFM69_ATC_MODE_DISABLED
//#define MY_RFM69_TX_POWER_DBM 20

// Enabled repeater feature for this node
//#define MY_REPEATER_FEATURE

//#define MY_NODE_ID 5

#include <MySensors.h>

#define OPEN 1
// Initialize motion message
MyMessage msg(1, V_TRIPPED);

uint8_t value = OPEN;

void setup()
{
  Serial.begin(115200);
  pinMode(LED_BUILTIN, OUTPUT);
}

void presentation()
{
  Serial.println("Presentation");
  // Send the sketch version information to the gateway and Controller
  sendSketchInfo("RFM69 Sensor ", "1.0");

  // Register all sensors to gw (they will be created as child devices)
    present(0, S_CUSTOM);
    present(1, S_DOOR);
}

void loop()
{
  Serial.println("Loop");
  digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, HIGH);   // turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
  delay(1000);                       // wait for a second
  digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW);    // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
  delay(1000);                       // wait for a second
  //sendHeartbeat(); 
  send(msg.set(OPEN));

  
}

@mfalkvidd thank you for pointing this to me. I confirm gpio5 works well for IRQ. I read too many articles about how to use gpio0 or gpio2 !

Anyway i still get very bad transmission ratio, even with very close distance and after buying antennas the good size for my 868 MHz RFM69s

Can some of you guys point me to help on how to troubleshoot transmissions and/or bad antenna setup for the RFM69, for a newbie like me ?

Thank you

@sundberg84 could you please provide us some help ?

awaiting some components to test

Thank you so much for the designs you share with us

Hello, just received these from seeedstudio, will try both nrf24 and rfm69

There's less explanation than your other designs, hope i will get it working

@mfalkvidd Well i'm not sure, on [huzzah pinout](link url) GPIO#4 and GPIO#5 are described about I2C SDA & SCL and GPIO #12/13/14 are the same as SCK/MOSI/MISO so i thought would be better not to use them.

I will try and report back.

Seems to me (first try) that GPIO#2 works well, provided you connect it both to VCC (it has a pullup resistor ) to avoid boot-mode and to IRQ

@mfalkvidd

Hello, certainly yes; anyhow, my setup is quite experimental yet:

• my antenna setup is quite bad, i loose radio messages or don't receive Ack from the gateway (my bad, i have 868 MHz RFM69 and ordered antennas for 433 MHz)
• i can confirm it works with NSS on pin GPIO#15 and IRQ_PIN on GPIO#0 orGPIO#2
• i have not resolved yet the problem of GPIO#0 and GPIO#2 being used by ESP8266 to detect boot-mode so you have to connect the pin after booting which is very annoying
  There are articles like this one https://www.instructables.com/id/ESP8266-Using-GPIO0-GPIO2-as-inputs/ but i'm quite newbie in electronics...

I will post more details when my config is better.

I guess this means i finally managed to get it working:

4131 MCO:BGN:STP
4133 MCO:BGN:INIT OK,TSP=1
4135 TSM:READY:NWD REQ
4139 ?TSF:MSG:SEND,0-0-255-255,s=255,c=3,t=20,pt=0,l=0,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:
pm open,type:2 0
30149 TSF:MSG:READ,5-5-255,s=255,c=3,t=7,pt=0,l=0,sg=0:
30155 TSF:MSG:BC
30157 TSF:MSG:FPAR REQ,ID=5
30159 TSF:PNG:SEND,TO=0
30161 TSF:CKU:OK
30163 TSF:MSG:GWL OK
30641 TSF:MSG:SEND,0-0-5-5,s=255,c=3,t=8,pt=1,l=1,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:0
32650 TSF:MSG:READ,5-5-0,s=255,c=3,t=24,pt=1,l=1,sg=0:1
32655 TSF:MSG:PINGED,ID=5,HP=1

Here is what i have tried:
I try using GPIO 2 and 15 to pilot the RFM69

here an extract of my GatewayESP8266.ino

// Enable debug prints to serial monitor
#define MY_DEBUG

// Use a bit lower baudrate for serial prints on ESP8266 than default in MyConfig.h
#define MY_BAUD_RATE 9600

// Enables and select radio type (if attached)
//#define MY_RADIO_RF24
#define MY_RADIO_RFM69

#define MY_IS_RFM69HW // Omit if your RFM is not "H"
#define MY_RFM69_IRQ_PIN 2
#define MY_RFM69_IRQ_NUM MY_RFM69_IRQ_PIN
#define MY_RFM69_CS_PIN 15 // NSS. Use MY_RFM69_SPI_CS for older versions (before 2.2.0)

../..

void setup()
{
   pinMode(MY_RFM69_IRQ_PIN, OUTPUT);
   pinMode(MY_RFM69_CS_PIN, OUTPUT);

	// Setup locally attached sensors
}

../..

void loop()
{
	// Send locally attached sensors data here
  digitalWrite(MY_RFM69_IRQ_PIN, HIGH);
delay(1000);
digitalWrite(MY_RFM69_IRQ_PIN, LOW);
delay(1000);
}

What's going wrong is i need to unplug the wire to GPIO2 at boot time unless it won't boot
then if i do that and replug the wire after boot, TFM is not initialized properly and
i get this log:

MCO:BGN:INIT GW,CP=RRNGE---,FQ=80,REL=255,VER=2.3.2
114 TSF:LRT:OK
130 TSM:INIT
143 TSF:WUR:MS=0
163 TSM:INIT:TSP OK
184 TSM:INIT:GW MODE
206 TSM:READY:ID=0,PAR=0,DIS=0
238 MCO:REG:NOT NEEDED
scandone
1311 GWT:TIN:CONNECTING...
2339 GWT:TIN:CONNECTING...
scandone
state: 0 -> 2 (b0)
state: 2 -> 3 (0)
state: 3 -> 5 (10)
add 0
aid 2

connected with TPLINK_BUREAU, channel 1
dhcp client start...
cnt 
3168 GWT:TIN:CONNECTING...
ip:192.168.1.50,mask:255.255.255.0,gw:192.168.1.1
4329 GWT:TIN:CONNECTING...
4357 GWT:TIN:IP: 192.168.1.50
4389 MCO:BGN:STP
pm open,type:2 0
14407 MCO:BGN:INIT OK,TSP=1
14436 TSM:READY:NWD REQ
15462 ?TSF:MSG:SEND,0-0-255-255,s=255,c=3,t=20,pt=0,l=0,sg=0,ft=0,st=OK:

My knowlegde in electronics is level zero unfortunalty
The adafruit Huzzah documentation states that
GPIO #2, is also used to detect boot-mode. It also is connected to the blue LED that is near the WiFi antenna. It has a pullup resistor connected to it, and you can use it as any output (like #0) and blink the blue LED.

So i thought i could wire directly GPIO2 to DIO0 on the RFM69 like explained https://www.mysensors.org/build/connect_radio but obviously i do something wrong

Please Help

Hello, i'm trying to setup a gateaway on ESP8266 like explained in https://www.mysensors.org/build/esp8266_gateway but i don't have a NodeMCU or Wemos D1 Mini.

I have an Adafruit Huzzah Feather and i can't figure out what pins to use for connecting to DIO0 and NSS on the RFM69 even though my sketch compiles and uploads correctly .

Anyone can help, or have a working GatewayESP8266.ino for the Huzzah ?

Many thanks !