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RAK4260 Evaluation Board Low Level Development

Overview​

Using Low Level Development, you can develop your own firmware that runs on RAK4260. RAK offers this alternative for advanced users who need to have deeper integration of their solutions with this board.

How to Implement your App on the RAK4260 Evaluation Board​

Schematic​

One of the essential aspects that allow you to develop your own firmware is the hardware schematics. This allows you to understand the connections between the inner MCU and the LoRa transceiver.

NOTE

The RAK4260 Evaluation Board covers only the high-frequency LoRaWAN bands (864 MHz to 923 MHz).

Check the LoRaWAN frequencies by country.

Microchip LoRaWAN Stack (MLS)​

Reading Microchip LoRaWAN Stack API Reference Manual is recommended.

RAK4260 Development Platform​

Before compiling a project for the RAK4260 Evaluation Board, it is necessary to install Microchip Studio integrated development platform (IDP).

  1. Download and install the Microchip Studio web installer.
Figure 7536: Microchip Studio web installer
  1. Agree to the license terms and conditions.
Figure 7537: Microchip Studio license
  1. In Select Architecture, choose "SAM".
Figure 7538: Microchip Studio Architecture
  1. Don't select "Atmel Software Framework and Examples Project" yet. Do it later.
Figure 7539: ASF skip install
  1. Launch Microchip Studio then select Tools -> Extensions and Updates.
Figure 7540: Microchip Studio Extensions and Updates
  1. In the Extensions and Updates window, click on "Online" and then search for "atmel software framework".
Figure 7541: ASF install

  1. Select "Atmel Software Framework" and click on the "Download" button to install it.

  2. To finish the installation, launch Microchip Studio then go to Tools -> Device Pack Manager. Search for "SAMR34" and install "SAMR34_DFP" pack.

Figure 7542: SAMR34 pack install

Build RAK4260 LoRaNode Demo Project​

RAK has already configured a demo firmware for RAK4260 based on Microchip LoRaWAN Stack (MLS) that can be downloaded freely for testing purposes in this Github Repository:

The Microchip Studio LoRaWAN examples are based on SAMR34 Xplained Pro, but RAK260 did not adopt the same GPIO pinout. If you plan to develop a new LoRaWAN application, refer to the RAK4260 GPIO pins defined in the samr34_xplained_pro.h file.

NOTE

This sample firmware is solely for testing purposes. If you want to use and deploy your own LoRaWAN application, you need to develop a customized firmware based on Microchip LoRaWAN Stack (MLS).

  1. Clone the RAK4260 GitHub repository.
Figure 7543: RAK4260 GitHub Repository
  1. Open and configure the RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo solution.

Go to the cloned directory folder: **<cloned_dir>\RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo\APPS_ENDDEVICE_DEMO1**. Then double click on file "APPS_ENDDEVICE_DEMO1.atsln" to open Solution on Microchip Studio.

  1. Compile RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo solution. In Microchip Studio, select Build -> Build Solution.
Figure 7544: Build RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo solution

Flash the Firmware Using DAPLink and RAKDAP1​

To flash a new firmware, use the RAKDAP1, an SWD adapter. Refer to Figure 10 as a reference to connect RAKDAP1 and RAK4600 Evaluation Board.

Figure 7545: RAK4260 Evaluation Board connected to RAKDAP1
  1. Install the RAKDAP1 Flash and Debug Tool.

RAKDAP1 uses the pyOCD package. pyOCD is an open-source Python package for programming and debugging ARM Cortex-M microcontrollers using multiple supported types of USB debug probes.

  1. Check Support Package installation for RAK4260.
pyocd list -t -n atsaml21j18a
  1. Flash the hex file.

As an example, flash the RAK4260-LoRaNode demo project. The hex file of the RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo project is located in a folder, depending on whether you select to compile the Debug or Release version of the Microchip Studio project.

- **<cloned_dir>\RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo\APPS_ENDDEVICE_DEMO1\Release**
- **<cloned_dir>\RAK4260-LoRaNode-demo\APPS_ENDDEVICE_DEMO1\Debug**.
Figure 7546: Microchip Studio Solution Configurations
Figure 7547: RAK4260 hex file
pyocd flash -t atsaml21j18a APPS_ENDDEVICE_DEMO1.hex
Figure 7548: Successful pyOCD flash