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GNSS Click with EasyPIC v8

Published Nov 01, 2023

Click board™

GNSS Click

Dev. board

EasyPIC v8

Compiler

NECTO Studio

MCU

PIC18LF27K42

Take control of your journey and build a custom navigation system that suits all your needs

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Hardware Overview

How does it work?

GNSS Click is based on the L86, a compact GNSS module from Quectel Wireless Solutions. The L86 supports the L1 band only (1575.42MHz for GPS and 1601.71MHz for GLONASS), with 33 tracking and 99 acquisition channels. Under L86's hood is the MediaTek MT3333 chipset that can achieve the perfect performance. The module is an ultra-low tracking power consumption device with a high sensitivity of -167dBm while tracking and -149dBm in acquisition mode with a reacquisition time of less than 1 second. The greater number of visible satellites increases horizontal positioning accuracy (<2.5m CEP) and decreases acquisition time (<5s TTFF with a warm start). GNSS Click supports anti-jamming and better positioning under signal conditions with onboard LNA for better sensitivity, multi-tone active interference canceller, and balloon mode for high altitudes up to 80km. The L86 can automatically predict satellite orbits from data stored in its internal flash (EASY™ technology). Also, it can adaptively adjust its ON/OFF time to balance positioning accuracy

and power consumption (AlwaysLocate™ technology). To save power consumption, GNSS Click comes with VBAT connection pads and a backup power supply selection jumper for connecting an external power supply that can supply power to the module's SRAM memory. This memory serves for storing GPS information for quick Start-Up sequences. Periodic Standby mode can periodically control the board's power on/off time to reduce average power consumption, configurable using the PMTK command. GNSS Click will enter the Periodic mode after successfully fixing the position. For communication with the host microcontroller, L86 uses the UART interface with commonly used UART RX and TX pins as its default communication protocol operating at 9600bps by default configuration to transmit and exchange data. In addition, the Click board™ features other functions accessible through mikroBUS™ signals, such as Force on (FON) and Reset (RST). A logic high state on the FON pin will force the module to

wake from Backup mode, while the RST pin provides a general reset function. In addition to the possibility of using the built-in POT antenna, this Click board™ can also use an external active antenna offered by Mikroe, thanks to the onboard u.FL connector. In addition to precise positioning, the GNSS Click has an accurate timing signal indicated via a red LED indicator marked as PPS and an AADET LED, which serves as an active antenna detection indicator. In addition to the indicator, the NMEA message will include the detection result and notification of different external active antenna statuses. This Click board™ can only be operated with a 3.3V logic voltage level. The board must perform appropriate logic voltage level conversion before using MCUs with different logic levels. However, the Click board™ comes equipped with a library containing functions and an example code that can be used as a reference for further development.

GNSS Click hardware overview image

Features overview

Development board

EasyPIC v8 is a development board specially designed for the needs of rapid development of embedded applications. It supports many high pin count 8-bit PIC microcontrollers from Microchip, regardless of their number of pins, and a broad set of unique functions, such as the first-ever embedded debugger/programmer. The development board is well organized and designed so that the end-user has all the necessary elements, such as switches, buttons, indicators, connectors, and others, in one place. Thanks to innovative manufacturing technology, EasyPIC v8 provides a fluid and immersive working experience, allowing access anywhere and under any

circumstances at any time. Each part of the EasyPIC v8 development board contains the components necessary for the most efficient operation of the same board. In addition to the advanced integrated CODEGRIP programmer/debugger module, which offers many valuable programming/debugging options and seamless integration with the Mikroe software environment, the board also includes a clean and regulated power supply module for the development board. It can use a wide range of external power sources, including a battery, an external 12V power supply, and a power source via the USB Type-C (USB-C) connector.

Communication options such as USB-UART, USB DEVICE, and CAN are also included, including the well-established mikroBUS™ standard, two display options (graphical and character-based LCD), and several different DIP sockets. These sockets cover a wide range of 8-bit PIC MCUs, from the smallest PIC MCU devices with only eight up to forty pins. EasyPIC v8 is an integral part of the Mikroe ecosystem for rapid development. Natively supported by Mikroe software tools, it covers many aspects of prototyping and development thanks to a considerable number of different Click boards™ (over a thousand boards), the number of which is growing every day.

EasyPIC v8 horizontal image

Microcontroller Overview

MCU Card / MCU

default

Architecture

PIC

MCU Memory (KB)

128

Silicon Vendor

Microchip

Pin count

28

RAM (Bytes)

8192

Used MCU Pins

mikroBUS™ mapper

NC
NC
AN
Reset
RA0
RST
Wake Up
RA5
CS
NC
NC
SCK
NC
NC
MISO
NC
NC
MOSI
Power Supply
3.3V
3.3V
Ground
GND
GND
NC
NC
PWM
NC
NC
INT
UART TX
RC6
TX
UART RX
RC7
RX
NC
NC
SCL
NC
NC
SDA
NC
NC
5V
Ground
GND
GND
2

Take a closer look

Click board™ Schematic

GNSS Click Schematic schematic

Step by step

Project assembly

EasyPIC v8 front image hardware assembly

Start by selecting your development board and Click board™. Begin with the EasyPIC v8 as your development board.

EasyPIC v8 front image hardware assembly
Rotary B 2 Click front image hardware assembly
MCU DIP 28 hardware assembly
EasyPIC v8 28pin-DIP - upright/background hardware assembly
Necto image step 2 hardware assembly
Necto image step 3 hardware assembly
Necto image step 4 hardware assembly
NECTO Compiler Selection Step Image hardware assembly
NECTO Output Selection Step Image hardware assembly
Necto image step 6 hardware assembly
Necto DIP image step 7 hardware assembly
Necto image step 8 hardware assembly
Necto image step 9 hardware assembly
Necto image step 10 hardware assembly
Necto PreFlash Image hardware assembly

Track your results in real time

Application Output

1. Application Output - In Debug mode, the 'Application Output' window enables real-time data monitoring, offering direct insight into execution results. Ensure proper data display by configuring the environment correctly using the provided tutorial.

2. UART Terminal - Use the UART Terminal to monitor data transmission via a USB to UART converter, allowing direct communication between the Click board™ and your development system. Configure the baud rate and other serial settings according to your project's requirements to ensure proper functionality. For step-by-step setup instructions, refer to the provided tutorial.

3. Plot Output - The Plot feature offers a powerful way to visualize real-time sensor data, enabling trend analysis, debugging, and comparison of multiple data points. To set it up correctly, follow the provided tutorial, which includes a step-by-step example of using the Plot feature to display Click board™ readings. To use the Plot feature in your code, use the function: plot(*insert_graph_name*, variable_name);. This is a general format, and it is up to the user to replace 'insert_graph_name' with the actual graph name and 'variable_name' with the parameter to be displayed.

Software Support

Library Description

This library contains API for GNSS Click driver.

Key functions:

  • gnss_generic_read - This function reads a desired number of data bytes by using UART serial interface

  • gnss_clear_ring_buffers - This function clears UART tx and rx ring buffers

  • gnss_parse_gpgga - This function parses the GPGGA data from the read response buffer

Open Source

Code example

The complete application code and a ready-to-use project are available through the NECTO Studio Package Manager for direct installation in the NECTO Studio. The application code can also be found on the MIKROE GitHub account.

/*!
 * @file main.c
 * @brief GNSS Click Example.
 *
 * # Description
 * This example demonstrates the use of GNSS Click by reading and displaying
 * the GPS coordinates.
 *
 * The demo application is composed of two sections :
 *
 * ## Application Init
 * Initializes the driver and logger.
 *
 * ## Application Task
 * Reads the received data, parses the GPGGA info from it, and once it receives the position fix
 * it will start displaying the coordinates on the USB UART.
 *
 * ## Additional Function
 * - static void gnss_clear_app_buf ( void )
 * - static err_t gnss_process ( gnss_t *ctx )
 * - static void gnss_parser_application ( char *rsp )
 * 
 * @author Stefan Filipovic
 *
 */

#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "gnss.h"
#include "string.h"

#define PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE 200

static gnss_t gnss;
static log_t logger;

static char app_buf[ PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE ] = { 0 };
static int32_t app_buf_len = 0;

/**
 * @brief GNSS clearing application buffer.
 * @details This function clears memory of application buffer and reset its length.
 * @return None.
 * @note None.
 */
static void gnss_clear_app_buf ( void );

/**
 * @brief GNSS data reading function.
 * @details This function reads data from device and concatenates data to application buffer.
 * @param[in] ctx : Click context object.
 * See #gnss_t object definition for detailed explanation.
 * @return @li @c  0 - Read some data.
 *         @li @c -1 - Nothing is read.
 * See #err_t definition for detailed explanation.
 * @note None.
 */
static err_t gnss_process ( gnss_t *ctx );

/**
 * @brief GNSS parser application function.
 * @details This function parses GNSS data and logs it on the USB UART. It clears app and ring buffers
 * after successfully parsing data.
 * @param[in] ctx : Click context object.
 * See #gnss_t object definition for detailed explanation.
 * @param[in] rsp Response buffer.
 * @return None.
 * @note None.
 */
static void gnss_parser_application ( gnss_t *ctx, char *rsp );

void application_init ( void ) 
{
    log_cfg_t log_cfg;  /**< Logger config object. */
    gnss_cfg_t gnss_cfg;  /**< Click config object. */

    /** 
     * Logger initialization.
     * Default baud rate: 115200
     * Default log level: LOG_LEVEL_DEBUG
     * @note If USB_UART_RX and USB_UART_TX 
     * are defined as HAL_PIN_NC, you will 
     * need to define them manually for log to work. 
     * See @b LOG_MAP_USB_UART macro definition for detailed explanation.
     */
    LOG_MAP_USB_UART( log_cfg );
    log_init( &logger, &log_cfg );
    log_info( &logger, " Application Init " );

    // Click initialization.
    gnss_cfg_setup( &gnss_cfg );
    GNSS_MAP_MIKROBUS( gnss_cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
    if ( UART_ERROR == gnss_init( &gnss, &gnss_cfg ) ) 
    {
        log_error( &logger, " Communication init." );
        for ( ; ; );
    }
    log_info( &logger, " Application Task " );
}

void application_task ( void ) 
{
    if ( GNSS_OK == gnss_process( &gnss ) )
    {
        if ( PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE == app_buf_len )
        {
            gnss_parser_application( &gnss, app_buf );
        }
    }
}

int main ( void ) 
{
    /* Do not remove this line or clock might not be set correctly. */
    #ifdef PREINIT_SUPPORTED
    preinit();
    #endif
    
    application_init( );
    
    for ( ; ; ) 
    {
        application_task( );
    }

    return 0;
}

static void gnss_clear_app_buf ( void ) 
{
    memset( app_buf, 0, app_buf_len );
    app_buf_len = 0;
}

static err_t gnss_process ( gnss_t *ctx ) 
{
    char rx_buf[ PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE ] = { 0 };
    int32_t rx_size = 0;
    rx_size = gnss_generic_read( ctx, rx_buf, PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE );
    if ( rx_size > 0 ) 
    {
        int32_t buf_cnt = app_buf_len;
        if ( ( ( app_buf_len + rx_size ) > PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE ) && ( app_buf_len > 0 ) ) 
        {
            buf_cnt = PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE - ( ( app_buf_len + rx_size ) - PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE );
            memmove ( app_buf, &app_buf[ PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE - buf_cnt ], buf_cnt );
        }
        for ( int32_t rx_cnt = 0; rx_cnt < rx_size; rx_cnt++ ) 
        {
            if ( rx_buf[ rx_cnt ] ) 
            {
                app_buf[ buf_cnt++ ] = rx_buf[ rx_cnt ];
                if ( app_buf_len < PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE )
                {
                    app_buf_len++;
                }
            }
        }
        return GNSS_OK;
    }
    return GNSS_ERROR;
}

static void gnss_parser_application ( gnss_t *ctx, char *rsp )
{
    char element_buf[ 100 ] = { 0 };
    if ( GNSS_OK == gnss_parse_gpgga( rsp, GNSS_GPGGA_LATITUDE, element_buf ) )
    {
        static uint8_t wait_for_fix_cnt = 0;
        if ( strlen( element_buf ) > 0 )
        {
            log_printf( &logger, "\r\n Latitude: %.2s degrees, %s minutes \r\n", element_buf, &element_buf[ 2 ] );
            gnss_parse_gpgga( rsp, GNSS_GPGGA_LONGITUDE, element_buf );
            log_printf( &logger, " Longitude: %.3s degrees, %s minutes \r\n", element_buf, &element_buf[ 3 ] );
            memset( element_buf, 0, sizeof( element_buf ) );
            gnss_parse_gpgga( rsp, GNSS_GPGGA_ALTITUDE, element_buf );
            log_printf( &logger, " Altitude: %s m \r\n", element_buf );
            wait_for_fix_cnt = 0;
        }
        else
        {
            if ( wait_for_fix_cnt % 5 == 0 )
            {
                log_printf( &logger, " Waiting for the position fix...\r\n\n" );
                wait_for_fix_cnt = 0;
            }
            wait_for_fix_cnt++;
        }
        gnss_clear_ring_buffers( ctx );
        gnss_clear_app_buf( );
    }
}

// ------------------------------------------------------------------------ END

Additional Support

Resources

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