6 replies to this topic

[RiC0MD]

Hi All,

 

Just got my N+2 (my first netduino) and am trying to get my adafruit wifi shield working on it.  I'm using the CC3300 code with patch on codeplex (cc3000.codeplex.com/SourceControl/latest) (patch under the patch section), and see a couple people have this working, but for the life of me I can't seem to make it work.

 

Some times on power up (wall plug (9V 1a) + usb), I can see the power light on the shield light up for a few seconds, and other times it just stays out complete on boot.  Testing from the shield headers, usually when its doing this I'm reading almost 0 power on the 5v and 0 on the 3.3volt pins, removing the shield yields the same result.

So here's where things get odd:  If I reflash the board back to 4.2, my 5 and 3.3 pins begin to work normally, from there if I attempt to reload the code, the light will go out on the shield, 5 and 3.3 pins seems to fall and the process starts over.

 

Here's the catch though, since by this point I'd conclude a problem with the shield, if I place this shield on my Uno, every test I can throw at it works perfectly.  

 

Anyone have any ideas, loosing my mind over this goofy shield.

TIA!

[Chris Walker]

Hi RiC0MD,

How much power (mW) does the shield consume? Does it draw power from the VIN, 5V or 3.3V pin?

You should be able to deliver a few hundred mA of power to shields...

Welcome to the Netduino community,

Chris

[RiC0MD]

Hi Chris,

 

Let me be upfront and say I'm a complete newbie when it comes to this stuff.  So what I've been able to turn up is the shield can draw up to 200-300mA with the radios running, from the 5V pin.  It has a on board reg for doing the 5 to 3.3v (LT1117).  This post I'm reading says its possible to see spikes of 500mA depending on how far away from the AP you actually are, but I'm sitting basically right under it, so I'm doubting its drawing that much.

 

Thanks!

[HABOT]

Hi,

 

The CC3000 from TI is plenty of flaws! Almost a year ago, I created my own device driver for the Adafruit's CC3300 WiFi Breakout (see my remarks here http://www.amazon.co...howViewpoints=0) and after a month of long nights I quitted since I got a response code from the unit warning me about the outdated firmware! 

 

I tried to patch it by using the SPI port (as described in the documentation) but unsuccessfully! It does requires I2C patching (see the I2C - SDA/SCL port below your Adafruit CC3000 breakout = http://www.adafruit.com/products/1469 ). I never ever could find a single piece of documentation even a small description on the I2C protocol required to patch (I2C slave address seems to be 0x50). What registers do I need to access and modify, maybe timing or reset steps etc.

 

I just got frustration on this attempt to make it work. I moved forward to another options and my life was better! 

 

I own some Netduino Plus 2 and I've tried some other development boards (FEZ Raptor, pcDuino v2, CubieBoard even raw PIC programming) but let me tell you something..., Netduino Plus 2 Rocks!!! This is a really really easy to use development board!! It is really fast and flexible enough. Programming C# is so easy. I've used almost all the available ports and also used the SD card as a swapping area to emulate more memory. I also created a bidrectional link over Ethernet (socket server) and works fast and steady.

 

I rather prefer to believe (by experience) that the problem is but your CC3000 not the Netduino

[RiC0MD]

Habot,

Do you have your code posted any where, I have a UNO handy, so i was able to fully update the firmware without any issues, it just seems to either not function on the N+2, or this code from codeplex doesn't initialize it correctly at all.

 

Side note, what did you end up using for another option?  Ideally I'd love WiFi on this board, as I just need to to reach out to some sensors and pull down the information before making choices on turning things on/off, and ideally keep it off the a physical network cable (My 48 port switch is basically full, and even at NFR, Juniper's aren't cheap switches).

[HABOT]

Hello RiC0MD,

 

I've create a git repository but it does require some extra work. I'll try to cast my code a little more to make the upload.

 

I used for a while a chinese reference (http://www.amazon.co...0?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and it worked fine in my tests since it uses AT commands through UART at maximum 230400 bps which is about an EDGE (2G) cellular modem. Also supports I2C Fm+ and Ethernet at 100Mbps which is awesome. It features a PHY support for a Ethernet port (requires some extra work explained in the documentation) and a fully featured TCP/IP stack ready to go.

 

It also supports AP mode with multiple security mechanisms and 32 socket handles (concurrent connections) opposite to the CC3000 that only supports 4 concurrent connections and has no support for AP mode.

 

By now I don't want to go back to work again a single minute on the CC3000 since I solved my wireless and wired problems long time ago.

 

As soon as I deliver the code on github, I'll make it public on this forum.

[RiC0MD]

Awesome,

Thank you sir, Ill stick with the onboard nic for now until your ready and I shall park this shield on the wall of purchases that shouldn't have been.