NORA the IoT Explora: Unlocking the SparkFun Factor Plus NORA-W306 – Information

Lately, we launched a brand new Factor Plus board that includes the NORA-W306 module from ublox. This module provides twin Wi-fi LAN (WLAN), Bluetooth® Low Power (BLE 5.3), and a Realtek RTL8720DF Twin Processor Core, with separate cores for Important and Low Energy. This enables for very power-efficient initiatives that may run for greater than a yr on a LiPo battery. Harnessing the ability of this module is pretty simple, and there are many Arduino examples particularly for this module and this board. Setup is pretty simple, however takes a little bit extra effort than simply plug-and-play. Lots of you may be acquainted with these steps, as you’ve most likely gone via them for a couple of different modules. Both means, let’s take a fast have a look at the easy steps essential to get your SparkFun Factor Plus NORA-W306 up and working very quickly.

I’m assuming that you have already got the Arduino IDE put in in your system, however in case you don’t, you may obtain that from Arduino’s web site. If you’re prepared, go forward and open your Arduino IDE. In most cases, you may merely add a board from the Boards Supervisor by scrolling till you discover it, or its guardian, and hitting Set up. Nevertheless, there are some boards that require an additional step. Go to the higher left nook of your IDE, and click on on File/Preferences.

From right here, you’ll go all the way down to Further Boards Supervisor URLs, and add the next textual content:

https://github.com/ambiot/ambd_arduino/uncooked/dev/Arduino_package/package_realtek_amebad_early_index.json

You possibly can add this into the Further Boards area by putting a comma after the final entry within the window, then pasting this one, or you may click on on the window button subsequent to the sector to open a brand new window and add it as its personal separate line. When you’ve added that, hit okay, and shut the preferences window.

When you’ve achieved that, go to the Board Supervisor, and within the search bar kind “realtek”, and you must see Realtek Ameba Boards. Click on the Set up button, and shortly, below the board bundle identify you’ll see the model plus the construct quantity, and ‘put in”. (As I write this, the present set up is 3.1.8-build20240719.)

Now go as much as the board window and click on to drop it down, after which click on on “Choose different board and port.” This can carry up the boards and ports window. Within the Boards search area, kind in NORA (you can additionally kind in realtek), and also you’ll get a couple of choices. Choose SparkFun Factor Plus NORA-W306, and, if the board is related to your laptop, choose the right COM port.

You’re now prepared to begin importing sketches to your Factor Plus NORE-W306. You possibly can run the previous tried and true Blink Sketch, simply to guarantee that every part is working as anticipated, however then you can begin flexing the muscular tissues of this little powerhouse.

There are a few on-board parts – the MAX1704x LiPo gasoline gauge, and the microSD slot – that you just may wish to benefit from, and to take action, you’ll have to obtain a few Arduino libraries.

If you wish to begin working with extra of the board’s options, you’ll find a dozen or so examples in our Getting Began Information. (You’ll additionally discover a plethora of latest instance information all beginning with Ameba, however the record in our Getting Began Information are those we’ve examined.)

There are numerous nice options on this board, from the twin band WiFi to the ultra-low energy consumption when in deep sleep, and this could get you properly in your method to working with all of them.

^{The SparkFun Factor Plus NORA-W306 displaying the Gas Gauge output on a SparkFun Micro OLED}