pkg/nrf_modem: add initial modem support with gnss service #17032

dylad · 2021-10-21T19:50:45Z

Contribution description

This PR adds initial support for nRF9160 modem library as a RIOT pkg.
The modem library (and the modem firmware) allow to use NB-IoT, LTE-M and GNSS features for nRF9160 MCUs.
In the current state, only the GNSS service is added. (NB-IoT and LTE-M can be added in a followup PR).

MCU and modem can communicate through the device's RAM and is managed by the Inter-Processor Communication peripheral (IPC).

Unfortunately, the modem library relies on Nordic drivers SDK for handling IPC stuff, thus I add to "emulate" somehow some functions of the Nordic SDK to make the modem library happy.

I think some discussions are needed for specific like the malloc management because some malloc() are made from ISR context by the modem library which is troublesome.

Testing procedure

Run tests/pkg_nrf_modem on nRF9160DK, connect your terminal and go for a quick walk outside.
Please make sure the nRF modem firmware is flashed before testing the application.
You can flash it through nrfconnect application or you can use make nrf_modem/flash_firmware which will use nrfjprog tool.
(This PR also adds nrfjprog as PROGRAMMER).

The application will initialize the GNSS service and will wait for a GPS fix event. Once GPS fix is made, NMEA frame will be displayed on the shell with your current location.

Issues/PRs references

None.

dylad · 2021-10-21T19:53:52Z

For reference, here's the output of the test application:

2021-10-20 15:47:30,788 # main(): This is RIOT! (Version: 2021.10-devel-647-gb3719c-pr/pkg/nrf_modem_gnss_support)
2021-10-20 15:47:30,789 # nRF modem test application
2021-10-20 15:47:30,790 # 
2021-10-20 15:47:31,361 # nRF modem libray initialized
2021-10-20 15:47:31,377 # setup modem OK
> 2021-10-20 15:47:31,379 # [gnss_thread]: starting...
2021-10-20 15:47:31,393 # [gnss_thread]: GNSS Initialized
2021-10-20 15:47:31,408 # [gnss_thread]: Starting GNSS service...
2021-10-20 15:47:31,410 # [gnss_thread]: waiting for fix event...
?
2021-10-20 15:47:49,972 # help
2021-10-20 15:47:50,009 # Command              Description
2021-10-20 15:47:50,012 # ---------------------------------------
2021-10-20 15:47:50,014 # at                   Send an AT command to the modem
2021-10-20 15:47:50,015 # reboot               Reboot the node
2021-10-20 15:47:50,017 # version              Prints current RIOT_VERSION
2021-10-20 15:47:50,019 # pm                   interact with layered PM subsystem
2021-10-20 15:47:50,021 # ps                   Prints information about running threads.
> at AT+CFUN?
2021-10-20 15:47:54,150 # at AT+CFUN?
2021-10-20 15:47:54,151 # +CFUN: 1
2021-10-20 15:47:54,166 # OK
2021-10-20 15:47:54,166 # 
> at AT+CFUN?
2021-10-20 15:48:40,933 # at AT+CFUN?
2021-10-20 15:48:40,934 # +CFUN: 1
2021-10-20 15:48:40,934 # OK
2021-10-20 15:48:40,935 # 
> 2021-10-20 15:48:48,465 # [gnss_thread]: GNSS event FIX
2021-10-20 15:48:48,468 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,468 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,471 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,472 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,475 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,475 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,478 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,478 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,481 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,482 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,504 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,504 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,507 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,507 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:48,511 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134848.34,A,4839.22542,N,00222.03818,E,0.38,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:48,511 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,474 # [gnss_thread]: GNSS event FIX
2021-10-20 15:48:49,477 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,478 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,481 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,481 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,484 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,484 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,487 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,488 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,491 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,491 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,513 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,513 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,516 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F
2021-10-20 15:48:49,517 # 
2021-10-20 15:48:49,520 # [gnss_thread: NMEA:$GPRMC,134849.34,A,4839.22676,N,00222.03677,E,0.09,0.00,201021,,,A,V*2F

dylad · 2022-02-17T21:05:12Z

@leandrolanzieri Could you take a look at this one ?

Just rebased to lastest master

leandrolanzieri

Some initial comments, I'll try to test this on hardware during this week.

leandrolanzieri · 2022-02-18T11:07:28Z

makefiles/tools/nrfjprog.inc.mk

+# Give the possibility to user to flash nRF modem firmware
+# To do so, use make nrf_mode/flash_firmware
+ifneq (,$(filter nrf_modem, $(USEPKG)))
+  include $(RIOTMAKE)/nrf_modem_fw.inc.mk


This does not exist in this commit yet. You probably will need to split differently.

I'll change it (and mark it as resolved so I won't forget) when this PR will be squashed.

leandrolanzieri · 2022-02-18T11:12:56Z

pkg/nrf_modem/Makefile

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+PKG_NAME=nrf_modem


Should we better have this package as sdk_nrfxlib? With pseudomodules we could choose what to compile and we could reuse it (thinking about crypto here ;)

pkg/nrf_modem/Makefile.include

leandrolanzieri · 2022-02-18T11:46:23Z

pkg/nrf_modem/contrib/nrf_modem_os.c

+        return sema_wait_timed_ztimer(sema, ZTIMER_MSEC, 0);
+    }
+    else if (timeout == NRF_MODEM_OS_FOREVER) {
+        return sema_wait_timed_ztimer(sema, ZTIMER_MSEC, UINT32_MAX);


Shouldn't we loop here until success?

leandrolanzieri · 2022-02-21T09:31:27Z

pkg/nrf_modem/contrib/nrf_modem_hal.c

@@ -0,0 +1,106 @@
+/*


I don't fully understand what this layer is doing. The documentation mentions only the implementation of nrf_modem_os.c based on nrf_modem_os.h, why do we need this?

Because the libmodem.a call these functions. Unfortunately, it seems that this library relies (without any mention in the doc as far as I can tell) on nordic sdk for using the IPC peripheral which is needed for proper operations. I had to reimplement these functions using Nordic terminology so I could successfully link the lib against my code as I don't want to pull their whole SDK into RIOT...

I see. So you took the implementation from this library? Wouldn't it be cheaper to add it as a package? I think it may turn to be an overhead to maintain a driver that is basically what they already have upstream. Or is there maybe some advantage other than not pulling the package once, which I fail to see here?

So you took the implementation from this library?

Yes.

Wouldn't it be cheaper to add it as a package?

I don't think so. This can be done but at first I wanted to avoid all the pain adding such a big pkg for a single file in one PR.

pkg/nrf_modem/Kconfig

pkg/nrf_modem/contrib/nrf_modem_os.c

tests/pkg_nrf_modem/README.md

dylad · 2022-02-21T20:10:19Z

Thanks for the review ! I'll try to fix everything by the end of the week.

leandrolanzieri · 2022-03-01T14:56:01Z

makefiles/nrf_modem_fw.inc.mk

@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+#include download firmware information from nrf_modem pkg


I think we should make this independent of the package. I'd move it to its dedicated directory in dist/tools, as it really does not need the package, it downloads the firmware independently. What do you think?

leandrolanzieri · 2022-03-01T14:56:36Z

makefiles/tools/nrfjprog.inc.mk

+
+# Give the possibility to user to flash nRF modem firmware
+# To do so, use make nrf_mode/flash_firmware
+ifneq (,$(filter nrf_modem, $(USEPKG)))


Also, we could make this independent of the package being required right? It's just flashing the modem firmware

leandrolanzieri · 2022-03-01T14:59:39Z

tests/pkg_nrf_modem/Makefile

@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+include ../Makefile.tests_common
+


Suggested change

BOARD ?= nrf9160dk

leandrolanzieri · 2022-03-01T15:08:26Z

Sadly I can't get this to work yet :( I'm hitting two issues:

Can't seem to be able to connect with make term, no tty device appears.
I attempted to debug which seems to work, but when flash the test application I get:

### Starting Debugging ###
SEGGER J-Link GDB Server V7.62a Command Line Version

JLinkARM.dll V7.62a (DLL compiled Feb 23 2022 17:02:35)

-----GDB Server start settings-----
GDBInit file:                  none
GDB Server Listening port:     3333
SWO raw output listening port: 2332
Terminal I/O port:             4444
Accept remote connection:      yes
Generate logfile:              off
Verify download:               off
Init regs on start:            off
Silent mode:                   on
Single run mode:               off
Target connection timeout:     0 ms
------J-Link related settings------
J-Link Host interface:         USB
J-Link script:                 none
J-Link settings file:          none
------Target related settings------
Target device:                 NRF9160_XXAA
Target interface:              SWD
Target interface speed:        2000kHz
Target endian:                 little

Reading symbols from /home/leandro/Work/RIOT/tests/pkg_nrf_modem/bin/nrf9160dk/tests_pkg_nrf_modem.elf...
Remote debugging using :3333
0xeffffffe in ?? ()
(gdb) r
The program being debugged has been started already.
Start it from the beginning? (y or n) y
Starting program: /home/leandro/Work/RIOT/tests/pkg_nrf_modem/bin/nrf9160dk/tests_pkg_nrf_modem.elf 
[New Thread 57005]

Thread 2 received signal SIGTRAP, Trace/breakpoint trap.
[Switching to Thread 57005]
0xeffffffe in ?? ()

Note that this not happen in hello-world for instance. The modem flashing seemed to be successful.

dylad · 2022-03-02T08:09:54Z

That's weird, did you flash successfully the modem firmware before flashing the app ?
Could you also try to use nrfconnect tool ? There is a AppImage available on Linux to flash the firmware.
Maybe something is wrong with nrfjprog regarding modem firmware loading.

leandrolanzieri · 2022-03-11T13:23:16Z

That's weird, did you flash successfully the modem firmware before flashing the app ?

I did, the process seemed fine.

Could you also try to use nrfconnect tool ? There is a AppImage available on Linux to flash the firmware. Maybe something is >wrong with nrfjprog regarding modem firmware loading.

I tried that but the application does not find my device, so I can't update the firmware with it

dylad · 2022-03-11T17:46:24Z

I tried that but the application does not find my device, so I can't update the firmware with it

I've almost done all the required changes, I'll retry the whole process on my hardware, squash and push ASAP.

As this firmware is needed for proper nrf_modem operations, add it as pkg in dist/tools and provide a easy way to users for flashing it through nrfjprog as this is the only PROGRAMMER that can flash it.

As this package contains several features, currently limit it to nrf_modem as of now. Adding new features support can be made by create the appropriate Makefile and a pseudomodule.

This auto_init is board specific as some parameters pass through AT commands depends on hardware capabilities, thus this init should be at board level

dylad · 2022-03-15T20:34:31Z

@leandrolanzieri I've updated and squashed this PR, ready for second round of review.
I hope I've addressed all previous comments.

aabadie · 2022-04-21T19:08:56Z

needs rebase

stale · 2022-11-02T02:28:29Z

This issue has been automatically marked as stale because it has not had recent activity. It will be closed if no further activity occurs. If you want me to ignore this issue, please mark it with the "State: don't stale" label. Thank you for your contributions.

Teufelchen1 · 2024-03-19T16:49:08Z

Hey hey,

@dylad can you do a rebase?
@leandrolanzieri you second review is still needed!

dylad · 2024-03-19T19:11:17Z

I took a quick glance at nrfxlib.
Looks like we're are now at nrf_modem v2.6 (this PR is using 1.3 !) so we can say this is severely outdated.
As of now, rebasing this PR makes no sense. It needs a rewrite.
Thus, I am closing it with the hope the come up with a new version at some point.

dylad requested review from chrysn, maribu and kaspar030 October 21, 2021 19:50

dylad requested review from aabadie, cgundogan, fjmolinas, haukepetersen, jia200x, leandrolanzieri, MichelRottleuthner and smlng as code owners October 21, 2021 19:50

dylad added the Type: new feature The issue requests / The PR implemements a new feature for RIOT label Oct 21, 2021

dylad force-pushed the pr/pkg/nrf_modem_gnss_support branch from 736ea9f to b39d4cc Compare February 17, 2022 21:01

leandrolanzieri reviewed Feb 21, 2022

View reviewed changes

leandrolanzieri reviewed Mar 1, 2022

View reviewed changes

makefiles/tools: add nrfjprog as PROGRAMMER

cdad9f7

dylad added 7 commits March 13, 2022 21:36

boards/nrf9160dk: add specific parameters for nrfjprog PROGRAMMER

ac635ce

dist/tools: provide a way to flash nrf_modem firmware

9c568fa

As this firmware is needed for proper nrf_modem operations, add it as pkg in dist/tools and provide a easy way to users for flashing it through nrfjprog as this is the only PROGRAMMER that can flash it.

cpu/nrf9160: bind nrf_modem flashing tool to this family

7cdbd28

pkg/nrfxlib: add initial support for nrf_modem

a474473

As this package contains several features, currently limit it to nrf_modem as of now. Adding new features support can be made by create the appropriate Makefile and a pseudomodule.

cpu/nrf9160: add specific init when nrfxlib_nrf_modem module is used

60bf791

sys/auto_init: add auto_init for nrfxlib_nrf_modem module

7ccf8ab

This auto_init is board specific as some parameters pass through AT commands depends on hardware capabilities, thus this init should be at board level

tests/pkg_nrfxlib: add test application for nrf_modem

ac5ca06

dylad force-pushed the pr/pkg/nrf_modem_gnss_support branch from 84917bb to ac5ca06 Compare March 15, 2022 20:07

github-actions bot added the Area: sys Area: System label Mar 15, 2022

benpicco requested a review from jnohlgard April 21, 2022 19:39

stale bot added the State: stale State: The issue / PR has no activity for >185 days label Nov 2, 2022

benpicco mentioned this pull request Feb 10, 2023

Nordic family support #19267

Open

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dylad added State: don't stale State: Tell state-bot to ignore this issue and removed State: stale State: The issue / PR has no activity for >185 days labels Jun 30, 2023

dylad closed this Mar 19, 2024

dylad removed the State: don't stale State: Tell state-bot to ignore this issue label Mar 19, 2024

		@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
		#include download firmware information from nrf_modem pkg

pkg/nrf_modem: add initial modem support with gnss service #17032

pkg/nrf_modem: add initial modem support with gnss service #17032

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dylad commented Oct 21, 2021

Contribution description

Testing procedure

Issues/PRs references

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leandrolanzieri commented Mar 1, 2022

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leandrolanzieri commented Mar 11, 2022 •

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