B-L462E-CELL1 not connecting to TruPhone

[Clark Sann]

Just received this and it doesn't connect. I contacted Truphone and they were not much help. They did mention to make sure the apn is iot.truphone.com.

I know almost nothing about this device and the instructions are sparse but I did find a menu item for Cellular Service. It did not have anything in the apn field. I set the menu as follows:

Sim Slot 0: 1 (MODEM EMBEDDED SIM)

APN: iot.truphone.com

CID: 1

username: 

password: 

modem target_state: 2

attachment timeout: 180000 ms

Network register mode: 0 = Auto

Operator name format: 9 = Not present

Operator name: 00101

Access techno present: Not present

Network register mode: 7 = CatM1

Low power inactivity timeout: 1000 ms

NFMC activation : 0

It still does not connect. Are these values ok?

Also it seems the my.murata.com website is not accepting new logins. So how can I get further information about this board?

[S.RA]

I see, can you just read the current nwoper Just enter at at%nwoper?

[Clark Sann]

I pasted that command 3 times, here is what the terminal showed: 1st attempt - returned a message but not like expected AUTOM TASK: WAITING_FOR_NETWORK_STATUS_STATE - NETWORK_CALLBACK_EVENT *********** CST_network_status_test_mngt ******** ATParser:*** SEND (size=10) *** AT+CEREG? +CEREG: 2,2 ATCModem:NetworkState (EPS) = NOT_REGISTERED_SEARCHING OK ATParser:*** SEND (size=9) *** AT+CREG? +CREG: 2,2 ATCModem:NetworkState (CS) = NOT_REGISTERED_SEARCHING OK ATParser:*** SEND (size=9) *** AT+COPS? +COPS: 0 OK ATParser:*** SEND (size=7) *** AT+CSQ +CSQ: 10,5 OK -Sig quality rssi : 10 -Sig quality ber : 5 at at%nwoper? +CEREG: 3 ATCModem:NetworkState (EPS) = REGISTRATION_DENIED ==================================CST_network_reg_callback AUTOM TASK: WAITING_FOR_NETWORK_STATUS_STATE - NETWORK_CALLBACK_EVENT *********** CST_network_status_test_mngt ******** ATCM TYPEATParser:ATParser_par- received mAT+CEREG? ATPa+CREG: 3 ATCModem:NetworkState (CS) = REGISTRATION_DENIED ==================================CST_network_reg_callback +CEREG: 2,3 ATCModem:NetworkState (EPS) = REGISTRATION_DENIED OK ATParser:*** SEND (size=9) *** AT+CREG? +CREG: 2,3 ATCModem:NetworkState (CS) = REGISTRATION_DENIED OK ATParser:*** SEND (size=9) *** AT+COPS? +COPS: 0 OK ATParser:*** SEND (size=7) *** AT+CSQ +CSQ: 11,99 OK -Sig quality rssi : 11 -Sig quality ber : 99 2nd and 3rd attempts - no reply except went to help -Sig quality rssi : 19 -Sig quality ber : 99 at at%nwoper? ***** help ***** List of commands ———————— help help command trace trace management stack stack analysis comsocket com socket commands cst cellular service task management atcmd send an at command modem modem configuration management echoclient echoclient commands httpclient http client management ping ping commands comclt comclt commands mems mems management Help syntax ————— warning: case sensitive commands [optional parameter] ||…|: parameter value list (command description) return key: last command re-execution #: comment line Advice ————— to use commands it is advised to use one of the following command to disable traces trace off (allows disable all traces) cst polling off (allows to disable modem polling and avoid to display uncomfortable modem traces $>AUTOM TASK: WAITING_FOR_NETWORK_STATUS_STATE - POLLING_TIMER_EVENT *********** CST_network_status_test_mngt ******** ATParser:*** SEND (size=10) *** AT+CEREG? +CEREG: 2,3 ATCModem:NetworkState (EPS) = REGISTRATION_DENIED The device is not responding like it should. Clark

[Clark Sann]

Solofo I got frustrated with the terminal programs so I installed Win10 Pro in a VM. Then I installed Tera Term. I found it was best to execute cst polling off first to stop polling. After I did that I did this: cst polling disable $>at at%nwoper? ATParser:*** SEND (size=11) *** at%nwoper? %NWOPER: “DEFAULT" OK $> Then I typed at at%nwoper=“TRUPHONE�? Then I typed at at%nwoper=? again and now I get this: cst polling disable $>at at%nwoper? ATParser:*** SEND (size=11) *** at%nwoper? %NWOPER: "TRUPHONE" OK $> Surprisingly, I get the above reply even if I disconnect the board and/or press the black RESET button. I am surprised the command persists. Anyway after running for a while there are still REGISTRATION_DENIED messages. So now I type at at%ceer? and I get this: cst polling disable $>at at%ceer? ATParser:*** SEND (size=9) *** at%ceer? %CEER: 1,"NAS-EMM","ATTACH","MAXRETRY" OK If I run it again I get this: ATParser:*** SEND (size=9) *** at%ceer? %CEER: 1 OK I’m going to guess that this means there is no Truphone service in my area. I have also sent a bunch of emails to Truphone. I think I mentioned earlier, but they do not appear to be prepared to service iOT devices. They constantly ask me to take the SIM out of this phone and put it into another phone. I always reply that the SIM is not removable and its not a phone. Yesterday evening and today, I got their final recommendations - buy another sim, since this one is not removable, and put it in another cell phone and see if I get data. They insist this is the only way to know if there is coverage. I have told them that I have AT&T and Verizon towers near me. I have asked them if either of those carriers support Truphone. I specifically asked them if they have contracts with either ATT or Verizon. If so, I should be able to register with Truphone. They can’t tell me that. They basically say that if it works, there must be coverage and if it doesn’t, there is no coverage. That’s pretty bad. Who would want to invest in development and equipment under those conditions? The main reason I purchased this device is because Truphone advertised they had international coverage…all available with one radio / modem. My company needs cellular coverage in Malawi, Guyana, and several other countries, as well as the USA. If Truphone does not have coverage in the USA it seems unlikely they will have coverage in undeveloped countries. I’m becoming pessimistic that this device is going to be successful, because Truphone does not have the coverage. I hope you will find there is some other problem that is causing my problems. If not, is there any way I can return this device to ST? I am also considering particle.io <>. They make a board similar to this one that has a uBlox radio along with an STM32F205RG. It’s called an E series. They also claim to have a wide coverage area. Are you familiar with it? Clark

[S.RA]

Hi Clark,

I come back to this topic. Indeed, it looks that nwoper is correctly configured TRUPHONE. It is stored in the Modem Flash Memory so, you do not need to reconfigure it at each boot.

In fact, the cause of rejection is now different "MAX RETRY". We need to investigate the reason why about this. Truphone has coverage in the USA so it should work but we need more information to understand the root cause.

Can you please provide me a complete log from the terminal after the platform boot and record all logs?

1- Power On the device

2- when the setup menu appears, select 3: Modem power on (without application)

3-When the boot has booted, enter a "return" key

4-enter at at%nwoper?

5-enter reset command to reset the board or press the reset button (black).

6-The Modem should try to register to the network. Once you

Send to me the log for further analysis.

Thanks again

Best Regards

Solofo

[Clark Sann]

Solofo
Were there more instructions on item 6?
If so, let me know what else I should do there. I will get the results back to you in less than an hour.
Clark

[Clark Sann]

Solofo
Here is the log…
I was not able to start logging at the beginning of a POWER UP, so I reset the modem and then entered a 3.
Also at your step 5, after the modem attempted to register, I entered the “ceer?�? command. It is all shown in the above log.
Cell coverage is not great, but usable at my office. Nevertheless, I suppose it is possible I do not have sufficient coverage here. So tomorrow I will try to find the time when I can take the modem to an area with excellent coverage and try this test again.
Clark

[Clark Sann]

Solofo
I have some good news to report.
As I mentioned in my last email, I took the device about a mile from my office where there is better cellular signals. I noticed the device registered with Truphone as I was driving there….maybe 1/4 mile from my home.
When I got to the location, I observed it took around 1m30s to register and start the echo client after power up. This was while the device was sitting on the seat of my car. When I moved the device to the hood, it was roughly the same time, sometimes faster. When I moved it to the top of my SUV, the time frequently dropped to 30 seconds (from power up to echo client).
The times were never consistent, sometimes it would register in 90 seconds, sometimes in 30 seconds.
Here’s the weird part, at least for me…
When I got back to my office, it started working. Again sometimes in 90 sec, sometimes in 30 sec. I had previously left it running for 24 hours or more without it registering at all.
I am very happy it is working but, do you have an explanation why it started working at my office after days of not working?
In the next few days I will test it around my area to see how well it works in various parts of my town. I have an application for it in this area and I would like to know more about its reliability.
Lastly, could you please advise me about how I should go about learning X-CUBE-CELLULAR. I have a working knowledge of TCP and UDP, have done a lot of UDP socket programming in C#, and a little experience with FreeRTOS. But I am still pretty confused about X-CUBE-CELLULAR.
Am I right the the GPIO outputs and inputs are mostly used for control of the hardware. And that most of the action is done by AT commands sent by one of the UARTS? Does the data eventually get embedded in an AT command? If this is the case, I need to find the AT command set for the modem. So far, I cannot find it on the Murata website. Their web site is sparse.
Can you recommend any other resources to learn X-CUBE-CELLULAR and the modem? Are there any simple examples anywhere on using the AT command set?
Thank you for your help!
Clark Sann

[S.RA]

Hi Clark,

That a very good news. Sorry, I did not have time to comeback to you yesterday. I did not find the log you have shared above. Can you please share?

I try to provide some explanation:

The first time the device is powered up, it will take time to scan the network because it scan by default all support bands (16). Then after the device find a network, it tries to register but this can be rejected by the Operator (for example ATT or other Verizon etc...) so the device trie to reconfigure its elf to find out the best IMSI that could be used, then try search the network and ...so on. All this are automatically controlled by the eSIM algorithm and assisted by Modem FW. So, in your case, the Modem FW was configured to use the "nwoper=default" it means that Modem FW algo for Truphone was not applied. So, that's why we need to set this flag. Once it is enabled, Modem is able to register to the network using the correct IMSI. Once the IMSI has been found then Modem will use this for next registration to the network and as you say, it can take very short time to attach based on the actual radio coverage.

But when you say, after 24 hours it cannot register even if it has succeded to swicth the IMSI on which you are able to attach previously. Can you please share the log to get more understanding? It is very weirdindeed.

I'm happy that it works now at your side.

I would really appreciate for any feedback to improve our solution.

i think that to develop an application, you need to learn about the BSD socket interface to send/receive data (TCP/UDP). We do support C code in our implementation. We prepare a very simple example shortly how to develop a very basic application with X-CUBE-CELLULAR. I will keep you informed about that.

Yes, there are few GPIO and UART used by STM32 to control the Modem. Then X-CUBE-CELLULAR generates all AT Commands that are needed over the UART. The data are encapsulated in the AT command. Why do you need to access to the AT command specification? Indeed, X-CUBE-CELLULAR goal is to hide the AT commands to the customer. Do you need some specific service that are not available from X-CUBE-CELLULAR?

Today we do not expose the AT command to run the Module as a simple Modem. Indeed, the MURATA Module Type 1SE is a complete solution that host an STM32, eSIM and Modem. So, you can develop your final product without needing to add other peripherals like external LDOs, routing the Antenna, SIM socket.. You just need to solder the Module on your PCB and plug an Antenna over the µFL connector.

If you want a separate solution STM32 + Modem + SIM then regular Modem can be used. For example you can use the Type 1SC modem that is the same Modem that is integrated in the Murata Module. As you can see in the X-CUBE-CELLULAR page, we do support many HW setup based on STM32 host board + external Modem STMOD+.

Let me know your thinking and appreciate for any feedback to improve our offer

Best Regards

Solofo

[Clark Sann]

Solofo

Thank you for your helpful reply.

It looks like email attachments get rejected. Below I have attached the modem log that got snipped when I sent it earlier vi email. I am using the st community forum this time. Let me know if you don't get it.

I am very eager to see the simple example when you get it ready. Any further instruction on how to use X-CUBE-CELLULAR would be very helpful. I have printed the complete user manual and will soon begin a detailed study of it, especially the flow charts for Networking and the CELLULAR API. I will also spend a lot more time studying the sample applications.

I need to use either CoAP or MQTT, preferably CoAP, but I will probably test both of them. I would appreciate any thoughts / examples on how to use these protocols. Do you have any thoughts about the pros and cons of these protocols?. Or regarding the ease of implementing either of them?

I am using the STM32L476RG on my current project. The STM32L462xx that is being used on this device may be adequate for me but it certainly has a lot fewer ADC peripherals. That may be a problem for me. Not sure yet.

Thank you for your help so far. It is much appreciated.

Clark

[S.RA]

Hi Clark,

There is a webinar that presents the solution here https://www.globalspec.com/events/eventDetails?eventId=3396

It provides main features of the solution

Best Regards

Solofo