Texas Instruments CC112 Series User manual

SWRU291B
December 2013
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CC112x Evaluation Module Kit Quick Start Guide
Opening the Box and Running the Packet Error Rate Test
1. Kit Contents
2 x CC1120 or CC1121 Evaluation Modules
2 x Antennas (type depending on frequency)
The 868-915 MHz RF boards in this kit are FCC
and IC certified. The 169, 420-470 and 868-915
boards are tested to comply with ETSI/R&TTE
over temperatures from 0 to +35°C.
FCC/IC Regulatory Compliance (868-915 only)
FCC Part 15 Class A Compliant
IC ICES-003 Class A Compliant
Antenna types:
955 & 868-915 MHz: Pulse W5017, 2 dBi
420-470 MHz: Pulse SPWH24433TI, 0 dBi
169 MHz: Pulse SPHL24169TI
2. How to use the Modules
The EMK is an add-on kit to supplement the
CC1120DK with evaluation boards supporting
additional frequency bands. This document
covers the CC1120EMK and CC1121EMK.
The CC112xEM boards can be plugged into
several development boards from Texas
Instruments. Most notably, you can use the
SmartRF Transceiver EB, which is included in
the CC1120DK. This board lets you run a packet
error rate (PER) test, control the device from
SmartRF™ Studio and it can be used as a
development platform.
It is also possible to connect the EM to other TI
development boards with the appropriate
connectors or to the basic “SoC Battery Board”.
The latter can be used as a carrier board for the
EM to simplify the connection to other boards
with a microcontroller. See:
http://www.ti.com/tool/soc-bb
This guide will show how to use the modules
together with SmartRF Transceiver EB (TrxEB).
3. Plug the EM into the TrxEB
Insert a CC112xEM board into the TrxEB as
shown above. Connect the antenna to the SMA
connector on the EM.
Caution! The kit contains ESD
sensitive components. Handle with
care to prevent permanent damage.
4. Select Board Mode
Use the switches S1 and S2 to select the
operating mode of the board. For the sake of this
quick start guide, please select “Enable” and
“UART”. This configuration will make it possible
to communicate directly with the MSP430 over a
virtual COM port on the PC.
5. Power Options
There are several ways of applying power to the
TrxEB.
2 x 1.5V AA Non-Rechargeable Alkaline
Batteries
USB (5V through USB plug)
External Power Supply (requirements below)
MSP430 Debugger
When the power source is batteries or USB, the
voltage regulators on the TrxEB will set the on-
board supply voltage to 3.3VDC.
External Power SupplyiRequirements:
Nom Voltage: 3.3VDC
Max Current: 800 mA
Efficiency Level V
Warning! To minimize risk of personal injury or
property damage, never use rechargeable
batteries to power the board.
6. Select Power Source
Depending on the power source, make sure you
connect jumpers to the appropriate pins on the
“Power Source” header. For instance, if you use
batteries, use a jumper to short-circuit pin 1 and
2 on the header. The last jumper in the row (pin
9-10) should always be mounted, unless the
MSP430 FET is used as the power source.
Note that there should only be one active
power source at any one time. Do not leave
the board powered when unattended.
7. Welcome Screen
Turn on power with the Main Power switch. You
should now see the Texas Instruments logo and
a short description of the buttons on the LCD.
Pushing any of the five buttons on the board will
take you to the main menu.
NB! If you don’t see anything on the screen
make sure the mode switches are in the
correct positions (see step 4 above).
8. Packet Error Rate Test
Select the PER (Packet Error Rate) test by
highlighting the selection using the up/down
buttons. Confirm your selection by pressing
Enter (right button).
9. Select Test Mode
The PER test can be run is several modes. Easy
Mode sets up a one-way test and uses default
settings. This test is convenient for practical
range testing.
The other test modes are described in the
“TrxEB RF PER Test Software Example User’s
Guide”.
To proceed, highlight “Easy Mode” and press
Enter (right button).

10. Select Frequency
Select which frequency to use for the test. Make
sure that the evaluation modules you have
match the selected frequency.
11. Select Mode
One of the boards must operate as the slave
(transmitter) and the other as master (receiver).
Select Slave on one board…
…and Master on the other board.
12. Establish Link
The slave node will now wait for a configuration
package from the Master. The configuration
contains the parameters used for the PER test.
The configuration package will be sent when you
select “link devices” on the master node.
13. Link Established
When the initial linking has completed, the slave
node will start the test by continuously
transmitting packets to the master.
14. Start the Receiver (master)
On the master node, you can select the number
of packets you want to receive in order to
calculate the packet error.
When selecting “Start PER Test”, the master
(receiver) will begin to count the number of
received packets and provide some statistics.
15. PER Test Results
The master will display a window that plots the
received signal strength (RSSI) for each packet.
Press the “Up” button to go to the detailed
statistical window.
16. PER Test Results
The statistics window will show the error rate
based on the number of lost or erroneous
packets divided by the total number of packets
that should have been received.
17. Troubleshooting
It you are experiencing problems with this test,
please check the following:
Nothing is shown in the display! Make sure
the mode switches are in the correct
positions (see step 4 above).
Please visit the kit web page and check for
updated SW and documentation. Updated
SW can be downloaded to the device using
IAR EW430 or SmartRF Flash Programmer.
If you get poor PER results at short
distances, try to move the transmitter and
receiver further apart. The CC1120/CC1121
receiver may be saturated if it is too close to
the other CC1120/CC1121 transmitting at full
output power.
18. References
Please visit www.ti.com and
http://www.ti.com/tool/cc1120emk-169
http://www.ti.com/tool/cc1120emk-420-470
http://www.ti.com/tool/cc1120emk-868-915
http://www.ti.com/tool/cc1121emk-868-915
http://www.ti.com/tool/cc1120emk-955
On the kit product page, you will find additional
documentation, links to other related kits and
devices, updated software examples and
software tools like SmartRF Studio.
You will also find a lot of information on the TI
E2E forum at http://e2e.ti.com
We hope that you will enjoy working with the
CC1120 and CC1121 devices.
SmartRF™Studio
1. Download and Install
Before connecting SmartRF TrxEB to your PC,
download and install SmartRF Studio from
www.ti.com/smartrfstudio.
2. Launch SmartRF Studio
After installing the tool, connect the EB to the PC
using the USB cable and start SmartRF Studio.
Select the “Sub 1 GHz” tab and double click the
highlighted CC1120 or CC1121 device icon.
3. Test the Radio
You can now configure the radio, run
performance tests, export register settings and
run link tests with another CC1120 or C1121 on
a SmartRF TrxEB connected to the PC.
i
When using an external power supply, make sure it meets the listed requirements in addition to complying with applicable regional product regulatory and
safety certification requirements such as UL, CSA, VDE, CCC, and PSE.

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