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8.7 KiB
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220 lines
8.7 KiB
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.. _hardware-main:
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***********************
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Communications Hardware
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***********************
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One of the truly valuable aspects of Reticulum is the ability to use it over
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almost any conceivable kind of communications medium. The :ref:`interface types<interfaces-main>`
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available for configuration in Reticulum are flexible enough to cover the use
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of most wired and wireless communications hardware available, from decades-old
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packet radio modems to modern millimeter-wave backhaul systems.
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If you already have or operate some kind of communications hardware, there is a
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very good chance that it will work with Reticulum out of the box. In case it does
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not, it is possible to provide the necessary glue with very little effort using
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for example the :ref:`PipeInterface<interfaces-pipe>` or the :ref:`TCPClientInterface<interfaces-tcpc>`
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in combination with code like `TCP KISS Server <https://github.com/simplyequipped/tcpkissserver>`_
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by `simplyequipped <https://github.com/simplyequipped>`_.
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While this broad support and flexibility is very useful, an abundance of options
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can sometimes make it difficult to know where to begin, especially when you are
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starting from scratch.
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This chapter will outline a few different sensible easy starting paths to get
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real-world functional wireless communications up and running with minimal cost
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and effort. Two fundamental devices types will be covered, *RNodes* and *WiFi-based radios*.
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.. _rnode-main:
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RNode
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=====
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Reliable and general-purpose long-range digital radio transceiver systems are
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commonly either very expensive, difficult to set up and operate, hard to source,
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power-hungry, or all of the above at the same time. In an attempt to alleviate
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this situation, the transceiver system *RNode* was designed. It is important to
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note that RNode is not one specific device, from one particular vendor, but
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*an open plaform* that anyone can use to build digital transceivers suited to
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their needs and particular situations.
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An RNode is a general purpose, interoperable, low-power and long-range, reliable,
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open and flexible radio communications device. Depending on its components, it can
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operate on many different frequency bands, and use many different modulation
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schemes, but most commonly, and for the purposes of this chapter, we will limit
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the discussion to RNodes using *LoRa* modulation in common ISM bands.
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**Avoid Confusion!** An RNode can use LoRa as a *physical-layer modulation*, but it
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does not use, and has nothing to do with the *LoRaWAN* protocol and standard, commonly
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used for IoT devices. RNodes use *raw LoRa modulation*, without any additional
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protocol overhead. All high-level protocol funcionality is handled directly by
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Reticulum.
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.. _rnode-creating:
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Creating RNodes
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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
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RNode has been designed as a system that is easy to replicate across time and
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space. You can put together a functioning transceiver using commonly available
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components, and a few software tools. While you can design and build RNodes
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completely from scratch, to your exact desired specifications, this chapter
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will explain the easiest possible approach to creating RNodes, which is using common
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LoRa development boards. This approach can be boiled down to two simple steps:
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1. Obtain one or more supported development boards
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2. Install the RNode firmware with the automated installer
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Once the firmware has been installed and provisioned by the install script, it
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is ready to use with any software that supports RNodes, including Reticulum.
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The device can be used with Reticulum by adding an :ref:`RNodeInterface<interfaces-rnode>`
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to the configuration.
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.. _rnode-supported:
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Supported Boards
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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
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To create one or more RNodes, you will need to obtain supported development
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boards. The following boards are supported by the auto-installer.
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LilyGO LoRa32 v2.1
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""""""""""""""""""
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.. image:: graphics/board_t3v21.png
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:width: 50%
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:align: center
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- **Supported Firmware Lines** v1.x & v2.x
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- **Transceiver IC** Semtech SX1276
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- **Device Platform** ESP32
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- **Manufacturer** `LilyGO <https://lilygo.cn>`_
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LilyGO LoRa32 v2.0
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""""""""""""""""""
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.. image:: graphics/board_t3v20.png
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:width: 50%
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:align: center
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- **Supported Firmware Lines** v1.x & v2.x
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- **Transceiver IC** Semtech SX1276
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- **Device Platform** ESP32
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- **Manufacturer** `LilyGO <https://lilygo.cn>`_
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LilyGO T-Beam
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"""""""""""""
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.. image:: graphics/board_tbeam.png
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:width: 65%
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:align: center
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- **Supported Firmware Lines** v1.x & v2.x
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- **Transceiver IC** Semtech SX1276
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- **Device Platform** ESP32
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- **Manufacturer** `LilyGO <https://lilygo.cn>`_
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Heltec LoRa32 v2.0
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""""""""""""""""""
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.. image:: graphics/board_heltec32.png
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:width: 50%
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:align: center
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- **Supported Firmware Lines** v1.x & v2.x
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- **Transceiver IC** Semtech SX1276
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- **Device Platform** ESP32
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- **Manufacturer** `Heltec Automation <https://heltec.org>`_
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Original RNode v1.x
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"""""""""""""""""""
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.. image:: graphics/board_rnode.png
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:width: 50%
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:align: center
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- **Supported Firmware Lines** v1.x
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- **Transceiver IC** Semtech SX1276
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- **Device Platform** AVR ATmega1284p
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- **Manufacturer** `unsigned.io <https://unsigned.io>`_
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.. _rnode-installation:
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Installation
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^^^^^^^^^^^^
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Once you have obtained compatible boards, you can install the `RNode Firmware <https://github.com/markqvist/RNode_Firmware>`_
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using the `RNode Configuration Utility <https://github.com/markqvist/rnodeconfigutil>`_.
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Make sure that ``Python3`` and ``pip`` is installed on your system, and then install
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the config utility with ``pip``:
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.. code::
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pip3 install rnodeconf
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Once installation has completed, it is time to start installing the firmware on your
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devices. Run ``rnodeconf`` in auto-install mode like so:
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.. code::
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rnodeconf --autoinstall
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The utility will guide you through the installation process by asking a series of
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questions about your hardware. Simply follow the guide, and the utility will
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auto-install and configure your devices
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**Important Note!** It is currently recommended to use the v1.x line of the RNode firmware,
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even though the v2.x line is available for early testing. The v2.x line should still be
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considered an experimental pre-release. Only use the v2.x firmware line if you want to test
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out the absolutely newest version, and don't care about stability.
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.. _rnode-usage:
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Usage with Reticulum
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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
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When the devices have been installed and provisioned, you can use them with Reticulum
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by adding the :ref:`relevant interface section<interfaces-rnode>` to the configuration
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file of Reticulum. For v1.x firmwares, you will have to specify all interface parameters,
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such as serial port and on-air parameters. For v2.x firmwares, you just need to specify
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the Connection ID of the RNode, and Reticulum will automatically locate and connect to the
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RNode, using the parameters stored in the RNode itself.
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.. _rnode-suppliers:
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Suppliers
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^^^^^^^^^
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Get in touch if you want to have your RNode supplier listed here, or if you want help to
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get started with producing RNodes.
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WiFi-based Hardware
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===================
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It is possible to use all kinds of both short- and long-range Wifi-based hardware
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with Reticulum. Any kind of hardware that fully supports bridged ethernet over the
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WiFi interface will work with the :ref:`AutoInterface<interfaces-auto>` in Reticulum.
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Most devices will behave like this by default, or allow it via configuration options.
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This means that you can simply configure the physical links of the WiFi based devices,
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and start communicating over them using Reticulum. It is not necessary to enable any IP
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infrastructure such as DHCP servers, DNS or similar, as long as at least Ethernet is
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available, and packets are passed transparently over the physical WiFi-based devices.
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Below is a list of example WiFi (and similar) radios that work well for high capacity
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Reticulum links over long distances:
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- `Ubiquiti airMAX radios <https://store.ui.com/collections/operator-airmax-devices>`_
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- `Ubiquiti LTU radios <https://store.ui.com/collections/operator-ltu>`_
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- `MikroTik radios <https://mikrotik.com/products/group/wireless-systems>`_
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This list is by no means exhaustive, and only serves as a few examples of radio hardware
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that is relatively cheap while providing long range and high capacity for Reticulum
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networks. As in all other cases, it is also possible for Reticulum to co-exist with IP
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networks running concurrently on such devices.
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Combining Hardware Types
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========================
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It is a useful tool to combine different link and hardware types when designing and
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building a network. One useful design pattern is to employ high-capacity point-to-point
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links based on WiFi or millimeter-wave radios (with high-gain directional antennas)
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for the network backbone, and using LoRa-based RNodes for covering large areas with
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connectivity for client devices. |