JeeNode with KAKU « Jee Labs Talk

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JeeNode with KAKU

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codeblack

Hi All,

I'm planning to purchase a set of JeeNodes. Some will be communicating with my KAKU devices. Some will talk Zigbee using XBee modules. I've been reading through the posts and the forum, but I'm still not quite sure about some things regarding KAKU. Maybe somebody can (and will) help me out on the following questions:

- The JeeNode comes with an 868 MHz radio and, if I understand correctly, this can be used to send 433,92 MHz KAKU messages?
- I understand receiving 433,92 MHz OOK is not really supported by the RFM12B's. I noticed in one post (http://news.jeelabs.org/2009/03/10/decoding-433-mhz-kaku-signals/) that instead a OOK receiver is used. What is a good 433,92 MHz OOK receiver (that will work nicely with a JeeNode) and where do I get it from?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Posted 15/02/2010 14:00:58
jcw

Yes, it can be set in 433 MHz mode, but the antenna length needs to be doubled to get a good range, and then you'll still use a module which is really designed for 868, so it's sub-optimal in terms of transmitted power.

W.r.t. receivers, I think I've tried 190276-89 and 130428-89 from conrad.nl in the past...

If you get the recv + xmit pair (2nd order#), you could transmit through the 433 xmitter by giving it a separate I/O pin on the JeeNode, i.e. dedicate one port for 433 RX & TX.

You do need to check what voltages to use where, there are probably some 3.3/5V details lurking in there.

Then add an XBee on the serial pin (FTDI or PWR/SER/I2C connector) and enable the RFM12B for JeeNode type packets and you'll get a unit which can deal with all three protocols. Could send everything out to XBee, or all incoming XBee to RF12 - etc...

It really depends in where you want to go with all this. Lots of possibilities.

Posted 15/02/2010 14:36:58
codeblack

Thanks for the quick reply :-). I'll look into the conrad.nl items you mentioned.

For the KAKU devices, the idea is to have a simple interface on my server. So I can receive and send commands from my own software.
Another idea was to have a wire connection to the back of the garden (+/- 80m from the back of the house), with a JeeNode + RF-receiver in the house and transferring the signal over a wire (I have some unused wires in the 220V groundcable), then transferring the wire-signal back to KAKU by a JeeNode + RF-transmitter. But this might just be simpler with a XBee Pro module, as I'm planning to base my whole system on Zigbee.

I actually want to use the new ATmega128RFA1 in all my modules, but since it isn't yet available... I try to get my 'hands dirty' with AVR & RF. I've done several AVR projects a while back, but no RF experience yet.

Posted 15/02/2010 15:08:12
codeblack

Finally got around to ordering! Both from the Jee Labs Shop & Conrad. Can't wait. First goal is to receive & send KAKU signals, so I choose the recv/xmit-pair (130428-89). Hope the transmitter works better then mentioned here: http://news.jeelabs.org/2008/11/29/wireless-at-433-mhz/. Also want to make an egg incubator so ordered some more stuff to play around with, like extra JeeNode, temp-sensors etc.

Posted 07/04/2010 07:17:13
jeroen

I also have the 130428 transmitter/receiver from conrad to send kaku signals. But no success yet. Is there a working transmitter example somewhere ? The 433 mhz receiver works fine

Posted 25/07/2010 15:48:39
jeroen

Perhaps someone missed my question during the hollidays. Found on http://cafe.jeelabs.net/sketches/send433test.pde a test sketch, but the sketch does not compile with a jeenode (only with atmega 168) So if you have a working example please let me know.

Posted 04/09/2010 08:39:24
jcw
That "someone" being me, I suppose...
Whoa - old code. Change "PD2" to "2" (2x).
That code pre-dates JeeNodes. You'll need to change the pin assignments to make it work with ports, e.g.
```
    #define TXDATA 4
    #define TXSET (PORTD |= BV(4))
    #define TXCLEAR (PORTD &= ~BV(4))
    #define LED 14
```
Then you can connect the radio to DIO1, and the LED to AIO1.
Posted 04/09/2010 13:58:36
jeroen

JC you're response is always great. Thank you Yes, I tried that but it did not work, thought I made a mistake, I think the transmitter is dead.

Posted 04/09/2010 17:44:27