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SparkFun IOTA - Satellite Communication Module (ARTIC R2)

Is your project linked to environmental protection, awareness or study, or to protecting human life? Perhaps you are developing a wildlife tracker, ocean buoy, environmental monitoring system or need to transfer emergency medical information? Do you need to be able to transmit and receive data anywhere? If so, this is the product for you! IOTA (Integrated Open-Source Transceiver for ARGOS) allows you to send and receive short bursts of data via the ARGOS satellite network, anywhere on Earth including the Polar regions.

The ARGOS system has been around for quite a while. It was created in 1978 by the French Space Agency (CNES), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), originally as a scientific tool for collecting and relaying meteorological and oceanographic data around the world. Today, ARGOS is revolutionising satellite communication, adding a constellation of 25 nanosatellites to complement the 7 traditional satellites carrying ARGOS instrumentation. The first of these, ANGELS, is already in operation and SparkFun were among the first users to transmit data to ANGELS in October 2020. When the constellation is complete, there will be a maximum of 10-15 minutes between satellite passes.

Our transceiver shield has been tested and certified by Kinéis for ARGOS 2, 3 and 4 communication and IOTA uses the exact same RF design. Compared to other satellite communication systems, IOTA has a much lower current draw and will work with a very simple, very lightweight quarter-wave wire antenna. The ARTIC R2 chipset on IOTA operates from 3.3V and the on-board flash memory enables fast boot times. If you don’t need the full transmit power, or want to conserve your battery life, you can transmit at reduced power too thanks to the opto-isolated gain pin. The interface is 3.3V SPI and will work with a huge range of microcontrollers.

Our Arduino Library makes it really easy to get up and running with ARGOS. We’ve provided a full set of examples which will let you: configure the ARTIC R2 chipset; predict the next satellite pass; receive allcast and individually-coded messages; transmit messages using ARGOS 2, 3 and 4 encoding.

You will find the Eagle symbol and footprint for IOTA in the SparkFun Eagle Libraries - RF Library. Please see our Eagle Library Installation Guide if you have not used our libraries before..

Incorrect Platform ID: We learned recently that some ARTIC R2 boards had been incorrectly programmed with the wrong Platform ID. Each board has two IDs: a decimal one which you use to access your data on ArgosWeb; and a hexadecimal one which is embedded in each satellite uplink message. These boards had been incorrectly programmed with the decimal ID instead of the hexadecimal one. You can tell if your board is affected by calling readPlatformID(). If the true hexadecimal ID is returned, all is well. If the value is the decimal ID - expressed in hexadecimal - then your board requires reprogramming as your messages will not be delivered. Please return your board. We will reprogram it and return it to you quickly. If your project is time-critical, please contact us via the SparkX forum and we will provide a software work-around. We apologise for the error and the inconvenience.

Get started with the IOTA Satellite Communication Module Hookup Guide

ARGOS ARTIC R2 Communication Guide

The ARGOS satellite system is currently restricted to specific programs and applications. Please check that your project meets these requirements before buying hardware. CLS (France) and the Woods Hole Group (America) will be able to advise if your project meets the requirements. "To meet system use requirements, all programs using Argos have to be related in some way or other to environmental protection, awareness or study, or to protecting human life." Please see our ARGOS ARTIC R2 Communication Guide for more details.
Thanks! The ARTIC R2 circuit is a remix of the reference design kindly provided by the Arribada Initiative and Icoteq Ltd.
Experimental Product: SparkX products are rapidly produced to bring you the most cutting edge technology as it becomes available. These products are tested but come with no guarantees. Live technical support is not available for SparkX products. Head on over to our forum for support or to ask a question.
  • ARTIC-R2 Chipset
    • Serial interface (SPI) for communication with MCU
    • Programmable DSP core on board to ensure flexibility
    • RX frequency : 466MHz
    • TX frequency: 400MHz
    • Fractional N frequency synthesis
    • Supported TX standards:
    • BPSK: PTT-A2 (ARGOS 2), PTT-VLD (ARGOS 4)
    • QPSK: PTT-A3, PTT-ZE (ARGOS 3)
    • GMSK: PTT-HD (ARGOS 3), PTT-MD (ARGOS 4), PTT-HD (ARGOS 4)
    • Supported RX standards:
    • BPSK: PMT-A3 (ARGOS 3)
    • DSSS OQPSK: PMT-A4 (ARGOS 4) not available
    • Supports COSPAS-SARSAT standard
  • RFPA0133 Power Amplifier
    • Boosts the 0dBm (1mW) output from the ARTIC by up to 26dB
    • Typical maximum transmit power level: 400mW
    • Programmable gain via the G8 breakout pin
  • TCXO
    • 26MHz temperature-compensated crystal oscillator for maximum stability
  • SST25VF020B Flash memory
    • Stores the ARTIC firmware, allowing fast boot times
  • RF Screening Can
  • Antenna Connection:
    • u.FL
    • or Breakout Pad
  • Power requirements:
    • 3.3V +/- 0.1V.
    • Typical current draw:
    • Sleep: 51µA
    • Idle: 7.2mA (AVG)
    • Receive: 32.9mA
    • Transmit (G8 pin high): 226mA
    • Transmit (G8 pin low): 170mA
  • Weight: 3g (0.1oz)

Tags

SparkFun IOTA - Satellite Communication Module (ARTIC R2) Product Help and Resources

IOTA (ARTIC R2) Satellite Communication Module Hookup Guide

November 18, 2021
A hookup guide for the SparkFun IOTA - Satellite Communication Module (ARTIC R2) (SPX-17984)
Favorited Favorite 1

ARGOS (ARTIC R2) Satellite Communication Guide

November 18, 2021
A guide describing the ARGOS satellite network - as used by our ARTIC R2 satellite communication products
Favorited Favorite 2

Comments

Looking for answers to technical questions?

We welcome your comments and suggestions below. However, if you are looking for solutions to technical questions please see our Technical Assistance page.

  • Member #1709186 / about 3 years ago / 1

    Could you add solder bridges to each of the voltage regulators enable to disable them so you have the option to feed power to directly to the power rails

  • liseman / about 3 years ago / 1

    assuming my project meets the requirements to use Argos, is there a cost to send / receive data?

    • Member #122195 / about 3 years ago / 1

      https://www.clsamerica.com/products-services

      If you click on the ArgosDirect Data Delivery link it appears that the cost for unlimited data with up to three recipients is 30 Euros per month at the moment.

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