Eco Edition
Word Eco in the name of this SoftRF Edition stands for
- Economy or
- Ecology
- whatever you like more.
It is based on a small module that aims for a money saving at purchase time and applying less harm on the ecology when the device will be disposed at the end of it's life cycle.
Important
Purpose of this SoftRF Edition is NOT for new users!
Either Badge, Prime Mk II, Prime Mk III, Dongle or Card Editions are recommended for a new user to begin with.
Eco Edition is for those of current SoftRF users who are already familiar with other devices and ready to spend own time and efforts to evaluate if the LilyGO® T-Lora C6 module works appropriately for his or her needs.
The Eco is based upon third-party's hardware - LilyGO® T-Lora C6 module, which is available for direct purchase from manufacturer at more or less reasonable price (18+ USD).
The LilyGO® T-Lora C6 module is an example of cutting edge technology. It contains:
- Espressif ESP32-C6-MINI-1 module
- High performance 32-bit RISC-V CPU, up to 160 MHz,[13] implementing RV32IMAC
- Low power 32-bit RISC-V CPU, up to 20 MHz, implementing RV32IMAC
- 512 KiB SRAM and 320 KiB ROM
- 4 MB FLASH memory
- IEEE 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) on 2.4 GHz, supporting 20 MHz bandwidth in 11ax mode, 20 or 40 MHz bandwidth in 11b/g/n mode
- IEEE 802.15.4 (Thread + Zigbee)
- Bluetooth 5.3 (LE)
- Semtech SX1262 Long Range Low Power sub-1GHz RF Transceiver
- Type-C USB power and data port
| Type | Protocol | FLARM | OGN tracker | PilotAware | Skytraxx | SoftRF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radio | FLARM AIR V6 |
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OGNTP |
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P3I |
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FANET+ |
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SRD 860 |
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| Data | FLARM NMEA |
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| Garmin GDL90 |
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Dump1090 |
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1 - it is necessary for a reader to distinguish the difference between statement "compatible"
and statement "fully compatible".
SoftRF implements only a reasonable minimum of the protocols specs.
No "bells and whistles" so far.
Source code of SoftRF firmware for Eco Edition is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
Author of SoftRF firmware:
- will reject any hardware related claims associated with LilyGO® T-Lora C6 module. Ask for support from seller or manufacturer ;
- reserves the right to suspend or terminate support of LilyGO® T-Lora C6 in the firmware at any time.
For the time being ( Jul '24 ) there were no critical hardware issues reported for current version of the LilyGO® T-Lora C6 module. However things my change over the time...
If you have issues with bringing up your new T-Lora C6 or just not happy with the board - be prepared to execute your Purchase Protection plan.
| Number | Part | Qty | Picture | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LilyGO® T-Lora C6 2 |
1 |  |
AliExpress LilyGO Store |
| 2 | Quectel L80 GPS module |
1 |  |
AliExpress |
2 - 868 MHz variant is applicable for these world regions: EU, RU, NZ, SA, IN ;
915 MHz - US, CA, AU, KR, IL ;
433 MHz - CN .
There is an option to lift the black plastic cover of the LilyGO® T-Lora C6 up, then substitute the built-in sub-1GHz antenna with an external one.
| Number | Part | Qty | Picture | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | SMA female to MHF3 adapter | 1 |  |
AliExpress |
| 4 | 868 MHz SMA dipole antenna 3 | 1 |  |
AliExpress |
| 5 | Antenna 868 MHz 3 |
1 |  |
EBay AliExpress 1 2 |
| 6 | Bosch BMP280 pressure sensor | 1 |  |
AliExpress |
3 - 868 MHz variant is applicable for these world regions: EU, RU, NZ, SA, IN ;
915 MHz - US, CA, AU, KR, IL ;
433 MHz - CN .
| Number | Part | Qty | Picture | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | MAX3232 RS232 TTL adapter |
1 |  |
AliExpress |
| LilyGO® T-Lora C6 | Quectel L80 |
|---|---|
| GND | GND |
| 3V3 | VCC |
| TXD | RXD1 |
| RXD | TXD1 |
| IO 19 | 1PPS |
| 3V3 | V_BCKP |
Signal levels: 3.3 Volt
Transfer settings: 9600 bps, 8N1
| LilyGO® T-Lora C6 | Bosch BMP280 |
|---|---|
| GND | GND |
| 3V3 | VCC |
| IO 8 | SDA |
| IO 9 | SCL |
Warning
Reported pressure altitude value may deviate from true value at any time.
Users of Eco Edition should build and install the SoftRF firmware by themselves.
Use Minimal SPIFFS partition scheme and enable USB CDC On Boot option.
Description of Web UI settings is located here.
When unit is Off:
- press and release BOOT button to turn the unit On.
When unit is On:
| Button(s) | Function |
|---|---|
| BOOT | press and keep holding BOOT button for 2-3 seconds to turn the unit Off |
| BOOT with RESET | enter into Espressif Service Mode |
The Duo is a successor of SoftRF Octave Concept.
It uses 2 instances of Eco Edition to either:
- operate 2 radio protocols at the same time or
- use one out of two sub-1GHz radio paths to transmit only and the second one - to receive only.
Unlike Octave Edition , the Duo has built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth LE components in each module.
One can use the Duo's WebUI to select
- an appropriate radio protocol and
- NMEA data output over built-in Bluetooth LE port
Then the Duo will appear in the XCSoar device selection menu
The picture below indicates that two proper NMEA flows are accepted by XCSoar as valid data sources
The radar screen is able to show air traffic that comes over two different radio protocols
We remind to everyone that the Duo is a concept which purpose is to meet our own goals.
No doubts that there are only a few individuals in the world that have a wish and sufficient skills level to build the device by themselves. We are pretty much sure that supplied materials, such as:
- idea
- picture
- SoftRF source code
are sufficient for an experienced user to reproduce the design.
For the rest of the world we recommend to use multiple SoftRF Dongle Edition devices to achieve the multi-protocol operation.
