SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET SX1231 Transceiver Low Power Integrated UHF Transceiver VR_DIG RC Oscillator Mixers Σ/Δ Modulators RSSI AFC GND Division by 2, 4 or 6 PA_BOOST PA1&2 Loop Filter Frac-N PLL Synthesizer GENERAL DESCRIPTION Automated Meter Reading Wireless Sensor Networks RXTX DIO0 DIO1 DIO2 DIO3 DIO4 GND KEY PRODUCT FEATURES The SX1231 is a highly integrated RF transceiver capable of operation over a wide frequency range, including the 433, 868 and 915 MHz license-free ISM (Industry Scientific and Medical) frequency bands. Its highly integrated architecture allows for a minimum of external components whilst maintaining maximum design flexibility. All major RF communication parameters are programmable and most of them can be dynamically set. The SX1231 offers the unique advantage of programmable narrow-band and wide-band communication modes without the need to modify external components. The SX1231 is optimized for low power consumption while offering high RF output power and channelized operation, suitable for both the European (ETSI EN 300-220-1) and the North American (FCC part 15) regulatory standards. TrueRF™ technology enables a lowcost external component count (elimination of the SAW filter) whilst still satisfying ETSI and FCC regulations. RESET SPI DIO5 XO 32 MHz XTAL APPLICATIONS Modulator Ramp & Control VR_PA Tank Inductor Interpolation & Filtering PA0 Packet Engine & 66 Bytes FIFO Single to Differential Control Registers - Shift Registers - SPI Interface LNA RFIO Demodulator & Bit Synchronizer VR_ANA Power Distribution System Decimation and & Filtering VBAT1&2 High Sensitivity: down to -120 dBm at 1.2 kbps Low current: Rx = 16 mA, 100nA register retention Built-in temperature sensor and Low Battery indicator High Selectivity: 16-tap FIR Channel Filter Bullet-proof front end: IIP3 = -18 dBm, IIP2 = +35 dBm, 80 dB Blocking Immunity, no Image Frequency response Programmable Pout: -18 to +17 dBm in 1dB steps Constant RF performance over voltage range of chip FSK Bit rates up to 300 kb/s Fully integrated synthesizer with a resolution of 61 Hz FSK, GFSK, MSK, GMSK and OOK modulations Built-in Bit Synchronizer performing Clock Recovery Incoming Sync Word Recognition 115 dB+ Dynamic Range RSSI Automatic RF Sense with ultra-fast AFC Packet engine with CRC, AES-128 encryption and 66byte FIFO ORDERING INFORMATION Home and Building Automation Wireless Alarm and Security Systems Industrial Monitoring and Control Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 1 Part Number Delivery MOQ / Multiple SX1231IMLTRT Tape & Reel 3000 pieces QFN 24 Package - Operating Range [-40;+85°C] Pb-free, Halogen free, RoHS/WEEE compliant product www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Table of Contents 1. 2. DATASHEET Page General Description ................................................................................................................................................ 8 1.1. Simplified Block Diagram ................................................................................................................................ 8 1.2. Pin and Marking Diagram ................................................................................................................................ 9 1.3. Pin Description .............................................................................................................................................. 10 Electrical Characteristics....................................................................................................................................... 11 2.1. ESD Notice.................................................................................................................................................... 11 2.2. Absolute Maximum Ratings .......................................................................................................................... 11 2.3. Operating Range........................................................................................................................................... 11 2.4. Chip Specification ......................................................................................................................................... 12 2.4.1. Power Consumption ................................................................................................................................. 12 2.4.2. Frequency Synthesis ................................................................................................................................ 12 2.4.3. Receiver ................................................................................................................................................... 13 2.4.4. Transmitter ............................................................................................................................................... 14 2.4.5. Digital Specification ...................................................................................................................................15 3. Chip Description.................................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1. Power Supply Strategy.................................................................................................................................. 16 3.2. Low Battery Detector..................................................................................................................................... 16 3.3. Frequency Synthesis..................................................................................................................................... 16 3.3.1. Reference Oscillator ................................................................................................................................. 16 3.3.2. CLKOUT Output ........................................................................................................................................17 3.3.3. PLL Architecture ....................................................................................................................................... 17 3.3.4. Lock Time ..................................................................................................................................................18 3.3.5. Lock Detect Indicator................................................................................................................................ 18 3.4. Transmitter Description ................................................................................................................................. 19 3.4.1. Architecture Description ........................................................................................................................... 19 3.4.2. Bit Rate Setting ........................................................................................................................................ 19 3.4.3. FSK Modulation ........................................................................................................................................ 20 3.4.4. OOK Modulation ....................................................................................................................................... 20 3.4.5. Modulation Shaping.................................................................................................................................. 21 3.4.6. Power Amplifiers ...................................................................................................................................... 21 3.4.7. Over Current Protection ........................................................................................................................... 21 3.5. Receiver Description ..................................................................................................................................... 22 3.5.1. Block Diagram .......................................................................................................................................... 22 3.5.2. LNA - Single to Differential Buffer ............................................................................................................ 22 3.5.3. Automatic Gain Control ............................................................................................................................ 23 3.5.4. Quadrature Mixer - ADCs - Decimators.................................................................................................... 24 3.5.5. Channel Filter ........................................................................................................................................... 25 3.5.6. DC Cancellation ....................................................................................................................................... 26 3.5.7. Complex Filter - OOK ............................................................................................................................... 26 3.5.8. RSSI ......................................................................................................................................................... 26 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 2 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3.5.9. Cordic ....................................................................................................................................................... 26 3.5.10. FSK Demodulator ................................................................................................................................... 27 3.5.11. OOK Demodulator .................................................................................................................................. 27 3.5.12. Bit Synchronizer ..................................................................................................................................... 29 3.5.13. Frequency Error Indicator....................................................................................................................... 30 3.5.14. Automatic Frequency Correction ............................................................................................................ 31 3.5.15. Temperature Sensor .............................................................................................................................. 31 3.5.16. Timeout Function.................................................................................................................................... 32 4. Operating Modes .................................................................................................................................................. 33 4.1. Basic Modes.................................................................................................................................................. 33 4.2. Automatic Sequencer and Wake-Up Times .................................................................................................. 33 4.2.1. Transmitter Startup Time........................................................................................................................... 34 4.2.2. Tx Start Procedure ................................................................................................................................... 34 4.2.3. Receiver Startup Time.............................................................................................................................. 34 4.2.4. Rx Start Procedure ................................................................................................................................... 36 4.2.5. Optimized Frequency Hopping Sequences .............................................................................................. 36 5. 4.3. Listen mode ................................................................................................................................................... 37 4.4. AutoModes .................................................................................................................................................... 40 Data Processing.................................................................................................................................................... 41 5.1. Overview ....................................................................................................................................................... 41 5.1.1. Block Diagram .......................................................................................................................................... 41 5.1.2. Data Operation Modes ............................................................................................................................. 41 5.2. Control Block Description.............................................................................................................................. 42 5.2.1. SPI Interface............................................................................................................................................. 42 5.2.2. FIFO ......................................................................................................................................................... 43 5.2.3. Sync Word Recognition ............................................................................................................................ 44 5.2.4. Packet Handler ......................................................................................................................................... 45 5.2.5. Control ...................................................................................................................................................... 45 5.3. Digital IO Pins Mapping................................................................................................................................. 45 5.3.1. DIO Pins Mapping in Continuous Mode ................................................................................................... 46 5.3.2. DIO Pins Mapping in Packet Mode .......................................................................................................... 46 5.4. Continuous Mode .......................................................................................................................................... 47 5.4.1. General Description.................................................................................................................................. 47 5.4.2. Tx Processing........................................................................................................................................... 47 5.4.3. Rx Processing .......................................................................................................................................... 48 5.5. Packet Mode ................................................................................................................................................. 48 5.5.1. General Description.................................................................................................................................. 48 5.5.2. Packet Format .......................................................................................................................................... 49 5.5.3. Tx Processing (without AES).................................................................................................................... 51 5.5.4. Rx Processing (without AES) ................................................................................................................... 52 5.5.5. AES .......................................................................................................................................................... 52 5.5.6. Packet Filtering......................................................................................................................................... 54 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 3 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.5.7. DC-Free Data Mechanisms ...................................................................................................................... 55 6. 7. Configuration and Status Registers ...................................................................................................................... 57 6.1. General Description ...................................................................................................................................... 57 6.2. Common Configuration Registers ................................................................................................................. 60 6.3. Transmitter Registers .................................................................................................................................... 63 6.4. Receiver Registers........................................................................................................................................ 64 6.5. IRQ and Pin Mapping Registers.................................................................................................................... 67 6.6. Packet Engine Registers............................................................................................................................... 69 6.7. Temperature Sensor Registers ..................................................................................................................... 72 6.8. Test Registers ............................................................................................................................................... 72 Application Information ......................................................................................................................................... 73 7.1. Crystal Resonator Specification .................................................................................................................... 73 7.2. Reset of the Chip .......................................................................................................................................... 73 7.2.1. POR.......................................................................................................................................................... 73 7.2.2. Manual Reset ............................................................................................................................................74 8. 9. 7.3. RC Oscillator Calibration............................................................................................................................... 74 7.4. Reference Design ......................................................................................................................................... 74 Packaging Information .......................................................................................................................................... 75 8.1. Package Outline Drawing.............................................................................................................................. 75 8.2. Recommended Land Pattern ........................................................................................................................ 75 8.3. Thermal Impedance ...................................................................................................................................... 76 8.4. Tape & Reel Specification............................................................................................................................. 76 Revision History .................................................................................................................................................... 77 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 4 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Index of Figures DATASHEET Page Figure 1. Block Diagram ................................................................................................................................................ 8 Figure 2. Pin Diagram .................................................................................................................................................... 9 Figure 3. Marking Diagram ............................................................................................................................................ 9 Figure 4. TCXO Connection ........................................................................................................................................ 16 Figure 5. Transmitter Block Diagram ........................................................................................................................... 19 Figure 6. Receiver Block Diagram ............................................................................................................................... 22 Figure 7. AGC Thresholds Settings ............................................................................................................................. 23 Figure 8. Cordic Extraction .......................................................................................................................................... 27 Figure 9. OOK Peak Demodulator Description ............................................................................................................ 27 Figure 10. Floor Threshold Optimization ..................................................................................................................... 28 Figure 11. Bit Synchronizer Description ...................................................................................................................... 29 Figure 12. FEI Process ................................................................................................................................................ 31 Figure 13. Temperature Sensor Response ................................................................................................................. 32 Figure 14. Tx Startup, FSK and OOK .......................................................................................................................... 34 Figure 15. Rx Startup - No AGC, no AFC .................................................................................................................... 35 Figure 16. Rx Startup - AGC, no AFC ......................................................................................................................... 35 Figure 17. Rx Startup - AGC and AFC ........................................................................................................................ 35 Figure 18. Listen Mode Sequence (no wanted signal is received) .............................................................................. 37 Figure 19. Listen Mode Sequence (wanted signal is received) ................................................................................... 39 Figure 20. Auto Modes of Packet Handler ................................................................................................................... 40 Figure 21. SX1231 Data Processing Conceptual View ............................................................................................... 41 Figure 22. SPI Timing Diagram (single access) .......................................................................................................... 42 Figure 23. FIFO and Shift Register (SR) ..................................................................................................................... 43 Figure 24. FifoLevel IRQ Source Behavior .................................................................................................................. 44 Figure 25. Sync Word Recognition .............................................................................................................................. 45 Figure 26. Continuous Mode Conceptual View ........................................................................................................... 47 Figure 27. Tx Processing in Continuous Mode ............................................................................................................ 47 Figure 28. Rx Processing in Continuous Mode ........................................................................................................... 48 Figure 29. Packet Mode Conceptual View ................................................................................................................... 49 Figure 30. Fixed Length Packet Format ...................................................................................................................... 50 Figure 31. Variable Length Packet Format .................................................................................................................. 50 Figure 32. Unlimited Length Packet Format ................................................................................................................ 51 Figure 33. CRC Implementation .................................................................................................................................. 55 Figure 34. Manchester Encoding/Decoding ................................................................................................................. 56 Figure 35. Data Whitening ........................................................................................................................................... 56 Figure 36. POR Timing Diagram ................................................................................................................................. 73 Figure 37. Manual Reset Timing Diagram ................................................................................................................... 74 Figure 38. Package Outline Drawing ........................................................................................................................... 75 Figure 39. Recommended Land Pattern ..................................................................................................................... 75 Figure 40. Tape & Reel Specification .......................................................................................................................... 76 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 5 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Index of Tables DATASHEET Page Table 1. SX1231 Pinouts .............................................................................................................................................. 10 Table 2. Absolute Maximum Ratings ............................................................................................................................ 11 Table 3. Operating Range ............................................................................................................................................ 11 Table 4. Power Consumption Specification .................................................................................................................. 12 Table 5. Frequency Synthesizer Specification .............................................................................................................. 12 Table 6. Receiver Specification .................................................................................................................................... 13 Table 7. Transmitter Specification ................................................................................................................................ 14 Table 8. Digital Specification ........................................................................................................................................ 15 Table 9. Bit Rate Examples .......................................................................................................................................... 20 Table 10. Power Amplifier Mode Selection Truth Table ............................................................................................... 21 Table 11. LNA Gain Settings ........................................................................................................................................ 22 Table 12. Receiver Performance Summary .................................................................................................................. 24 Table 13. Available RxBw Settings ............................................................................................................................... 25 Table 14. Basic Transceiver Modes ............................................................................................................................. 33 Table 15. Range of Durations in Listen Mode .............................................................................................................. 37 Table 16. Signal Acceptance Criteria in Listen Mode ................................................................................................... 38 Table 17. End of Listen Cycle Actions .......................................................................................................................... 38 Table 18. Status of FIFO when Switching Between Different Modes of the Chip ......................................................... 44 Table 19. DIO Mapping, Continuous Mode .................................................................................................................. 46 Table 20. DIO Mapping, Packet Mode ......................................................................................................................... 46 Table 21. Registers Summary ...................................................................................................................................... 57 Table 22. Common Configuration Registers ................................................................................................................. 60 Table 23. Transmitter Registers ................................................................................................................................... 63 Table 24. Receiver Registers ....................................................................................................................................... 64 Table 25. IRQ and Pin Mapping Registers ................................................................................................................... 67 Table 26. Packet Engine Registers .............................................................................................................................. 69 Table 27. Temperature Sensor Registers ..................................................................................................................... 72 Table 28. Test Registers .............................................................................................................................................. 72 Table 29. Crystal Specification ..................................................................................................................................... 73 Table 30. Revision History ............................................................................................................................................ 77 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 6 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET Acronyms BOM BR BW CCITT CRC DAC ETSI FCC Fdev FIFO FIR FS FSK GUI IC ID IF IRQ ITU LFSR LNA LO Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Bill Of Materials Bit Rate Bandwidth Comité Consultatif International Téléphonique et Télégraphique - ITU Cyclic Redundancy Check Digital to Analog Converter European Telecommunications Standards Institute Federal Communications Commission Frequency Deviation First In First Out Finite Impulse Response Frequency Synthesizer Frequency Shift Keying Graphical User Interface Integrated Circuit IDentificator Intermediate Frequency Interrupt ReQuest International Telecommunication Union Linear Feedback Shift Register Low Noise Amplifier Local Oscillator Page 7 LSB MSB NRZ OOK Least Significant Bit Most Significant Bit Non Return to Zero On Off Keying PA PCB PLL Power Amplifier Printed Circuit Board Phase-Locked Loop POR RBW RF RSSI Rx SAW SPI SR Stby Tx uC VCO XO XOR Power On Reset Resolution BandWidth Radio Frequency Received Signal Strength Indicator Receiver Surface Acoustic Wave Serial Peripheral Interface Shift Register Standby Transmitter Microcontroller Voltage Controlled Oscillator Crystal Oscillator eXclusive OR www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET This product datasheet contains a detailed description of the SX1231 performance and functionality. Please consult the Semtech website for the latest updates or errata. 1. General Description The SX1231 is a single-chip integrated circuit ideally suited for today's high performance ISM band RF applications. The SX1231's advanced features set, including state of the art packet engine greatly simplifies system design whilst the high level of integration reduces the external BOM to a handful of passive decoupling and matching components. It is intended for use as high-performance, low-cost FSK and OOK RF transceiver for robust frequency agile, half-duplex bi-directional RF links, and where stable and constant RF performance is required over the full operating range of the device down to 1.8V. The SX1231 is intended for applications over a wide frequency range, including the 433 MHz and 868 MHz European and the 902-928 MHz North American ISM bands. Coupled with a link budget in excess of 135 dB, the advanced system features of the SX1231 include a 66 byte TX/RX FIFO, configurable automatic packet handler, listen mode, temperature sensor and configurable DIOs which greatly enhance system flexibility whilst at the same time significantly reducing MCU requirements. The SX1231 complies with both ETSI and FCC regulatory requirements and is available in a 5x 5 mm QFN 24 lead package 1.1. Simplified Block Diagram VR_DIG RC Oscillator Power Distribution System RFIO Demodulator & Bit Synchronizer Σ/Δ Modulators Mixers Single to Differential Decimation and & Filtering LNA RSSI AFC GND Division by 2, 4 or 6 Ramp & Control Frac-N PLL Synthesizer Loop Filter Modulator VR_PA Tank Inductor Interpolation & Filtering PA0 PA1&2 RESET SPI RXTX DIO0 DIO1 DIO2 DIO3 DIO4 DIO5 XO 32 MHz PA_BOOST Control Registers - Shift Registers - SPI Interface VR_ANA Packet Engine & 66 Bytes FIFO VBAT1&2 XTAL GND Frequency Synthesis Transmitter Blocks Primarily Analog Receiver Blocks Control Blocks Primarily Digital Figure 1. Block Diagram Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 8 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 1.2. Pin and Marking Diagram The following diagram shows the pin arrangement of the QFN package, top view. Figure 2. Pin Diagram Figure 3. Marking Diagram Notes yyww refers to the date code xxxxxx refers to the lot number Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 9 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 1.3. Pin Description Table 1 SX1231 Pinouts Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Number Name Type Description 0 GROUND - Exposed ground pad 1 VBAT1 - Supply voltage 2 VR_ANA - Regulated supply voltage for analogue circuitry 3 VR_DIG - Regulated supply voltage for digital blocks 4 XTA I/O XTAL connection 5 XTB I/O XTAL connection 6 RESET I/O Reset trigger input 7 DIO0 I/O Digital I/O, software configured 8 DIO1/DCLK I/O Digital I/O, software configured 9 DIO2/DATA I/O Digital I/O, software configured 10 DIO3 I/O Digital I/O, software configured 11 DIO4 I/O Digital I/O, software configured 12 DIO5 I/O Digital I/O, software configured 13 VBAT2 - Supply voltage 14 GND - Ground 15 SCK I SPI Clock input 16 MISO O SPI Data output 17 MOSI I SPI Data input 18 NSS I SPI Chip select input 19 RXTX O Rx/Tx switch control: high in Tx 20 GND - Ground 21 RFIO I/O 22 GND - Ground 23 PA_BOOST O Optional high-power PA output 24 VR_PA - Regulated supply for the PA RF input / output Page 10 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 2. Electrical Characteristics 2.1. ESD Notice The SX1231 is a high performance radio frequency device. It satisfies: Class 2 of the JEDEC standard JESD22-A114-B (Human Body Model) on all pins. Class B of the JEDEC standard JESD22-A115-A (Machine Model) on all pins. Class IV of the JEDEC standard JESD22-C101C (Charged Device Model) on pins 2-3-21-23-24, Class III on all other pins. It should thus be handled with all the necessary ESD precautions to avoid any permanent damage. 2.2. Absolute Maximum Ratings Stresses above the values listed below may cause permanent device failure. Exposure to absolute maximum ratings for extended periods may affect device reliability. Table 2 Absolute Maximum Ratings Symbol Description Min Max Unit VDDmr Supply Voltage -0.5 3.9 V Tmr Temperature -55 +115 °C Tj Junction temperature - +125 °C Pmr RF Input Level - +6 Min Max dBm 2.3. Operating Range Table 3 Operating Range Symbol Description Unit VDDop Supply voltage 1.8 3.6 V Top Operational temperature range -40 +85 °C Clop Load capacitance on digital ports - 25 pF ML RF Input Level - 0 dBm Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 11 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 2.4. Chip Specification The tables below give the electrical specifications of the transceiver under the following conditions: Supply voltage VBAT1= VBAT2=VDD=3.3 V, temperature = 25 °C, FXOSC = 32 MHz, FRF = 915 MHz, Pout = +13dBm, 2-level FSK modulation without pre-filtering, FDA = 5 kHz, Bit Rate = 4.8 kb/s and terminated in a matched 50 Ohm impedance, unless otherwise specified. Note Unless otherwise specified, the performances in the other frequency bands are similar or better. 2.4.1. Power Consumption Table 4 Power Consumption Specification Symbol Description IDDSL Supply current in Sleep mode IDDIDLE Supply current in Idle mode IDDST Supply current in Standby mode IDDFS Conditions Min Typ Max - 0.1 1 uA RC oscillator enabled - 1.2 - uA Crystal oscillator enabled - 1.25 1.5 mA Supply current in Synthesizer mode - 9 - mA IDDR Supply current in Receive mode - 16 - mA IDDT Supply current in Transmit mode with appropriate matching, stable across VDD range - 95 45 33 20 16 - mA mA mA mA mA RFOP = +17 dBm, on PA_BOOST RFOP = +13 dBm, on RFIO pin RFOP = +10 dBm, on RFIO pin RFOP = 0 dBm, on RFIO pin RFOP = -1 dBm, on RFIO pin Unit 2.4.2. Frequency Synthesis Table 5 Frequency Synthesizer Specification Symbol Description Conditions Min Typ Max FR Synthesizer Frequency Range Programmable 290 424 862 - 340 510 1020 MHz MHz MHz FXOSC Crystal oscillator frequency See section 7.1 - 32 - MHz TS_OSC Crystal oscillator wake-up time - 250 500 us TS_FS Frequency synthesizer wake-up time to PllLock signal - 80 150 us TS_HOP Frequency synthesizer hop time at most 10 kHz away from the target - 20 20 50 50 80 80 80 - us us us us us us us FSTEP Frequency synthesizer step - 61.0 - Hz Rev 2 - Nov 2009 From Standby mode 200 kHz step 1 MHz step 5 MHz step 7 MHz step 12 MHz step 20 MHz step 25 MHz step FSTEP = FXOSC/219 Page 12 Unit www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET FRC RC Oscillator frequency After calibration - 62.5 - kHz BRF Bit rate, FSK Programmable 1.2 - 300 kbps BRO Bit rate, OOK Programmable 1.2 - 32.768 kbps FDA Frequency deviation, FSK Programmable FDA + BRF/2 =< 500 kHz 0.6 - 300 kHz 2.4.3. Receiver All receiver tests are performed with RxBw = 10 kHz (Single Side Bandwidth) as programmed in RegRxBw, receiving a PN15 sequence with a BER of 0.1% (Bit Synchronizer is enabled), unless otherwise specified. The LNA impedance is set to 200 Ohms, by setting bit LnaZin in RegLna to 1, and the AdcLowPowerOn in RegTemp is set to 1. Blocking tests are performed with an unmodulated interferer. The wanted signal power for the Blocking Immunity, ACR, IIP2, IIP3 and AMR tests is set 3 dB above the nominal sensitivity level. Table 6 Receiver Specification Symbol Description Conditions Min Typ Max RFS_F FSK sensitivity, highest LNA gain Unit FDA = 5 kHz, BR = 1.2 kb/s FDA = 5 kHz, BR = 4.8 kb/s FDA = 40 kHz, BR = 38.4 kb/s - -118 -114 -105 - dBm dBm dBm FDA = 5 kHz, BR = 1.2 kb/s * - -120 - dBm BR = 4.8 kb/s - -112 -109 dBm -13 -10 - dB RFS_O OOK sensitivity, highest LNA gain CCR Co-Channel Rejection ACR Adjacent Channel Rejection Offset = +/- 25 kHz Offset = +/- 50 kHz 37 42 42 - dB dB BI Blocking Immunity Offset = +/- 1 MHz Offset = +/- 2 MHz Offset = +/- 10 MHz - -45 -40 -32 - dBm dBm dBm Blocking Immunity Wanted signal at sensitivity +16dB Offset = +/- 1 MHz Offset = +/- 2 MHz Offset = +/- 10 MHz - -36 -33 -25 - dBm dBm dBm AMR AM Rejection , AM modulated interferer with 100% modulation depth, fm = 1 kHz, square Offset = +/- 1 MHz Offset = +/- 2 MHz Offset = +/- 10 MHz - -45 -40 -32 - dB dB dB IIP2 2nd order Input Intercept Point Unwanted tones are 20 MHz above the LO Lowest LNA gain Highest LNA gain - +75 +35 - dBm dBm IIP3 3rd order Input Intercept point Unwanted tones are 1MHz and 1.995 MHz above the LO Lowest LNA gain Highest LNA gain -23 +20 -18 - dBm dBm BW_SSB Single Side channel filter BW 2.6 - 500 kHz Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Programmable Page 13 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING * DATASHEET IMR_OOK Image rejection in OOK mode Wanted signal level = -106 dBm 27 30 - dB TS_RE Receiver wake-up time, from PLL locked state to RxReady RxBw = 10 kHz, BR = 4.8 kb/s RxBw = 200 kHz, BR = 100 kb/s - 1.7 96 - ms us TS_RE_AGC Receiver wake-up time, from PLL locked state, AGC enabled RxBw= 10 kHz, BR = 4.8 kb/s RxBw = 200 kHz, BR = 100 kb/s - 3.0 163 ms us TS_RE_AGC &AFC Receiver wake-up time, from PLL lock state, AGC and AFC enabled RxBw= 10 kHz, BR = 4.8 kb/s RxBw = 200 kHz, BR = 100 kb/s 4.8 265 ms us TS_FEI FEI sampling time Receiver is ready - 4.Tbit - - TS_AFC AFC Response Time Receiver is ready - 4.Tbit - - TS_RSSI RSSI Response Time Receiver is ready - 2.Tbit - - DR_RSSI RSSI Dynamic Range AGC enabled - -115 0 - dBm dBm Min Max Set SensitivityBoost in RegTestLna to 0x2D to reduce the noise floor in the receiver 2.4.4. Transmitter Table 7 Transmitter Specification Symbol Description Conditions Min Typ Max RF_OP RF output power in 50 ohms On RFIO pin Programmable with 1dB steps - +13 -18 - dBm dBm RF_OPH Max RF output power, on PA_BOOST pin With external match to 50 ohms - +17 - dBm ΔRF_OP RF output power stability From VDD=1.8V to 3.6V - +/-0.3 - dB PHN Transmitter Phase Noise 50 kHz Offset from carrier 868 / 915 MHz bands 434 / 315 MHz bands - -95 -99 - dBc/ Hz dBm Max Min ACP Transmitter adjacent channel power (measured at 25 kHz offset) BT=0.5 . Measurement conditions as defined by EN 300 220-1 V2.1.1 - - -37 TS_TR Transmitter wake up time, to the first rising edge of DCLK Frequency Synthesizer enabled, PaRamp = 8us, BR = 4.8 kb/s. - 120 - Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 14 Unit us www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 2.4.5. Digital Specification Conditions: Temp = 25°C, VDD = 3.3V, FXOSC = 32 MHz, unless otherwise specified. Table 8 Digital Specification Symbol Description VIH Min Typ Max Digital input level high 0.8 - - VDD VIL Digital input level low - - 0.2 VDD VOH Digital output level high Imax = 1 mA 0.9 - - VDD VOL Digital output level low Imax = -1 mA - - 0.1 VDD FSCK SCK frequency - - 10 MHz tch SCK high time 50 - - ns tcl SCK low time 50 - - ns trise SCK rise time - 5 - ns tfall SCK fall time - 5 - ns tsetup MOSI setup time from MOSI change to SCK rising edge 30 - - ns thold MOSI hold time from SCK rising edge to MOSI change 60 - - ns tnsetup NSS setup time from NSS falling edge to SCK rising edge 30 - - ns tnhold NSS hold time from SCK falling edge to NSS rising edge, normal mode 30 - - ns tnhigh NSS high time between SPI accesses 20 - - ns T_DATA DATA hold and setup time 250 - - ns Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Conditions Page 15 Unit www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3. Chip Description This section describes in depth the architecture of the SX1231 low-power, highly integrated transceiver. 3.1. Power Supply Strategy The SX1231 employs an advanced power supply scheme, which provides stable operating characteristics over the full temperature and voltage range of operation. This includes the full output power of +17dBm which is maintained from 1.8 to 3.6 V. The SX1231 can be powered from any low-noise voltage source via pins VBAT1 and VBAT2. Decoupling capacitors should be connected, as suggested in the reference design, on VR_PA, VR_DIG and VR_ANA pins to ensure a correct operation of the built-in voltage regulators. 3.2. Low Battery Detector A low battery detector is also included allowing the generation of an interrupt signal in response to passing a programmable threshold adjustable through the register RegLowBat. The interrupt signal can be mapped to any of the DIO pins, through the programmation of RegDioMapping. 3.3. Frequency Synthesis The LO generation on the SX1231 is based on a state-of-the-art fractional-N PLL. The PLL is fully integrated with automatic calibration. 3.3.1. Reference Oscillator The crystal oscillator is the main timing reference of the SX1231. It is used as a reference for the frequency synthesizer and as a clock for the digital processing. The XO startup time, TS_OSC, depends on the actual XTAL being connected on pins XTA and XTB. When using the builtin sequencer, the SX1231 optimizes the startup time and automatically triggers the PLL when the XO signal is stable. To manually control the startup time, the user should either wait for TS_OSC max, or monitor the signal CLKOUT which will only be made available on the output buffer when a stable XO oscillation is achieved. An external clock can be used to replace the crystal oscillator, for instance a tight tolerance TCXO. To do so, bit 4 at address 0x59 should be set to 1, and the external clock has to be provided on XTA (pin 4). XTB (pin 5) should be left open. The peak-peak amplitude of the input signal must never exceed 1.8 V. Please consult your TCXO supplier for an appropriate value of decoupling capacitor, CD. XTA XTB NC TCXO 32 MHz OP Vcc GND Vcc CD Figure 4. TCXO Connection Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 16 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3.3.2. CLKOUT Output The reference frequency, or a fraction of it, can be provided on DIO5 (pin 12) by modifying bits ClkOut in RegDioMapping2. Two typical applications of the CLKOUT output include: To provide a clock output for a companion processor, thus saving the cost of an additional oscillator. CLKOUT can be made available in any operation mode except Sleep mode and is automatically enabled at power on reset. To provide an oscillator reference output. Measurement of the CLKOUT signal enables simple software trimming of the initial crystal tolerance. Note to minimize the current consumption of the SX1231, please ensure that the CLKOUT signal is disabled when not required. 3.3.3. PLL Architecture The frequency synthesizer generating the LO frequency for both the receiver and the transmitter is a fractional-N sigmadelta PLL. The PLL incorporates a third order loop capable of fast auto-calibration, and it has a fast switching-time. The VCO and the loop filter are both fully integrated, removing the need for an external tight-tolerance, high-Q inductor in the VCO tank circuit. 3.3.3.1. VCO The VCO runs at 2, 4 or 6 times the RF frequency (respectively in the 915, 434 and 315 MHz bands) to reduce any LO leakage in receiver mode, to improve the quadrature precision of the receiver, and to reduce the pulling effects on the VCO during transmission. The VCO calibration is fully automated. A coarse adjustment is carried out at power on reset, and a fine tuning is performed each time the SX1231 PLL is activated. Automatic calibration times are fully transparent to the end-user, as their processing time is included in the TS_TE and TS_RE specifications. 3.3.3.2. PLL Bandwidth The bandwidth of the SX1231 Fractional-N PLL is wide enough to allow for: High speed FSK modulation, up to 300 kb/s, inside the PLL bandwidth Very fast PLL lock times, enabling both short startup and fast hop times required for frequency agile applications 3.3.3.3. Carrier Frequency and Resolution The SX1231 PLL embeds a 19-bit sigma-delta modulator and its frequency resolution, constant over the whole frequency range, and is given by: F XOSC F STEP = --------------19 2 The carrier frequency is programmed through RegFrf, split across addresses 0x07 to 0x09: F RF = F STEP × Frf (23,0) Note The Frf setting is split across 3 bytes. A change in the center frequency will only be taken into account when the least significant byte FrfLsb in RegFrfLsb is written. This allows for more complex modulation schemes such as mary FSK, where frequency modulation is achieved by changing the programmed RF frequency. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 17 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3.3.4. Lock Time PLL lock time TS_FS is a function of a number of technical factors, such as synthesized frequency, frequency step, etc. When using the built-in sequencer, the SX1231 optimizes the startup time and automatically starts the receiver or the transmitter when the PLL has locked. To manually control the startup time, the user should either wait for TS_FS max given in the specification, or monitor the signal PLL lock detect indicator, which is set when the PLL has is within its locking range. When performing an AFC, which usually corrects very small frequency errors, the PLL response time is approximately: 5 T PLLAFC = -------------------PLLBW In a frequency hopping scheme, the timings TS_HOP given in the table of specifications give an order of magnitude for the expected lock times. 3.3.5. Lock Detect Indicator A lock indication signal can be made available on some of the DIO pins, and is toggled high when the PLL reaches its locking range. Please refer to Table 19 and Table 20 to map this interrupt to the desired pins. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 18 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3.4. Transmitter Description The transmitter of SX1231 comprises the frequency synthesizer, modulator and power amplifier blocks. 3.4.1. Architecture Description LNA Receiver Chain RFIO PA0 Local Oscillator PA1 PA_BOOST PA2 Figure 5. Transmitter Block Diagram 3.4.2. Bit Rate Setting When using the SX1231 in Continuous mode, the data stream to be transmitted can be input directly to the modulator via pin 9 (DIO2/DATA) in an asynchronous manner, unless Gaussian filtering is used, in which case the DCLK signal on pin 10 (DIO1/DCLK) is used to synchronize the data stream. See section 3.4.5 for details on the Gaussian filter. In Packet mode or in Continuous mode with Gaussian filtering enabled (refer to section 5.5 for details), the Bit Rate (BR) is controlled by bits BitRate in RegBitrate: F XOSC BR = -------------------BitRate Amongst others, the following Bit Rates are accessible: Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 19 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Table 9 DATASHEET Bit Rate Examples BitRate (15:8) BitRate (7:0) (G)FSK (G)MSK OOK Actual BR (b/s) 0x68 0x2B 1.2 kbps 1.2 kbps 1200.015 0x34 0x15 2.4 kbps 2.4 kbps 2400.060 0x1A 0x0B 4.8 kbps 4.8 kbps 4799.760 0x0D 0x05 9.6 kbps 9.6 kbps 9600.960 0x06 0x83 19.2 kbps 19.2 kbps 19196.16 0x03 0x41 38.4 kbps 38415.36 0x01 0xA1 76.8 kbps 76738.60 0x00 0xD0 153.6 kbps 153846.1 Classical modem baud rates (multiples of 0.9 kbps) 0x02 0x2C 57.6 kbps 57553.95 0x01 0x16 115.2 kbps 115107.9 Round bit rates (multiples of 12.5, 25 and 50 kbps) 0x0A 0x00 12.5 kbps 12.5 kbps 12500.00 0x05 0x00 25 kbps 25 kbps 25000.00 0x80 0x00 50 kbps 50000.00 0x01 0x40 100 kbps 100000.0 0x00 0xD5 150 kbps 150234.7 0x00 0xA0 200 kbps 200000.0 0x00 0x80 250 kbps 250000.0 0x00 0x6B 300 kbps 299065.4 0x03 0xD1 32.768 kbps Type Classical modem baud rates (multiples of 1.2 kbps) Watch Xtal frequency 32.768 kbps 32753.32 3.4.3. FSK Modulation FSK modulation is performed inside the PLL bandwidth, by changing the fractional divider ratio in the feedback loop of the PLL. The large resolution of the sigma-delta modulator, allows for very narrow frequency deviation. The frequency deviation FDEV is given by: F DEV = F STEP × Fdev (13,0) To ensure a proper modulation, the following limit applies: BR F DEV + ------- ≤ 500kHz 2 Note no constraint applies to the modulation index of the transmitter, but the frequency deviation must exceed 600 Hz. 3.4.4. OOK Modulation OOK modulation is applied by switching on and off the Power Amplifier. Digital control and smoothing are available to improve the transient power response of the OOK transmitter. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 20 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3.4.5. Modulation Shaping Modulation shaping can be applied in both OOK and FSK modulation modes, to improve the narrowband response of the transmitter. Both shaping features are controlled with PaRamp bits in RegPaRamp. In FSK mode, a Gaussian filter with BT = 0.3, 0.5 or 1 is used to filter the modulation stream, at the input of the sigmadelta modulator. If the Gaussian filter is enabled when the SX1231 is in Continuous mode, DCLK signal on pin 10 (DIO1/DCLK) will trigger an interrupt on the uC each time a new bit has to be transmitted. Please refer to section 5.4.2 for details. When OOK modulation is used, the PA bias voltages are ramped up and down smoothly when the PA is turned on and off, to reduce spectral splatter. Note the transmitter must be restarted if the PaRamp setting is changed, in order to recalibrate the built-in filter. 3.4.6. Power Amplifiers Three power amplifier blocks are embedded in the SX1231. The first one, herein referred to as PA0, can generate up to +13 dBm into a 50 ohm load. PA0 shares a common front-end pin RFIO (pin 21) with the receiver LNA. PA1 and PA2 are both connected to pin PA_BOOST (pin 23), allowing for two distinct power ranges: A low power mode, where -18 dBm < Pout < 13 dBm, with PA1 enabled A higher power mode, when PA1 and PA2 are combined, providing up to +17 dBm to a matched load. When PA1 and PA2 are combined to deliver +17 dBm to the antenna, a specific impedance matching / harmonic filtering design is required to ensure impedance transformation and regulatory compliance. All PA settings are controlled by RegPaLevel, and the truth table of settings is given in Table 10. Table 10 Power Amplifier Mode Selection Truth Table Pa0On Pa1On Pa2On 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 Mode Power Range Pout Formula PA0 output on pin RFIO -18 to +13 dBm -18 dBm + OutputPower 0 PA1 enabled on pin PA_BOOST -18 to +13 dBm -18 dBm + OutputPower 1 PA1 and PA2 combined on pin PA_BOOST -14 to +17 dBm -14 dBm + OutputPower Other combinations Reserved Notes - To ensure correct operation at the highest power levels, please make sure to adjust the Over Current Protection Limit accordingly in RegOcp. - If PA_BOOST pin is not used (+13dBm applications and less), the pin can be left floating. 3.4.7. Over Current Protection An over current protection block is built-in the chip. It helps preventing surge currents required when the transmitter is used at its highest power levels, thus protecting the battery that may power the application. The current clamping value is controlled by OcpTrim bits in RegOcp, and is calculated with the following formula: Imax = 45 + 5 × OcpTrim ( mA ) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 21 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 3.5. Receiver Description The SX1231 features a digital receiver with the analog to digital conversion process being performed directly following the LNA-Mixers block. The zero-IF receiver is able to handle (G)FSK and (G)MSK modulation. ASK and OOK modulation is, however, demodulated by a low-IF architecture. All the filtering, demodulation, gain control, synchronization and packet handling is performed digitally, which allows a very wide range of bit rates and frequency deviations to be selected. The receiver is also capable of automatic gain calibration in order to improve precision on RSSI measurements. 3.5.1. Block Diagram Σ/Δ Mixers Modulators LNA Single to Differential DC Cancellation CORDIC Complex Filter Decimator RFIO Channel Filter Module Output From PA1 FSK Demodulator Phase Output RSSI OOK Demodulator Processing Rx Calibration Reference Bypassed in FSK Local Oscillator AFC AGC Figure 6. Receiver Block Diagram The following sections give a brief description of each of the receiver blocks. 3.5.2. LNA - Single to Differential Buffer The LNA uses a common-gate topology, which allows for a flat characteristic over the whole frequency range. It is designed to have an input impedance of 50 Ohms or 200 Ohms (as selected with bit LnaZin in RegLna), and the parasitic capacitance at the LNA input port is cancelled with the external RF choke. A single to differential buffer is implemented to improve the second order linearity of the receiver. The LNA gain, including the single-to-differential buffer, is programmable over a 48 dB dynamic range, and control is either manual or automatic with the embedded AGC function. Note In the specific case where the LNA gain is manually set by the user, the receiver will not be able to properly handle FSK signals with a modulation index smaller than 2 at an input power greater than the 1dB compression point, tabulated in section 3.5.3. Table 11 LNA Gain Settings LnaGainSelect 000 001 010 011 100 101 110 111 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 LNA Gain Any of the below, set by the AGC loop Max gain Max gain - 6 dB Max gain - 12 dB Max gain - 24 dB Max gain - 36 dB Max gain - 48 dB Reserved Page 22 Gain Setting G1 G2 G3 G4 G5 G6 - www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET The current consumption of the LNA can be reduced at the expense of its performance by setting the bit LnaLowPowerOn in RegLna. In the same way the consumption of the AD converter can be reduced by setting AdcLowPowerOn in RegTemp1. 3.5.3. Automatic Gain Control By default (LnaGainSelect = 000), the LNA gain is controlled by a digital AGC loop in order to obtain the optimal sensitivity/ linearity trade-off. Regardless of the data transfer mode (Packet or Continuous), the following series of events takes place when the receiver is enabled: The receiver stays in WAIT mode, until RssiValue exceeds RssiThreshold for two consecutive samples. Its power consumption is the receiver power consumption. When this condition is satisfied, the receiver automatically selects the most suitable LNA gain, optimizing the sensitivity/ linearity trade-off. The programmed LNA gain, read-accessible with LnaCurrentGain in RegLna, is carried on for the whole duration of the packet, until one of the following conditions is fulfilled: Packet mode: if AutoRxRestartOn = 0, the LNA gain will remain the same for the reception of the following packet. If AutoRxRestartOn = 1, after the controller has emptied the FIFO the receiver will re-enter the WAIT mode described above, after a delay of InterPacketRxDelay, allowing for the distant transmitter to ramp down, hence avoiding a false RSSI detection. Continuous mode: upon reception of valid data, the user can decide to either leave the receiver enabled with the same LNA gain, or to restart the procedure, by setting RestartRx bit to 1, resuming the WAIT mode of the receiver, described above. Notes - the first RSSI sample exceeding RssiThreshold must be confirmed by a second one sample, unless FastRx in RegRssiConfig is set to 1. - the AGC procedure must be performed while receiving preamble in FSK mode - in OOK mode, the AGC will give better results if performed while receiving a constant “1” sequence G1 AgcStep2 G2 AgcStep3 G3 Å AgcStep4 AgcStep5 G4 G5 Higher Sensitivity Lower Linearity Lower Noise Figure Ag cT hr es h5 Ag cT hr es h4 Å Å Ag cT hr es h3 Th re sh 2 Å Ag c Å AgcStep1 Ag c Re fe r AG C Å Towards -125 dBm Th re sh 1 en c e The following figure illustrates the different AGC settings available in the registers RegAgcRef, RegAgcThresh1 and RegAgcThresh2: Pin [dBm] G6 Lower Sensitivity Higher Linearity Higher Noise Figure Figure 7. AGC Thresholds Settings AgcStep settings can be user modified in both Automatic and Manual AgcReference modes, but the default values give good results. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 23 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET The following table summarizes the performance (typical figures) of the complete receiver: Table 12 Receiver Performance Summary Input Power Pin Gain Setting Pin < AgcThresh1 AgcThresh1 < Pin < AgcThresh2 AgcThresh2 < Pin < AgcThresh3 AgcThresh3 < Pin < AgcThresh4 AgcThresh4 < Pin < AgcThresh5 AgcThresh5 < Pin G1 G2 G3 G4 G5 G6 P-1dB [dBm] -37 -31 -26 -14 >-6 >0 Receiver Performance (typ) NF IIP3 IIP2 [dB] [dBm] [dBm] 7 13 18 27 36 44 -18 -15 -8 -1 +13 +20 +35 +40 +48 +62 +68 +75 3.5.3.1. RssiThreshold Setting For correct operation of the AGC, RssiThreshold in RegRssiThresh must be set to the sensitivity of the receiver. The receiver will remain in WAIT mode until RssiThreshold is exceeded. 3.5.3.2. AGC Reference Setting By default, the AGC reference level is automatically computed (AgcAutoReferenceOn = 1), according to: AGC Reference [dBm] = -174 + NF + DemodSnr +10.log(2*RxBw) + AgcSnrMargin [dBm] With: NF = 7dB: LNA’s Noise Figure at maximum gain DemodSnr = 8 dB: SNR needed by the demodulator RxBw: Single sideband channel filter bandwidth AgcSnrMargin: in dB, set in RegAgcThresh1 Fading margin can be adjusted through AgcSnrMargin. Sufficient margin must be taken to ensure reliable operation of the SX1231 receiver, when the incoming signal level during the RSSI evaluation (WAIT mode) is close to AgcThresh1. Note When the AGC reference level is manually set by the user (AgcAutoReferenceOn=0) with AgcReferenceLevel in RegAgcRef, the user should manually account for its optimal fading margin. 3.5.4. Quadrature Mixer - ADCs - Decimators The mixer is inserted between output of the RF buffer stage and the input of the analog to digital converter (ADC) of the receiver section. This block is designed to translate the spectrum of the input RF signal to base-band, and offer both high IIP2 and IIP3 responses. In the lower bands of operation (290 to 510 MHz), the multi-phase mixing architecture with weighted phases improves the rejection of the LO harmonics in receiver mode, hence increasing the receiver immunity to out-of-band interferers. The I and Q digitalization is made by two 5th order continuous-time Sigma-Delta Analog to Digital Converters (ADC). Their gain is not constant over temperature, but the whole receiver is calibrated before reception, so that this inaccuracy has no Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 24 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET impact on the RSSI precision. The ADC output is one bit per channel. It needs to be decimated and filtered afterwards. This ADC can also be used for temperature measurement, please refer to section 3.5.15 for more details. The decimators decrease the sample rate of the incoming signal in order to optimize the area and power consumption of the following receiver blocks. 3.5.5. Channel Filter The role of the channel filter is to filter out the noise and interferers outside of the channel. Channel filtering on the SX1231 is implemented with a 16-tap Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filter, providing an outstanding Adjacent Channel Rejection performance, even for narrowband applications. Note to respect oversampling rules in the decimation chain of the receiver, the Bit Rate cannot be set at a higher value than 2 times the single-side receiver bandwidth (BitRate < 2 x RxBw) The single-side channel filter bandwidth RxBw is controlled by the parameters RxBwMant and RxBwExp in RegRxBw: When FSK modulation is enabled: FXOSC RxBw = ----------------------------------------------------------------RxBwExp + 2 RxBwMant × 2 When OOK modulation is enabled: FXOSC RxBw = ----------------------------------------------------------------RxBwExp + 3 RxBwMant × 2 The following channel filter bandwidths are accessible (oscillator is mandated at 32 MHz): Table 13 Available RxBw Settings Rev 2 - Nov 2009 RxBwMant (binary/value) RxBwExp (decimal) 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 7 7 7 6 6 6 5 5 5 4 4 4 3 3 3 2 2 RxBw (kHz) FSK OOK ModulationType=00 ModulationType=01 2.6 1.3 3.1 1.6 3.9 2.0 5.2 2.6 6.3 3.1 7.8 3.9 10.4 5.2 12.5 6.3 15.6 7.8 20.8 10.4 25.0 12.5 31.3 15.6 41.7 20.8 50.0 25.0 62.5 31.3 83.3 41.7 100.0 50.0 Page 25 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 10b / 24 01b / 20 00b / 16 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 DATASHEET 125.0 166.7 200.0 250.0 333.3 400.0 500.0 62.5 83.3 100.0 125.0 166.7 200.0 250.0 3.5.6. DC Cancellation DC cancellation is required in zero-IF architecture transceivers to remove any DC offset generated through self-reception. It is built-in the SX1231 and its adjustable cutoff frequency fc is controlled in RegRxBw: 4 × RxBw fc = ----------------------------------------DccFreq + 2 2π × 2 The default value of DccFreq cutoff frequency is typically 4% of the RxBw (channel filter BW). The cutoff frequency of the DCC can however be increased to slightly improve the sensitivity, under wider modulation conditions. It is advised to adjust the DCC setting while monitoring the receiver sensitivity. 3.5.7. Complex Filter - OOK In OOK mode the SX1231 is modified to a low-IF architecture. The IF frequency is automatically set to half the single side bandwidth of the channel filter (FIF = 0.5 x RxBw). The Local Oscillator is automatically offset by the IF in the OOK receiver. A complex filter is implemented on the chip to attenuate the resulting image frequency by typically 30 dB. Note this filter is automatically bypassed when receiving FSK signals (ModulationType = 00 in RegDataModul). 3.5.8. RSSI The RSSI block evaluates the amount of energy available within the receiver channel bandwidth. Its resolution is 0.5 dB, and it has a wide dynamic range to accommodate both small and large signal levels that may be present. Its acquisition time is very short, taking only 2 bit periods. The RSSI sampling must occur during the reception of preamble in FSK, and constant “1” reception in OOK. Note The receiver is capable of automatic gain calibration, in order to improve the precision of its RSSI measurements. This function injects a known RF signal at the LNA input, and calibrates the receiver gain accordingly. This calibration is automatically performed during the PLL start-up, making it a transparent process to the end-user. 3.5.9. Cordic The Cordic task is to extract the phase and the amplitude of the modulation vector (I+j.Q). This information, still in the digital domain is used: Phase output: used by the FSK demodulator and the AFC blocks. Amplitude output: used by the RSSI block, for FSK demodulation, AGC and automatic gain calibration purposes. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 26 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET Q(t) Real-time Magnitude Real-time Phase I(t) Figure 8. Cordic Extraction 3.5.10. FSK Demodulator The FSK demodulator of the SX1231 is designed to demodulate FSK, GFSK, MSK and GMSK modulated signals. It is most efficient when the modulation index of the signal is greater than 0.5 and below 10: 2 × F DEV 0.5 ≤ β = ---------------------- ≤ 10 BR The output of the FSK demodulator can be fed to the Bit Synchronizer (described in section 3.5.12), to provide the companion processor with a synchronous data stream in Continuous mode. 3.5.11. OOK Demodulator The OOK demodulator performs a comparison of the RSSI output and a threshold value. Three different threshold modes are available, configured through bits OokThreshType in RegOokPeak. The recommended mode of operation is the "Peak" threshold mode, illustrated in Figure 9: RSSI [dBm] ‘’Peak -6dB’’ Threshold ‘’Floor’’ threshold defined by OokFixedThresh Noise floor of receiver Time Zoom Zoom Decay in dB as defined in OokPeakThreshStep Fixed 6dB difference Period as defined in OokPeakThreshDec Figure 9. OOK Peak Demodulator Description Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 27 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET In peak threshold mode the comparison threshold level is the peak value of the RSSI, reduced by 6dB. In the absence of an input signal, or during the reception of a logical "0", the acquired peak value is decremented by one OokPeakThreshStep every OokPeakThreshDec period. When the RSSI output is null for a long time (for instance after a long string of "0" received, or if no transmitter is present), the peak threshold level will continue falling until it reaches the "Floor Threshold", programmed in OokFixedThresh. The default settings of the OOK demodulator lead to the performance stated in the electrical specification. However, in applications in which sudden signal drops are awaited during a reception, the three parameters should be optimized accordingly. Note For a correct operation of the peak threshold mode of the OOK demodulator, set 0x0c at address 0x6e. 3.5.11.1. Optimizing the Floor Threshold OokFixedThresh determines the sensitivity of the OOK receiver, as it sets the comparison threshold for weak input signals (i.e. those close to the noise floor). Significant sensitivity improvements can be generated if configured correctly. Note that the noise floor of the receiver at the demodulator input depends on: The noise figure of the receiver. The gain of the receive chain from antenna to base band. The matching - including SAW filter if any. The bandwidth of the channel filters. It is therefore important to note that the setting of OokFixedThresh will be application dependant. The following procedure is recommended to optimize OokFixedThresh. Set SX1231 in OOK Rx mode Adjust Bit Rate, Channel filter BW Default OokFixedThresh setting No input signal Continuous Mode Monitor DIO2/DATA pin Increment OokFixedThresh Glitch activity on DATA ? Optimization complete Figure 10. Floor Threshold Optimization Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 28 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET The new floor threshold value found during this test should be the value used for OOK reception with those receiver settings. 3.5.11.2. Optimizing OOK Demodulator for Fast Fading Signals A sudden drop in signal strength can cause the bit error rate to increase. For applications where the expected signal drop can be estimated, the following OOK demodulator parameters OokPeakThreshStep and OokPeakThreshDec can be optimized as described below for a given number of threshold decrements per bit. Refer to RegOokPeak to access those settings. 3.5.11.3. Alternative OOK Demodulator Threshold Modes In addition to the Peak OOK threshold mode, the user can alternatively select two other types of threshold detectors: Fixed Threshold: The value is selected through OokFixedThresh Average Threshold: Data supplied by the RSSI block is averaged, and this operation mode should only be used with DC-free encoded data. 3.5.12. Bit Synchronizer The Bit Synchronizer is a block that provides a clean and synchronized digital output, free of glitches. Its output is made available on pin DIO1/DCLK in Continuous mode and can be disabled through register settings. However, for optimum receiver performance its use when running Continuous mode is strongly advised. The Bit Synchronizer is automatically activated in Packet mode. Its bit rate is controlled by BitRateMsb and BitRateLsb in RegBitrate. Raw demodulator output (FSK or OOK) DATA BitSync Output To pin DATA and DCLK in continuous mode DCLK Figure 11. Bit Synchronizer Description To ensure correct operation of the Bit Synchronizer, the following conditions have to be satisfied: A preamble (0x55 or 0xAA) of 12 bits is required for synchronization (from the RxReady interrupt) The subsequent payload bit stream must have at least one transition form '0' to '1' or '1' to '0 every 16 bits during data transmission Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 29 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET The bit rate matching between the transmitter and the receiver must be better than 6.5 %. Notes - If the Bit Rates of transmitter and receiver are known to be the same, the SX1231 will be able to receive an infinite unbalanced sequence (all “0s” or all ”1s”) with no restriction. - If there is a difference in Bit Rate between Tx and Rx, the amount of adjacent bits at the same level that the BitSync can withstand can be estimated as follows: - This implies approximately 6 consecutive unbalanced bytes when the Bit Rate precision is 1%, which is easily achievable (crystal tolerance is in the range of 50 to 100 ppm). 3.5.13. Frequency Error Indicator This function provides information about the frequency error of the local oscillator (LO) compared with the carrier frequency of a modulated signal at the input of the receiver. When the FEI block is launched, the frequency error is measured and the signed result is loaded in FeiValue in RegFei, in 2’s complement format. The time required for an FEI evaluation is 4 times the bit period. To ensure a proper behavior of the FEI: The operation must be done during the reception of preamble The sum of the frequency offset and the 20 dB signal bandwidth must be lower than the base band filter bandwidth The 20 dB bandwidth of the signal can be evaluated as follows (double-side bandwidth): BR BW 20 dB = 2 × ⎛⎝ F DEV + -------⎞⎠ 2 The frequency error, in Hz, can be calculated with the following formula: FEI = F STEP × FeiValue Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 30 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET SX1231 in Rx mode Preamble-modulated input signal Signal level > Sensitivity Set FeiStart =1 FeiDone =1 No Yes Read FeiValue Figure 12. FEI Process 3.5.14. Automatic Frequency Correction The AFC is based on the FEI block, and therefore the same input signal and receiver setting conditions apply. When the AFC procedure is done, AfcValue is directly subtracted to the register that defines the frequency of operation of the chip, FRF. The AFC can be launched: Each time the receiver is enabled, if AfcAutoOn = 1 Upon user request, by setting bit AfcStart in RegAfcFei, if AfcAutoOn = 0 When the AFC is automatically triggered (AfcAutoOn = 1), the user has the option to: Clear the former AFC correction value, if AfcAutoClearOn = 1 Start the AFC evaluation from the previously corrected frequency. This may be useful in systems in which the LO keeps on drifting in the “same direction”. Ageing compensation is a good example. The SX1231 offers an alternate receiver bandwidth setting during the AFC phase, to accommodate large LO drifts. If the user considers that the received signal may be out of the receiver bandwidth, a higher channel filter bandwidth can be programmed in RegAfcBw, at the expense of the receiver noise floor, which will impact upon sensitivity. 3.5.15. Temperature Sensor When temperature is measured, the receiver ADC is used to digitize the sensor response. Most receiver blocks are disabled, and temperature measurement can only be triggered in Standby or Frequency Synthesizer modes. The response of the temperature sensor is -1°C / Lsb. A CMOS temperature sensor is not accurate by nature, therefore it should be calibrated at ambient temperature for precise temperature readings. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 31 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET TempValue -1°C/Lsb TempValue(t) TempValue(t)-1 Returns 150d (typ.) Needs calibration -40°C t t+1 Ambient +85°C Figure 13. Temperature Sensor Response 3.5.16. Timeout Function The SX1231 includes a Timeout function, which allows it to automatically shut-down the receiver after a receive sequence and therefore save energy. Timeout interrupt is generated TimeoutRxStart x 8 x Tbit after switching to RX mode if RssiThreshold flag does not raise within this time frame Timeout interrupt is generated TimeoutRssiThresh x 8 x Tbit after RssiThreshold flag has been raised. This timeout interrupt can be used to warn the companion processor to shut down the receiver and return to a lower power mode. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 32 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 4. Operating Modes 4.1. Basic Modes The circuit can be set in 5 different basic modes which are described in Table 14. By default, when switching from a mode to another one, the sub-blocks are woken up according to a pre-defined and optimized sequence. Alternatively, these operating modes can be selected directly by disabling the automatic sequencer (SequencerOff in RegOpMode = 1). Table 14 Basic Transceiver Modes ListenOn in RegOpMode 0 0 0 0 0 1 Mode in RegOpMode 000 001 010 011 100 x Selected mode Enabled blocks Sleep Mode Stand-by Mode FS Mode Transmit Mode Receive Mode Listen Mode None Top regulator and crystal oscillator Frequency synthesizer Frequency synthesizer and transmitter Frequency synthesizer and receiver See Listen Mode, section 4.3 4.2. Automatic Sequencer and Wake-Up Times By default, when switching from one operating mode to another, the circuit takes care of the sequence of events in such a way that the transition timing is optimized. For example, when switching from Sleep mode to Transmit mode, the SX1231 goes first to Standby mode (XO started), then to frequency synthesizer mode, and finally, when the PLL has locked, to transmit mode. Entering transmit mode is also made according to a predefined sequence starting with the wake-up of the PA regulator before applying a ramp-up on the PA and generating the DCLK clock. The crystal oscillator wake-up time, TS_OSC, is directly related to the time for the crystal oscillator to reach its steady state. It depends notably on the crystal characteristics. The frequency synthesizer wake-up time, TS_FS, is directly related to the time needed by the PLL to reach its steady state. The signal PLL_LOCK, provided on an external pin, gives an indication of the lock status. It goes high when the PLL reaches its locking range. Four specific cases can be highlighted: Transmitter Wake Up time from Sleep mode = TS_OSC + TS_FS + TS_TR Receiver Wake Up time from Sleep mode = TS_OSC + TS_FS + TS_RE Receiver Wake Up time from Sleep mode, AGC enabled = TS_OSC + TS_FS + TS_RE_AGC Receiver Wake Up time from Sleep mode, AGC and AFC enabled = TS_OSC + TS_FS + TS_RE_AGC&AFC These timings are details in sections 4.2.1 and 4.2.3. In applications where the target average power consumption, or the target startup time, do not require setting the SX1231 in the lowest power modes (Sleep or Standby), the respective timings TS_OSC and TS_FS in the former equations can be omited. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 33 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 4.2.1. Transmitter Startup Time The transmitter wake-up time, TS_TR, is given by the sequence controlled by the digital part. It is a pure digital delay which depends on the bit rate and the ramp-up time. In FSK mode, this time can be derived from the following equation. 1 TS _ TR = 5μs + 1.25 × PaRamp + × Tbit 2 , where PaRamp is the ramp-up time programmed in RegPaRamp and Tbit is the bit time. In OOK mode, this equation can be simplified to the following: 1 TS _ TR = 5μs + × Tbit 2 Tx startup request (sequencer or user) XO Started and PLL is locked TS_TR Analog group delay 0.5 x Tbit 1.25 x PaRamp (only in FSK mode) Transmission of Packet 5 us ModeReady TxReady Figure 14. Tx Startup, FSK and OOK 4.2.2. Tx Start Procedure As described in the former section, ModeReady and TxReady interrupts warn the uC that the transmitter is ready to transmit data In Continuous mode, the preamble bits preceding the payload can be applied on the DIO2/DATA pin immediately after any of these interrupts have fired. The DCLK signal, activated on pin DIO1/DCLK can also be used to start toggling the DATA pin, as described on Figure 27. In Packet mode, the SX1231 will automatically modulate the RF signal with preamble bytes as soon as TxReady or ModeReady happen. The actual packet transmission (starting with the number of preambles specified in PreambleSize) will start when the TxStartCondition is fulfilled. 4.2.3. Receiver Startup Time It is highly recommended to use the built-in sequencer of the SX1231, to optimize the delays when setting the chip in receive mode. It guarantees the shortest startup times, hence the lowest possible energy usage, for battery operated systems. The startup times of the receiver can be calculated from the following: Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 34 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Rx startup request (sequencer or user) XO Started and PLL is locked DATASHEET TS_RE Analog FE’s group delay Channel Filter’s group delay DC Cutoff’s group delay RSSI sampling RSSI sampling Tana Tcf Tdcc Trssi Trssi Reception of Packet ModeReady RxReady Figure 15. Rx Startup - No AGC, no AFC Rx startup request (sequencer or user) XO Started and PLL is locked The LNA gain is adjusted by the AGC, according to the RSSI result TS_RE_AGC Analog FE’s group delay Channel Filter’s group delay DC Cutoff’s group delay RSSI sampling RSSI sampling Channel Filter’s group delay DC Cutoff’s group delay RSSI sampling Tana Tcf Tdcc Trssi Trssi Tcf Tdcc Trssi Reception of Packet ModeReady RxReady Figure 16. Rx Startup - AGC, no AFC Rx startup request (sequencer or user) XO Started and PLL is locked The LNA gain is adjusted by the AGC, according to the RSSI result TS_RE_AGC&AFC Carrier Frequency is adjusted by the AFC Analog FE’s group delay Channel Filter’s group delay DC Cutoff’s group delay RSSI sampling RSSI sampling Channel Filter’s group delay DC Cutoff’s group delay RSSI sampling AFC PLL lock Channel Filter’s group delay DC Cutoff’s group delay Tana Tcf Tdcc Trssi Trssi Tcf Tdcc Trssi Tafc Tpllafc Tcf Tdcc Reception of Packet ModeReady RxReady Figure 17. Rx Startup - AGC and AFC The different timings shown above are as follows: Group delay of the analog front end: Tana = 10 us Channel filter’s group delay in FSK mode: Tcf = 21 / (4.RxBw) Channel filter’s group delay in OOK mode: Tcf = 34 / (4.RxBw) DC Cutoff’s group delay: Tdcc = max(8 , 2^(round(log2(8.RxBw.Tbit)+1)) / (4.RxBw) PLL lock time after AFC adjustment: Tpllafc = 5 / PLLBW (PLLBW = 300 kHz) AFC sample time: Tafc = 4 x Tbit RSSI sample time: Trssi = 2 x int(4.RxBw.Tbit)/(4.RxBw) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 35 (also denoted TS_AFC in the general specification) (aka TS_RSSI) www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Note DATASHEET For time-critical applications, a single RSSI evaluation can be done prior to the reception (AGC disabled), or prior to the AGC procedure. This can be achieved by setting bit FastRx in RegRssiConfig to 1, and saves the equivalent of 2 x Tbit 4.2.4. Rx Start Procedure As described in the former sections, the RxReady interrupt warns the uC that the receiver is ready. In Continuous mode with Bit Synchronizer, the receiver will start locking its Bit Synchronizer on a minimum or 12 bits of received preamble (see section 3.5.12 for details), before the reception of correct Data, or Sync Word (if enabled) can occur. In Continuous mode without Bit Synchronizer, valid data will be available on DIO2/DATA right after the RxReady interrupt. In Packet mode, the receiver will start locking its Bit Synchronizer on a minimum or 12 bits of received preamble (see section 3.5.12 for details), before the reception of correct Data, or Sync Word (if enabled) can occur. 4.2.5. Optimized Frequency Hopping Sequences In a frequency hopping-like application, it is required to turn off the transmitter when hopping from one channel to another, to avoid spectral splatter and obtain the best spectral purity. Transmitter hop from Ch A to Ch B: it is advised to step through the Rx mode: (0) SX1231 is in Tx mode in Ch A (1) Program the SX1231 in Rx mode (2) Change the carrier frequency in the RegFrf registers (3) Wait for TS_HOP (timing corresponding the frequency offset, the PllLock flag can also be used) (4) Turn the transceiver back to Tx mode (5) Respect the Tx start procedure, described in section 4.2.2 Receiver hop from Ch A to Ch B: (0) SX1231 is in Rx mode in Ch A (1) Program the SX1231 in FS mode (2) Change the carrier frequency in the RegFrf registers (3) Wait for TS_HOP (timing corresponding the frequency offset, the PllLock flag can also be used) (4) Turn the transceiver back to Rx mode (5) Respect the Rx start procedure, described in section 4.2.4 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 36 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 4.3. Listen mode The circuit can be set to Listen mode, by setting ListenOn in RegOpMode to 1. In this mode, SX1231 spends most of the time in Idle mode, during which only the RC oscillator runs. Periodically the receiver is woken up and listens for an RF signal. If a wanted signal is detected, the receiver is kept on and the data is demodulated. Otherwise, if a wanted signal hasn't been detected after a pre-defined period of time, the receiver is disabled until the next time period. This periodical Rx wake-up requirement is very common in low power applications. On SX1231 it is handled locally by the Listen mode block without using uC resources or energy. The simplified timing diagram of this procedure is illustrated in Figure 18. tListenIdle Rx Idle Rx tListenRx time tListenRx Figure 18. Listen Mode Sequence (no wanted signal is received) The duration of the idle phase is given by tListenIdle. The time during which the receiver is on and waits for a signal is given by tListenRx. tListenRx includes the wake-up time of the receiver, described in section 4.2.3. This duration can be programmed in the configuration registers via the serial interface. Both time periods tListenRx and tListenIdle (denoted tListenX in the following text) are fixed by two parameters from the configuration register and are calculated as follows: t ListenX = ListenCoefX ⋅ ListenResol where ListenResol gives the Rx/Idle common resolution and is programmable on three values (1, 2 and 3), whereas ListenCoefX is an integer between 1 and 255. All parameters are located in RegListen registers. The timing ranges are tabulated in Table 15 below. Table 15 Range of Durations in Listen Mode Rev 2 - Nov 2009 ListenResol Min duration ( ListenCoef = 1 ) Max duration ( ListenCoef = 255 ) 0101 1010 1111 64 us 4.1 ms 0.26 s 16 ms 1.04 s 67 s Page 37 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET Notes - the accuracy of the typical timings given in Table 15 will depend in the RC oscillator calibration - RC oscillator calibration is required, and must be performed at power up. See section 7.3 for details - the default ListenResol setting 1001 is reserved The criteria taken for detecting a wanted signal and hence deciding to maintain the receiver on is defined by ListenCriteria in RegListen1. Table 16 Signal Acceptance Criteria in Listen Mode ListenCriteria Input Signal Power >= RssiThreshold SyncAddressMatch 0 1 Required Required Not Required Required The action taken after detection of a packet, is defined by ListenEnd in RegListen3, as described in the table below. Table 17 End of Listen Cycle Actions ListenEnd 00 01 10 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Description Chip stays in Rx mode. Listen mode stops and must be disabled. Chip stays in Rx mode until PayloadReady or Timeout interrupt occurs. It then goes to the mode defined by Mode. Listen mode stops and must be disabled. Chip stays in Rx mode until PayloadReady or Timeout interrupt occurs. Listen mode then resumes in Idle state. FIFO content is lost at next Rx wakeup. Page 38 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET Upon detection of a valid packet, the sequencing is altered, as shown below: PayloadReady ListenCriteria passed Idle Rx Idle Rx Idle Rx ListenEnd = 00 Listen Mode Mode ListenEnd = 01 Listen Mode Idle Rx ListenEnd = 10 Listen Mode Figure 19. Listen Mode Sequence (wanted signal is received) For all three ListenEnd settings (i.e. even for 00 and 01) disabling Listen mode can be done anytime by writing all together in a single SPI write command (same register) : ListenOn to 0 ListenAbort to 1 Mode to the wanted operation mode Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 39 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 4.4. AutoModes Automatic modes of packet handler can be enabled by configuring the related parameters in RegAutoModes. The intermediate mode of the chip is called IntermediateMode and the enter and exit conditions to/from this intermediate mode can be configured through the parameters EnterCondition & ExitCondition. The enter and exit conditions cannot be used independently of each other i.e. both should be enabled at the same time. The initial and the final state is the one configured in Mode in RegOpMode. The initial & final states can be different by configuring the modes register while the chip is in intermediate mode. The pictorial description of the auto modes is shown below. Intermediate State defined by IntermediateMode ExitCondition EnterCondition Initial state defined By Mode in RegOpMode Final state defined By Mode in RegOpMode Figure 20. Auto Modes of Packet Handler Some typical examples of AutoModes usage are described below : Automatic transmission (AutoTx) : Mode = Sleep, IntermediateMode = Tx, EnterCondition = FifoLevel, ExitCondition = PacketSent Automatic reception (AutoRx) : Mode = Rx, IntermediateMode = Sleep, EnterCondition = CrcOk, ExitCondition = falling edge of FifoNotEmpty Automatic reception of acknowledge (AutoRxAck): Mode = Tx, IntermediateMode = Rx, EnterCondition = PacketSent, ExitCondition = CrcOk ... Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 40 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5. Data Processing 5.1. Overview 5.1.1. Block Diagram Figure below illustrates the SX1231 data processing circuit. Its role is to interface the data to/from the modulator/ demodulator and the uC access points (SPI and DIO pins). It also controls all the configuration registers. The circuit contains several control blocks which are described in the following paragraphs. DIO0 DIO1 DIO2 DIO3 DIO4 DIO5 Tx/Rx CONTROL Data Rx SYNC RECOG. PACKET HANDLER FIFO (+SR) SPI NSS SCK MOSI MISO Tx Potential datapaths (data operation mode dependant) Figure 21. SX1231 Data Processing Conceptual View The SX1231 implements several data operation modes, each with their own data path through the data processing section. Depending on the data operation mode selected, some control blocks are active whilst others remain disabled. 5.1.2. Data Operation Modes The SX1231 has two different data operation modes selectable by the user: Continuous mode: each bit transmitted or received is accessed in real time at the DIO2/DATA pin. This mode may be used if adequate external signal processing is available. Packet mode (recommended): user only provides/retrieves payload bytes to/from the FIFO. The packet is automatically built with preamble, Sync word, and optional AES, CRC, and DC-free encoding schemes The reverse operation is performed in reception. The uC processing overhead is hence significantly reduced compared to Continuous mode. Depending on the optional features activated (CRC, AES, etc) the maximum payload length is limited to FIFO size, 255 bytes or unlimited. Each of these data operation modes is described fully in the following sections. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 41 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.2. Control Block Description 5.2.1. SPI Interface The SPI interface gives access to the configuration register via a synchronous full-duplex protocol corresponding to CPOL = 0 and CPHA = 0 in Motorola/Freescale nomenclature. Only the slave side is implemented. Three access modes to the registers are provided: SINGLE access: an address byte followed by a data byte is sent for a write access whereas an address byte is sent and a read byte is received for the read access. The NSS pin goes low at the begin of the frame and goes high after the data byte. BURST access: the address byte is followed by several data bytes. The address is automatically incremented internally between each data byte. This mode is available for both read and write accesses. The NSS pin goes low at the beginning of the frame and stay low between each byte. It goes high only after the last byte transfer. FIFO access: if the address byte corresponds to the address of the FIFO, then succeeding data byte will address the FIFO. The address is not automatically incremented but is memorized and does not need to be sent between each data byte. The NSS pin goes low at the beginning of the frame and stay low between each byte. It goes high only after the last byte transfer. Figure below shows a typical SPI single access to a register. Figure 22. SPI Timing Diagram (single access) MOSI is generated by the master on the falling edge of SCK and is sampled by the slave (i.e. this SPI interface) on the rising edge of SCK. MISO is generated by the slave on the falling edge of SCK. A transfer always starts by the NSS pin going low. MISO is high impedance when NSS is high. The first byte is the address byte. It is made of: wnr bit, which is 1 for write access and 0 for read access 7 bits of address, MSB first The second byte is a data byte, either sent on MOSI by the master in case of a write access, or received by the master on MISO in case of read access. The data byte is transmitted MSB first. Proceeding bytes may be sent on MOSI (for write access) or received on MISO (for read access) without rising NSS and re-sending the address. In FIFO mode, if the address was the FIFO address then the bytes will be written / read at the FIFO address. In Burst mode, if the address was not the FIFO address, then it is automatically incremented at each new byte received. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 42 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET The frame ends when NSS goes high. The next frame must start with an address byte. The SINGLE access mode is actually a special case of FIFO / BURST mode with only 1 data byte transferred. During the write access, the byte transferred from the slave to the master on the MISO line is the value of the written register before the write operation. 5.2.2. FIFO 5.2.2.1. Overview and Shift Register (SR) In packet mode of operation, both data to be transmitted and that has been received are stored in a configurable FIFO (First In First Out) device. It is accessed via the SPI interface and provides several interrupts for transfer management. The FIFO is 1 byte wide hence it only performs byte (parallel) operations, whereas the demodulator functions serially. A shift register is therefore employed to interface the two devices. In transmit mode it takes bytes from the FIFO and outputs them serially (MSB first) at the programmed bit rate to the modulator. Similarly, in Rx the shift register gets bit by bit data from the demodulator and writes them byte by byte to the FIFO. This is illustrated in figure below. FIFO byte1 byte0 8 Data Tx/Rx SR (8bits) 1 MSB LSB Figure 23. FIFO and Shift Register (SR) Note When switching to Sleep mode, the FIFO can only be used once the ModeReady flag is set (quasi immediate from all modes except from Tx) 5.2.2.2. Size The FIFO size is fixed to 66 bytes. 5.2.2.3. Interrupt Sources and Flags FifoNotEmpty: FifoNotEmpty interrupt source is low when byte 0, i.e. whole FIFO, is empty. Otherwise it is high. Note that when retrieving data from the FIFO, FifoNotEmpty is updated on NSS falling edge, i.e. when FifoNotEmpty is updated to low state the currently started read operation must be completed. In other words, FifoNotEmpty state must be checked after each read operation for a decision on the next one (FifoNotEmpty = 1: more byte(s) to read; FifoNotEmpty = 0: no more byte to read). FifoFull: FifoFull interrupt source is high when the last FIFO byte, i.e. the whole FIFO, is full. Otherwise it is low. FifoOverrunFlag: FifoOverrunFlag is set when a new byte is written by the user (in Tx or Standby modes) or the SR (in Rx mode) while the FIFO is already full. Data is lost and the flag should be cleared by writing a 1, note that the FIFO will also be cleared. PacketSent: PacketSent interrupt source goes high when the SR's last bit has been sent. FifoLevel: Threshold can be programmed by FifoThreshold in RegFifoThresh. Its behavior is illustrated in figure below. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 43 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET FifoLevel 1 0 B B+1 # of bytes in FIFO Figure 24. FifoLevel IRQ Source Behavior Note - FifoLevel interrupt is updated only after a read or write operation on the FIFO. Thus the interrupt cannot be dynamically updated by only changing the FifoThreshold parameter - FifoLevel interrupt is valid as long as FifoFull does not occur. An empty FIFO will restore its normal operation 5.2.2.4. FIFO Clearing Table below summarizes the status of the FIFO when switching between different modes Table 18 Status of FIFO when Switching Between Different Modes of the Chip From Stdby Sleep Stdby/Sleep Stdby/Sleep Rx Rx Tx To Sleep Stdby Tx Rx Tx Stdby/Sleep Any FIFO status Not cleared Not cleared Not cleared Cleared Cleared Not cleared Cleared Comments To allow the user to write the FIFO in Stdby/Sleep before Tx To allow the user to read FIFO in Stdby/Sleep mode after Rx 5.2.3. Sync Word Recognition 5.2.3.1. Overview Sync word recognition (also called Pattern recognition) is activated by setting SyncOn in RegSyncConfig. The bit synchronizer must also be activated in continuous mode (automatically done in Packet mode) . The block behaves like a shift register; it continuously compares the incoming data with its internally programmed Sync word and sets SyncAddressMatch when a match is detected. This is illustrated in Figure 25 below. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 44 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING Rx DATA Bit N-x = (NRZ) Sync_value[x] DATASHEET Bit N-1 = Bit N = Sync_value[1] Sync_value[0] DCLK SyncAddressMatch Figure 25. Sync Word Recognition During the comparison of the demodulated data, the first bit received is compared with bit 7 (MSB) of RegSyncValue1 and the last bit received is compared with bit 0 (LSB) of the last byte whose address is determined by the length of the Sync word. When the programmed Sync word is detected the user can assume that this incoming packet is for the node and can be processed accordingly. SyncAddressMatch is cleared when leaving Rx or FIFO is emptied. 5.2.3.2. Configuration Size: Sync word size can be set from 1 to 8 bytes (i.e. 8 to 64 bits) via SyncSize in RegSyncConfig. In Packet mode this field is also used for Sync word generation in Tx mode. Error tolerance: The number of errors tolerated in the Sync word recognition can be set from 0 to 7 bits to via SyncTol. Value: The Sync word value is configured in SyncValue(63:0). In Packet mode this field is also used for Sync word generation in Tx mode. Note SyncValue choices containing 0x00 bytes are not allowed 5.2.4. Packet Handler The packet handler is the block used in Packet mode. Its functionality is fully described in section 5.5. 5.2.5. Control The control block configures and controls the full chip's behavior according to the settings programmed in the configuration registers. 5.3. Digital IO Pins Mapping Six general purpose IO pins are available on the SX1231, and their configuration in Continuous or Packet mode is controlled through RegDioMapping1 and RegDioMapping2. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 45 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.3.1. DIO Pins Mapping in Continuous Mode Table 19 DIO Mapping, Continuous Mode Mode Sleep Stdby FS Rx Tx Diox Mapping 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 DIO5 DIO4 DIO3 DIO2 DIO1 DIO0 LowBat ModeReady ClkOut LowBat ModeReady ClkOut LowBat ModeReady ClkOut Rssi LowBat ModeReady ClkOut ClkOut LowBat ModeReady LowBat LowBat LowBat PllLock Timeout RxReady SyncAddress PllLock TxReady TxReady TxReady PllLock AutoMode AutoMode AutoMode Rssi RxReady AutoMode Timeout LowBat LowBat AutoMode TxReady Data Data Data Data Data Data Data Data PllLock PllLock PllLock PllLock Dclk RxReady LowBat SyncAddress Dclk TxReady LowBat LowBat LowBat ModeReady LowBat ModeReady PllLock LowBat ModeReady SyncAddress Timeout Rssi PllLock PllLock PllLock PllLock PllLock 5.3.2. DIO Pins Mapping in Packet Mode Table 20 DIO Mapping, Packet Mode Mode Sleep Stdby FS Rx Tx Note Diox Mapping 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 00 01 10 11 DIO5 DIO4 DIO3 DIO2 DIO1 DIO0 LowBat ModeReady ClkOut LowBat ModeReady ClkOut LowBat ModeReady ClkOut Data LowBat ModeReady ClkOut Data LowBat ModeReady LowBat ModeReady LowBat ModeReady LowBat PllLock Timeout Rssi RxReady PllLock ModeReady TxReady LowBat PllLock FifoFull FifoFull FifoFull FifoFull Rssi SyncAddress PllLock FifoFull TxReady LowBat PllLock FifoNotEmpty AutoMode FifoNotEmpty AutoMode FifoNotEmpty AutoMode FifoNotEmpty Data LowBat AutoMode FifoNotEmpty Data LowBat AutoMode FifoLevel FifoFull FifoNotEmpty PllLock FifoLevel FifoFull FifoNotEmpty Timeout FifoLevel FifoFull FifoNotEmpty PllLock FifoLevel FifoFull FifoNotEmpty Timeout FifoLevel FifoFull FifoNotEmpty PllLock LowBat ModeReady LowBat ModeReady PllLock LowBat ModeReady CrcOk PayloadReady SyncAddress Rssi PacketSent TxReady LowBat PllLock Received Data is only shown on the Data signal between RxReady and PayloadReady’s rising edges Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 46 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.4. Continuous Mode 5.4.1. General Description As illustrated in Figure 26, in Continuous mode the NRZ data to (from) the (de)modulator is directly accessed by the uC on the bidirectional DIO2/DATA pin. The FIFO and packet handler are thus inactive. DIO0 DIO1/DCLK DIO2/DATA DIO3 DIO4 DIO5 Tx/Rx CONTROL Data Rx SYNC RECOG. SPI NSS SCK MOSI MISO Figure 26. Continuous Mode Conceptual View 5.4.2. Tx Processing In Tx mode, a synchronous data clock for an external uC is provided on DIO1/DCLK pin. Clock timing with respect to the data is illustrated in Figure 27. DATA is internally sampled on the rising edge of DCLK so the uC can change logic state anytime outside the grayed out setup/hold zone. T_DATA T_DATA DATA (NRZ) DCLK Figure 27. Tx Processing in Continuous Mode Note the use of DCLK is required when the modulation shaping is enabled (see section 3.4.5). Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 47 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.4.3. Rx Processing If the bit synchronizer is disabled, the raw demodulator output is made directly available on DATA pin and no DCLK signal is provided. Conversely, if the bit synchronizer is enabled, synchronous cleaned data and clock are made available respectively on DIO2/DATA and DIO1/DCLK pins. DATA is sampled on the rising edge of DCLK and updated on the falling edge as illustrated below. DATA (NRZ) DCLK Figure 28. Rx Processing in Continuous Mode Note in Continuous mode it is always recommended to enable the bit synchronizer to clean the DATA signal even if the DCLK signal is not used by the uC (bit synchronizer is automatically enabled in Packet mode). 5.5. Packet Mode 5.5.1. General Description In Packet mode the NRZ data to (from) the (de)modulator is not directly accessed by the uC but stored in the FIFO and accessed via the SPI interface. In addition, the SX1231 packet handler performs several packet oriented tasks such as Preamble and Sync word generation, CRC calculation/check, whitening/dewhitening of data, Manchester encoding/decoding, address filtering, AES encryption/decryption, etc. This simplifies software and reduces uC overhead by performing these repetitive tasks within the RF chip itself. Another important feature is ability to fill and empty the FIFO in Sleep/Stdby mode, ensuring optimum power consumption and adding more flexibility for the software. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 48 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET DIO0 DIO1 DIO2 DIO3 DIO4 DIO5 CONTROL Data Rx SYNC RECOG. PACKET HANDLER FIFO (+SR) SPI NSS SCK MOSI MISO Tx Figure 29. Packet Mode Conceptual View Note The Bit Synchronizer is automatically enabled in Packet mode. 5.5.2. Packet Format 5.5.2.1. Fixed Length Packet Format Fixed length packet format is selected when bit PacketFormat is set to 0 and PayloadLength is set to any value greater than 0. In applications where the packet length is fixed in advance, this mode of operation may be of interest to minimize RF overhead (no length byte field is required). All nodes, whether Tx only, Rx only, or Tx/Rx should be programmed with the same packet length value. The length of the payload is limited to 255 bytes if AES is not enabled else the message is limited to 64 bytes (i.e. max 65 bytes payload if Address byte is enabled). The length programmed in PayloadLength relates only to the payload which includes the message and the optional address byte. In this mode, the payload must contain at least one byte, i.e. address or message byte. An illustration of a fixed length packet is shown below. It contains the following fields: Preamble (1010...) Sync word (Network ID) Optional Address byte (Node ID) Message data Optional 2-bytes CRC checksum Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 49 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET DC free Data encoding CRC checksum calculation AES Enc/Dec Preamble 0 to 65535 bytes Sync Word 0 to 8 bytes Address byte Message Up to 255 bytes CRC 2-bytes Payload (min 1 byte) Fields added by the packet handler in Tx and processed and removed in Rx Optional User provided fields which are part of the payload Message part of the payload Figure 30. Fixed Length Packet Format 5.5.2.2. Variable Length Packet Format Variable length packet format is selected when bit PacketFormat is set to 1. This mode is useful in applications where the length of the packet is not known in advance and can vary over time. It is then necessary for the transmitter to send the length information together with each packet in order for the receiver to operate properly. In this mode the length of the payload, indicated by the length byte, is given by the first byte of the FIFO and is limited to 255 bytes if AES is not enabled else the message is limited to 64 bytes (i.e. max 66 bytes payload if Address byte is enabled). Note that the length byte itself is not included in its calculation. In this mode, the payload must contain at least 2 bytes, i.e. length + address or message byte. An illustration of a variable length packet is shown below. It contains the following fields: Preamble (1010...) Sync word (Network ID) Length byte Optional Address byte (Node ID) Message data Optional 2-bytes CRC checksum DC free Data encoding CRC checksum calculation AES Enc/Dec Preamble 0 to 65535 bytes Sync Word 0 to 8 bytes Length byte Address byte Message Up to 255 bytes CRC 2-bytes Payload (min 2 bytes) Fields added by the packet handler in Tx and processed and removed in Rx Optional User provided fields which are part of the payload Message part of the payload Figure 31. Variable Length Packet Format Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 50 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.5.2.3. Unlimited Length Packet Format Unlimited length packet format is selected when bit PacketFormat is set to 0 and PayloadLength is set to 0. The user can then transmit and receive packet of arbitrary length and PayloadLength register is not used in Tx/Rx modes for counting the length of the bytes transmitted/received. This mode is a replacement for the legacy buffered mode in SX1211/SX1212 transceivers. In Tx the data is transmitted depending on the TxStartCondition bit. On the Rx side the data processing features like Address filtering, Manchester encoding and data whitening are not available if the sync pattern length is set to zero (SyncOn = 0). The filling of the FIFO in this case can be controlled by the bit FifoFillCondition. The CRC detection in Rx is also not supported in this mode of the packet handler, however CRC generation in Tx is operational. The interrupts like CrcOk & PayloadReady are not available either. An unlimited length packet shown in is made up of the following fields: Preamble (1010...). Sync word (Network ID). Optional Address byte (Node ID). Message data Optional 2-bytes CRC checksum (Tx only) DC free Data encoding Preamble 0 to 65535 bytes Sync Word 0 to 8 bytes Address byte Message unlimited length Payload Fields added by the packet handler in Tx and processed and removed in Rx Message part of the payload Optional User provided fields which are part of the payload Figure 32. Unlimited Length Packet Format 5.5.3. Tx Processing (without AES) In Tx mode the packet handler dynamically builds the packet by performing the following operations on the payload available in the FIFO: Add a programmable number of preamble bytes Optional DC-free encoding of the data (Manchester or whitening) Add a programmable Sync word Optionally calculating CRC over complete payload field (optional length byte + optional address byte + message) and appending the 2 bytes checksum. Only the payload (including optional address and length fields) is required to be provided by the user in the FIFO. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 51 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET The transmission of packet data is initiated by the Packet Handler only if the chip is in Tx mode and the transmission condition defined by TxStartCondition is fulfilled. If transmission condition is not fulfilled then the packet handler transmits a preamble sequence until the condition is met. This happens only if the preamble length /= 0, otherwise it transmits a zero or one until the condition is met to transmit the packet data. The transmission condition itself is defined as: if TxStartCondition = 1, the packet handler waits until the first byte is written into the FIFO, then it starts sending the preamble followed by the sync word and user payload If TxStartCondition = 0, the packet handler waits until the number of bytes written in the FIFO is equal to the number defined in RegFifoThresh + 1 If the condition for transmission was already fulfilled i.e. the FIFO was filled in Sleep/Stdby then the transmission of packet starts immediately on enabling Tx 5.5.4. Rx Processing (without AES) In Rx mode the packet handler extracts the user payload to the FIFO by performing the following operations: Receiving the preamble and stripping it off Detecting the Sync word and stripping it off Optional DC-free decoding of data Optionally checking the address byte Optionally checking CRC and reflecting the result on CrcOk. Only the payload (including optional address and length fields) is made available in the FIFO. When the Rx mode is enabled the demodulator receives the preamble followed by the detection of sync word. If fixed length packet format is enabled then the number of bytes received as the payload is given by the PayloadLength parameter. In variable length mode the first byte received after the sync word is interpreted as the length of the received packet. The internal length counter is initialized to this received length. The PayloadLength register is set to a value which is greater than the maximum expected length of the received packet. If the received length is greater than the maximum length stored in PayloadLength register the packet is discarded otherwise the complete packet is received. If the address check is enabled then the second byte received in case of variable length and first byte in case of fixed length is the address byte. If the address matches to the one in the NodeAddress field, reception of the data continues otherwise it's stopped. The CRC check is performed if CrcOn = 1 and the result is available in CrcOk indicating that the CRC was successful. An interrupt (PayloadReady) is also generated on DIO0 as soon as the payload is available in the FIFO. The payload available in the FIFO can also be read in Sleep/Standby mode. If the CRC fails the PayloadReady interrupt is not generated and the FIFO is cleared. This function can be overridden by setting CrcAutoClearOff = 1, forcing the availability of PayloadReady interrupt and the payload in the FIFO even if the CRC fails. 5.5.5. AES AES is the symmetric-key block cipher that provides the cryptographic capabilities to the transceiver. The system proposed can work with 128-bit long fixed keys. The fixed key is stored in a 16-byte write only user configuration register, which retains its value in Sleep mode. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 52 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET As shown in Figure 30 and Figure 31 above the message part of the Packet can be encrypted and decrypted with the cipher 128- cipher key stored in the configuration registers. 5.5.5.1. Tx Processing 1. User enters the data to be transmitted in FIFO in Stdby/Sleep mode and gives the transmit command. 2. On Tx command the Packet handler state machine takes over the control and If encryption is enabled then the message inside the FIFO is read in blocks of 16 bytes (padded with 0s if needed), encrypted and stored back to FIFO. All this processing is done in Tx mode before enabling the packet handling state machine. Only the Message part of the packet is encrypted and preamble, sync word, length byte, address byte and CRC are not encrypted. 3. Once the encryption is done the Packet handling state machine is enabled to transmit the data. 5.5.5.2. Rx Processing 1. The data received is stored in the FIFO, The address, CRC interrupts are generated as usual because these parameters were not encrypted. 2. Once the complete packet has been received. The data is read from the FIFO, decrypted and written back to FIFO. The PayloadReady interrupt is issued once the decrypted data is ready in the FIFO for reading via the SPI interface. The AES encryption/decryption cannot be used on the fly i.e. while transmitting and receiving data. Thus when AES encryption/decryption is enabled, the FIFO acts as a simple buffer. This buffer is filled before initiating any transmission. The data in the buffer is then encrypted before the transmission can begin. On the receive side the decryption is initiated only once the complete packet has been received in the buffer. The encryption/decryption process takes approximately 7.0 us per 16-byte block. Thus for a maximum of 4 blocks (i.e. 64 bytes) it can take up to 28 us for completing the cryptographic operations. The receive side sees the AES decryption time as a sequential delay before the PayloadReady interrupt is available. The Tx side sees the AES encryption time as a sequential delay in the startup of the Tx chain, thus the startup time of the Tx will increase according to the length of data. In Fixed length mode the Message part of the payload that can be encrypted/decrypted can be 64 bytes long. If the address filtering is enabled , the length of the payload should be at max 65 bytes in this case. In Variable length mode the Max message size that can be encrypted/decrypted is also 64 bytes when address filtering is disabled, else it is 48 bytes. Thus, including length byte, the length of the payload is max 65 or 50 bytes (the latter when address filtering is enabled). If the address filtering is expected then AddressFiltering must be enabled on the transmitter side as well to prevent address byte to be encrypted. Crc check being performed on encrypted data, CrcOk interrupt will occur "decryption time" before PayloadReady interrupt. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 53 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 5.5.6. Packet Filtering SX1231's packet handler offers several mechanisms for packet filtering, ensuring that only useful packets are made available to the uC, reducing significantly system power consumption and software complexity. 5.5.6.1. Sync Word Based Sync word filtering/recognition is used for identifying the start of the payload and also for network identification. As previously described, the Sync word recognition block is configured (size, error tolerance, value) in RegSyncValue registers. This information is used, both for appending Sync word in Tx, and filtering packets in Rx. Every received packet which does not start with this locally configured Sync word is automatically discarded and no interrupt is generated. When the Sync word is detected, payload reception automatically starts and SyncAddressMatch is asserted. 5.5.6.2. Address Based Address filtering can be enabled via the AddressFiltering bits. It adds another level of filtering, above Sync word (i.e. Sync must match first), typically useful in a multi-node networks where a network ID is shared between all nodes (Sync word) and each node has its own ID (address). Two address based filtering options are available: AddressFiltering = 01: Received address field is compared with internal register NodeAddress. If they match then the packet is accepted and processed, otherwise it is discarded. AddressFiltering = 10: Received address field is compared with internal registers NodeAddress and BroadcastAddress. If either is a match, the received packet is accepted and processed, otherwise it is discarded. This additional check with a constant is useful for implementing broadcast in a multi-node networks Please note that the received address byte, as part of the payload, is not stripped off the packet and is made available in the FIFO. In addition, NodeAddress and AddressFiltering only apply to Rx. On Tx side, if address filtering is expected, the address byte should simply be put into the FIFO like any other byte of the payload. As address filtering requires a Sync word match, both features share the same interrupt flag SyncAddressMatch. 5.5.6.3. Length Based In variable length Packet mode, PayloadLength must be programmed with the maximum payload length permitted. If received length byte is smaller than this maximum then the packet is accepted and processed, otherwise it is discarded. Please note that the received length byte, as part of the payload, is not stripped off the packet and is made available in the FIFO. To disable this function the user should set the value of the PayloadLength to 255. 5.5.6.4. CRC Based The CRC check is enabled by setting bit CrcOn in RegPacketConfig1. It is used for checking the integrity of the message. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 54 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET On Tx side a two byte CRC checksum is calculated on the payload part of the packet and appended to the end of the message On Rx side the checksum is calculated on the received payload and compared with the two checksum bytes received. The result of the comparison is stored in bit CrcOk. By default, if the CRC check fails then the FIFO is automatically cleared and no interrupt is generated. This filtering function can be disabled via CrcAutoClearOff bit and in this case, even if CRC fails, the FIFO is not cleared and only PayloadReady interrupt goes high. Please note that in both cases, the two CRC checksum bytes are stripped off by the packet handler and only the payload is made available in the FIFO. The CRC is based on the CCITT polynomial as shown below. This implementation also detects errors due to leading and trailing zeros. data input X15 CRC Polynomial =X16 + X12 + X5 + 1 X14 X13 X12 X11 *** X5 X4 *** X0 Figure 33. CRC Implementation 5.5.7. DC-Free Data Mechanisms The payload to be transmitted may contain long sequences of 1's and 0's, which introduces a DC bias in the transmitted signal. The radio signal thus produced has a non uniform power distribution over the occupied channel bandwidth. It also introduces data dependencies in the normal operation of the demodulator. Thus it is useful if the transmitted data is random and DC free. For such purposes, two techniques are made available in the packet handler: Manchester encoding and data whitening. Note Only one of the two methods should be enabled at a time. 5.5.7.1. Manchester Encoding Manchester encoding/decoding is enabled if DcFree = 01 and can only be used in Packet mode. The NRZ data is converted to Manchester code by coding '1' as "10" and '0' as "01". In this case, the maximum chip rate is the maximum bit rate given in the specifications section and the actual bit rate is half the chip rate. Manchester encoding and decoding is only applied to the payload and CRC checksum while preamble and Sync word are kept NRZ. However, the chip rate from preamble to CRC is the same and defined by BitRate in RegBitRate (Chip Rate = Bit Rate NRZ = 2 x Bit Rate Manchester). Manchester encoding/decoding is thus made transparent for the user, who still provides/retrieves NRZ data to/from the FIFO. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 55 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 1/BR ...Sync RF chips @ BR User/NRZ bits Manchester OFF User/NRZ bits Manchester ON 1/BR ... 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 Payload... 0 1 1 0 1 0 ... ... 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 ... ... 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 t ... Figure 34. Manchester Encoding/Decoding 5.5.7.2. Data Whitening Another technique called whitening or scrambling is widely used for randomizing the user data before radio transmission. The data is whitened using a random sequence on the Tx side and de-whitened on the Rx side using the same sequence. Comparing to Manchester technique it has the advantage of keeping NRZ data rate i.e. actual bit rate is not halved. The whitening/de-whitening process is enabled if DcFree = 10. A 9-bit LFSR is used to generate a random sequence. The payload and 2-byte CRC checksum is then XORed with this random sequence as shown below. The data is de-whitened on the receiver side by XORing with the same random sequence. Payload whitening/de-whitening is thus made transparent for the user, who still provides/retrieves NRZ data to/from the FIFO. L F S R P o ly n o m ia l = X 9 + X 5 + 1 X8 X7 X6 X5 X4 X3 T ran sm it d ata X2 X1 X0 W hite ne d d ata Figure 35. Data Whitening Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 56 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 6. Configuration and Status Registers 6.1. General Description Table 21 Registers Summary Reset (built-in) Default (recom mended) Address Register Name 0x00 RegFifo 0x00 FIFO read/write access 0x01 RegOpMode 0x04 Operating modes of the transceiver 0x02 RegDataModul 0x00 Data operation mode and Modulation settings 0x03 RegBitrateMsb 0x1A Bit Rate setting, Most Significant Bits 0x04 RegBitrateLsb 0x0B Bit Rate setting, Least Significant Bits 0x05 RegFdevMsb 0x00 Frequency Deviation setting, Most Significant Bits 0x06 RegFdevLsb 0x52 Frequency Deviation setting, Least Significant Bits 0x07 RegFrfMsb 0xE4 RF Carrier Frequency, Most Significant Bits 0x08 RegFrfMid 0xC0 RF Carrier Frequency, Intermediate Bits 0x09 RegFrfLsb 0x00 RF Carrier Frequency, Least Significant Bits 0x0A RegOsc1 0x41 RC Oscillators Settings 0x0B RegOsc2 0x40 - 0x0C RegLowBat 0x02 Low Battery Indicator Settings 0x0D RegListen1 0x0E RegListen2 0xF5 Listen Mode Idle duration 0x0F RegListen3 0x20 Listen Mode Rx duration 0x10 RegVersion 0x21 Semtech ID relating the silicon revision 0x11 RegPaLevel 0x9F PA selection and Output Power control 0x12 RegPaRamp 0x09 Control of the PA ramp time in FSK mode 0x13 RegOcp 0x14 RegAgcRef 0x40 AGC reference level and FSK polarity control 0x15 RegAgcThresh1 0xB0 AGC thresholds control 0x16 RegAgcThresh2 0x7B AGC thresholds control 0x17 RegAgcThresh3 0x9B AGC thresholds control 0x18 RegLna Rev 2 - Nov 2009 0x92 0xA2 0x0B 0x08 0x1B 0x88 Description Listen Mode settings Over Current Protection control LNA settings Page 57 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET Address Register Name Reset (built-in) Default (recom mended) 0x19 RegRxBw 0x86 0x55 Channel Filter BW Control 0x1A RegAfcBw 0x8A 0x8B Channel Filter BW control during the AFC routine 0x1B RegOokPeak 0x40 OOK demodulator selection and control in peak mode 0x1C RegOokAvg 0x80 Average threshold control of the OOK demodulator 0x1D RegOokFix 0x06 Fixed threshold control of the OOK demodulator 0x1E RegAfcFei 0x10 AFC and FEI control and status 0x1F RegAfcMsb 0x00 MSB of the frequency correction of the AFC 0x20 RegAfcLsb 0x00 LSB of the frequency correction of the AFC 0x21 RegFeiMsb 0x00 MSB of the calculated frequency error 0x22 RegFeiLsb 0x00 LSB of the calculated frequency error 0x23 RegRssiConfig 0x02 RSSI-related settings 0x24 RegRssiValue 0xFF RSSI value in dBm 0x25 RegDioMapping1 0x00 Mapping of pins DIO0 to DIO3 0x26 RegDioMapping2 0x27 RegIrqFlags1 0x80 Status register: PLL Lock state, Timeout, RSSI > Threshold... 0x28 RegIrqFlags2 0x00 Status register: FIFO handling flags, Low Battery detection... 0x29 RegRssiThresh 0x2A RegRxTimeout1 0x00 Timeout duration between Rx request and RSSI detection 0x2B RegRxTimeout2 0x00 Timeout duration between RSSI detection and PayloadReady 0x2C RegPreambleMsb 0x00 Preamble length, MSB 0x2D RegPreambleLsb 0x03 Preamble length, LSB 0x2E RegSyncConfig 0x98 Sync Word Recognition control 0x2F-0x36 RegSyncValue1-8 0x37 RegPacketConfig1 0x10 Packet mode settings 0x38 RegPayloadLength 0x40 Payload length setting 0x39 RegNodeAdrs 0x00 Node address 0x3A RegBroadcastAdrs 0x00 Broadcast address 0x3B RegAutoModes 0x00 Auto modes settings 0x3C RegFifoThresh Rev 2 - Nov 2009 0x05 0x07 0xFF 0xE4 0x00 0x0F 0x01 0x8F Description Mapping of pins DIO4 and DIO5, ClkOut frequency RSSI Threshold control Sync Word bytes, 1 through 8 Fifo threshold, Tx start condition Page 58 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET Default (recom mended) Reset (built-in) Address Register Name 0x3D RegPacketConfig2 0x02 Packet mode settings 0x3E-0x4D RegAesKey1-16 0x00 16 bytes of the cypher key 0x4E RegTemp1 0x01 Temperature Sensor control, ADC low power mode control 0x4F RegTemp2 0x00 Temperature readout 0x58 RegTestLna 0x1B Sensitivity boost 0x6E RegTestOok 0x50 + RegTest Note 0x06 0x0C - Description OOK Demodulator adjustment Internal test registers - Reset values are automatically refreshed in the chip at Power On Reset - Default values are the Semtech recommended register values, optimizing the device operation - Registers for which the Default value differs from the Reset value are denoted by a * in the tables of section 6 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 59 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 6.2. Common Configuration Registers Table 22 Common Configuration Registers Name (Address) RegFifo (0x00) RegOpMode (0x01) RegDataModul (0x02) RegBitrateMsb (0x03) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Bits Variable Name 7-0 Mode Default Description Value 0x00 FIFO data input/output Fifo rw 7 SequencerOff rw 0 6 ListenOn rw 0 5 ListenAbort w 0 4-2 Mode rw 001 1-0 7 6-5 DataMode r r rw 00 0 00 4-3 ModulationType rw 00 2 1-0 ModulationShaping r rw 0 00 7-0 BitRate(15:8) rw 0x1a Page 60 Controls the automatic Sequencer (see section 4.2 ): 0 Æ Operating mode as selected with Mode bits in RegOpMode is automatically reached with the Sequencer 1 Æ Mode is forced by the user Enables Listen mode: 0 Æ Off (see section 4.3) 1 Æ On Aborts Listen mode when set together with ListenOn=0 and new Mode selection in 1 SPI access (see section 4.3) Always reads 0. Transceiver’s operating modes: 000 Æ Sleep mode (SLEEP) 001 Æ Standby mode (STDBY) 010 Æ Frequency Synthesizer mode (FS) 011 Æ Transmitter mode (TX) 100 Æ Receiver mode (RX) others Æ reserved Reads the value corresponding to the current chip mode unused unused Data processing mode: 00 Æ Packet mode 01 Æ reserved 10 Æ Continuous mode with bit synchronizer 11 Æ Continuous mode without bit synchronizer Modulation scheme: 00 Æ FSK 01 Æ OOK 10 - 11 Æ reserved unused Data shaping: in FSK: 00 Æ no shaping 01 Æ Gaussian filter, BT = 1.0 10 Æ Gaussian filter, BT = 0.5 11 Æ Gaussian filter, BT = 0.3 in OOK: 00 Æ no shaping 01 Æ filtering with fcutoff = BR 10 Æ filtering with fcutoff = 2*BR 11 Æ reserved MSB of Bit Rate (Chip Rate when Manchester encoding is enabled) www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING RegBitrateLsb (0x04) 7-0 BitRate(7:0) rw RegFdevMsb (0x05) 7-6 5-0 7-0 Fdev(13:8) Fdev(7:0) r rw rw RegFdevLsb (0x06) DATASHEET 0x0b LSB of Bit Rate (Chip Rate if Manchester encoding is enabled) FXOSC BitRate = ----------------------------------BitRate (15,0) Default value: 4.8 kb/s 00 unused 000000 MSB of the frequency deviation 0x52 LSB of the frequency deviation Fdev = Fstep × Fdev (15,0) RegFrfMsb (0x07) 7-0 Frf(23:16) rw 0xe4 Default value: 5 kHz MSB of the RF carrier frequency RegFrfMid (0x08) 7-0 Frf(15:8) rw 0xc0 Middle byte of the RF carrier frequency RegFrfLsb (0x09) 7-0 Frf(7:0) rw 0x00 LSB of the RF carrier frequency RegOsc1 (0x0A) 7 RcCalStart w 6 RcCalDone r 5-0 7-0 - r r 7-5 4 LowBatMonitor r rw 000 - LowBatOn rw 0 LowBatTrim rw 010 RegOsc2 (0x0B) RegLowBat (0x0C) Frf = Fstep × Frf ( 23 ;0 ) 3 2-0 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Default value: Frf = 915 MHz (32 MHz XO) Triggers the calibration of the RC oscillator when set. Always reads 0. RC calibration must be triggered in Standby mode. See calibration procedure in section 7.3 1 0 Æ RC calibration in progress 1 Æ RC calibration is over 000001 unused 0x40 unused 0 Page 61 unused Real-time (not latched) output of the Low Battery detector, when enabled. Low Battery detector enable signal 0 Æ LowBat off 1 Æ LowBat on Trimming of the LowBat threshold: 000 Æ 1.695 V 001 Æ 1.764 V 010 Æ 1.835 V 011 Æ 1.905 V 100 Æ 1.976 V 101 Æ 2.045 V 110 Æ 2.116 V 111 Æ 2.185 V www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING RegListen1 (0x0D) 7-4 ListenResol rw 1010 * ListenCriteria rw 0 2-1 ListenEnd rw 01 0 7-0 ListenCoefIdle r rw 0 0xf5 3 RegListen2 (0x0E) RegListen3 (0x0F) DATASHEET Resolution of Listen modes timings (calibrated RC osc): 0101 Æ 64 us 1010 Æ 4.1 ms 1111 Æ 262 ms Others Æ reserved Criteria for packet acceptance in Listen mode: 0 Æ signal strength is above RssiThreshold 1 Æ signal strength is above RssiThreshold and SyncAddress matched Action taken after acceptance of a packet in Listen mode: 00 Æ chip stays in Rx mode. Listen mode stops and must be disabled (see section 4.3). 01 Æ chip stays in Rx mode until PayloadReady or Timeout interrupt occurs. It then goes to the mode defined by Mode. Listen mode stops and must be disabled (see section 4.3). 10 Æ chip stays in Rx mode until PayloadReady or Timeout interrupt occurs. Listen mode then resumes in Idle state. FIFO content is lost at next Rx wakeup. 11 Æ Reserved unused Duration of the Idle phase in Listen mode. t ListenIdle = ListenCoefIdle ⋅ ListenResol 7-0 ListenCoefRx rw 0x20 Duration of the Rx phase in Listen mode (startup time included, see section 4.2.3) t ListenRx = ListenCoefRx ⋅ ListenResol RegVersion (0x10) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 7-0 Version r 0x21 Page 62 Version code of the chip. Bits 7-4 give the full revision number; bits 3-0 give the metal mask revision number. www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 6.3. Transmitter Registers Table 23 Transmitter Registers Name (Address) RegPaLevel (0x11) 7 6 5 4-0 Pa0On Pa1On Pa2On OutputPower rw rw rw rw Default Value 1 0 0 11111 RegPaRamp (0x12) 7-4 3-0 PaRamp r rw 0000 1001 RegOcp (0x13) 7-5 4 OcpOn r rw 000 1 * 3-0 OcpTrim rw 1011 Bits Variable Name Mode Description Enables PA0, connected to RFIO and LNA Enables PA1, on PA_BOOST pin Enables PA2, on PA_BOOST pin Output power setting, with 1 dB steps Pout = -18 + OutputPower [dBm] , with PA0 Pout = -14 + OutputPower [dBm] , with PA1 and PA2 unused Rise/Fall time of ramp up/down in FSK 0000 Æ 3.4 ms 0001 Æ 2 ms 0010 Æ 1 ms 0011 Æ 500 us 0100 Æ 250 us 0101 Æ 125 us 0110 Æ 100 us 0111 Æ 62 us 1000 Æ 50 us 1001 Æ 40 us 1010 Æ 31 us 1011 Æ 25 us 1100 Æ 20 us 1101 Æ 15 us 1110 Æ 12 us 1111 Æ 10 us unused Enables overload current protection (OCP) for the PA: 0 Æ OCP disabled 1 Æ OCP enabled Trimming of OCP current: Imax = 45 + 5 × OcpTrim ( mA ) 100 mA OCP by default Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 63 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 6.4. Receiver Registers Table 24 Receiver Registers Name (Address) RegAgcRef (0x14) RegAgcThresh1 (0x15) RegAgcThresh2 (0x16) RegAgcThresh3 (0x17) RegLna (0x18) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Bits Variable Name 7 6 Mode AgcAutoReferenceOn r rw 5-0 AgcReferenceLevel rw 7-5 AgcSnrMargin rw 4-0 AgcStep1 rw 7-4 AgcStep2 rw 3-0 AgcStep3 rw 7-4 AgcStep4 rw 3-0 AgcStep5 rw 7 LnaZin rw 6 LnaLowPowerOn rw 5-3 2-0 LnaCurrentGain LnaGainSelect r rw Default Description Value 0 unused 1 0 Æ AGC Reference is forced in AgcReferenceLevel 1 Æ AGC Reference automatically computed by the chip: AGC Reference [dBm] = -174 + NF + DemodSnr +10.log(2*RxBw) + AgcSnrMargin, with: - NF = 7: LNA’s Noise Figure at maximum gain - DemodSnr = 8 dB, SNR needed by the demodulator - AgcSnrMargin, as set in RegAgcThresh1 - RxBw: single sideband channel filter bandwidth 000000 To be set as close as possible to the receiver sensitivity (-80dBm) when AgcAutoReferenceOn = 0: AGC Reference [dBm] = -80 - AgcReferenceLevel [dB] 101 SNR margin used in the receiver sensitivity calculation (5dB) when the AgcAutoReference = 1 10000 Defines the first AGC Threshold: (16dB) AgcThresh1 = Agc Reference + AgcStep1 0111 Defines the second AGC Threshold: (7dB) AgcThresh2 = AgcThresh1 + AgcStep2 1011 Defines the third AGC Threshold: (11dB) AgcThresh3 = AgcThresh2 + AgcStep3 1001 Defines the fourth AGC Threshold: (9dB) AgcThresh4 = AgcThresh3 + AgcStep4 1011 Defines the fifth AGC Threshold: (11dB) AgcThresh5 = AgcThresh4 + AgcStep5 1 LNA’s input impedance * 0 Æ 50 ohms 1 Æ 200 ohms 0 LNA and mixers low-power mode: 0 Æ normal mode 1 Æ low-power mode enabled. Power consumption is decreased 001 Current LNA gain, set either manually, or by the AGC 000 LNA gain setting: 000 Æ gain set by the internal AGC loop 001 Æ G1 = highest gain 010 Æ G2 = highest gain – 6 dB 011 Æ G3 = highest gain – 12 dB 100 Æ G4 = highest gain – 24 dB 101 Æ G5 = highest gain – 36 dB 110 Æ G6 = highest gain – 48 dB 111 Æ reserved Page 64 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING RegRxBw (0x19) DATASHEET 7-5 DccFreq rw 010 * 4-3 RxBwMant rw 10 * 2-0 RxBwExp rw 101 * Cut-off frequency of the DC offset canceller (DCC): 4 × RxBw fc = ----------------------------------------DccFreq + 2 2π × 2 ~4% of the RxBw by default Channel filter bandwidth control: 00 Æ RxBwMant = 16 10 Æ RxBwMant = 24 11 Æ reserved 01 Æ RxBwMant = 20 Channel filter bandwidth control: FSK Mode: FXOSC RxBw = ----------------------------------------------------------------RxBwExp + 2 RxBwMant × 2 OOK Mode: FXOSC RxBw = ----------------------------------------------------------------RxBwExp + 3 RxBwMant × 2 RegAfcBw (0x1A) RegOokPeak (0x1B) RegOokAvg (0x1C) 7-5 4-3 2-0 7-6 DccFreqAfc RxBwMantAfc RxBwExpAfc OokThreshType rw rw rw rw 100 01 011 * 01 5-3 OokPeakTheshStep rw 000 2-0 OokPeakThreshDec rw 000 7-6 OokAverageThreshFilt rw 10 See Table 13 for tabulated values DccFreq parameter used during the AFC RxBwMant parameter used during the AFC RxBwExp parameter used during the AFC Selects type of threshold in the OOK data slicer: 00 Æ fixed 10 Æ average 01 Æ peak 11 Æ reserved Size of each decrement of the RSSI threshold in the OOK demodulator: 001 Æ 1.0 dB 000 Æ 0.5 dB 010 Æ 1.5 dB 011 Æ 2.0 dB 100 Æ 3.0 dB 101 Æ 4.0 dB 111 Æ 6.0 dB 110 Æ 5.0 dB Period of decrement of the RSSI threshold in the OOK demodulator: 001 Æ once every 2 chips 000 Æ once per chip 010 Æ once every 4 chips 011 Æ once every 8 chips 101 Æ 4 times in each chip 100 Æ twice in each chip 110 Æ 8 times in each chip 111 Æ 16 times in each chip Filter coefficients in average mode of the OOK demodulator: 00 Æ fC ≈ chip rate / 32.π 01 Æ fC ≈ chip rate / 8.π 10 Æ fC ≈ chip rate / 4.π 11 Æ fC ≈ chip rate / 2.π RegOokFix (0x1D) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 5-0 7-0 OokFixedThresh r rw 000000 unused 0110 Fixed threshold value (in dB) in the OOK demodulator. (6dB) Used when OokThresType = 00 Page 65 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 7 6 FeiDone r r 0 0 5 4 FeiStart AfcDone w r 0 1 3 AfcAutoclearOn rw 0 2 AfcAutoOn rw 0 1 0 7-0 AfcClear AfcStart AfcValue(15:8) w w rw 0 0 0x00 RegAfcLsb (0x20) 7-0 AfcValue(7:0) rw 0x00 RegFeiMsb (0x21) 7-0 FeiValue(15:8) r - MSB of the measured frequency offset, 2’s complement RegFeiLsb (0x22) 7-0 FeiValue(7:0) r - LSB of the measured frequency offset, 2’s complement Frequency error = FeiValue x Fstep RegRssiConfig (0x23) 7-4 3 FastRx r rw 0000 0 RegAfcFei (0x1E) RegAfcMsb (0x1F) RegRssiValue (0x24) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 2 1 RssiDone r r 0 1 0 7-0 RssiStart RssiValue w r 0 0xFF Page 66 unused 0 Æ FEI is on-going 1 Æ FEI finished Triggers a FEI measurement when set. Always reads 0. 0 Æ AFC is on-going 1 Æ AFC has finished Only valid if AfcAutoOn is set 0 Æ AFC register is not cleared before a new AFC phase 1 Æ AFC register is cleared before a new AFC phase 0 Æ AFC is performed each time AfcStart is set 1 Æ AFC is performed each time Rx mode is entered Clears the AfcValue when set. Always reads 0 Triggers an AFC when set. Always reads 0. MSB of the AfcValue, 2’s complement format LSB of the AfcValue, 2’s complement format Frequency correction = AfcValue x Fstep unused Fast or standard Rx wakeup sequence 0 Æ 2 RSSI samples over RssiThreshold are required to start the receiver 1 Æ 1 RSSI sample over RssiThreshold is enough to start the receiver unused 0 Æ RSSI is on-going 1 Æ RSSI sampling is finished, result available Trigger a RSSI measurement when set. Always reads 0. Absolute value of the RSSI in dBm, 0.5dB steps. RSSI = -RssiValue/2 [dBm] www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 6.5. IRQ and Pin Mapping Registers Table 25 IRQ and Pin Mapping Registers Name (Address) RegDioMapping1 (0x25) RegDioMapping2 (0x26) RegIrqFlags1 (0x27) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Bits Variable Name Mode Default Value 00 00 00 00 00 00 0 111 * 7-6 5-4 3-2 1-0 7-6 5-4 3 2-0 Dio0Mapping Dio1Mapping Dio2Mapping Dio3Mapping Dio4Mapping Dio5Mapping ClkOut rw rw rw rw rw rw r rw 7 ModeReady r 1 6 RxReady r 0 5 TxReady r 0 4 PllLock r 0 3 Rssi rwc 0 2 Timeout r 0 1 AutoMode r 0 0 SyncAddressMatch r/rwc 0 Page 67 Description Mapping of pins DIO0 to DIO5 See Table 19 for mapping in Continuous mode See Table 20 for mapping in Packet mode unused Selects CLKOUT frequency: 000 Æ FXOSC 001 Æ FXOSC / 2 010 Æ FXOSC / 4 011 Æ FXOSC / 8 100 Æ FXOSC / 16 101 Æ FXOSC / 32 110 Æ RC (automatically enabled) 111 Æ OFF Set when the operation mode requested in Mode, is ready - Sleep: Entering Sleep mode - Standby: XO is running - FS: PLL is locked - Rx: RSSI sampling starts - Tx: PA ramp-up completed Cleared when changing operating mode. Set in Rx mode, after RSSI, AGC and AFC. Cleared when leaving Rx. Set in Tx mode, after PA ramp-up. Cleared when leaving Tx. Set (in FS, Rx or Tx) when the PLL is locked. Cleared when it is not. Set in Rx when the RssiValue exceeds RssiThreshold. Cleared when leaving Rx. Set when a timeout occurs (see TimeoutRxStart and TimeoutRssiThresh) Cleared when leaving Rx or FIFO is emptied. Set when entering Intermediate mode. Cleared when exiting Intermediate mode. Please note that in Sleep mode a small delay can be observed between AutoMode interrupt and the corresponding enter/exit condition. Set when Sync and Address (if enabled) are detected. Cleared when leaving Rx or FIFO is emptied. This bit is read only in Packet mode, rwc in Continuous mode www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING RegIrqFlags2 (0x28) DATASHEET 7 FifoFull r 0 6 5 FifoNotEmpty FifoLevel r r 0 0 4 FifoOverrun rwc 0 3 PacketSent r 0 2 PayloadReady r 0 1 CrcOk r 0 0 LowBat rwc - RegRssiThresh (0x29) 7-0 RssiThreshold rw 0xE4 * RegRxTimeout1 (0x2A) 7-0 TimeoutRxStart rw 0x00 RegRxTimeout2 (0x2B) 7-0 TimeoutRssiThresh rw 0x00 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 68 Set when FIFO is full (i.e. contains 66 bytes), else cleared. Set when FIFO contains at least one byte, else cleared Set when the number of bytes in the FIFO strictly exceeds FifoThreshold, else cleared. Set when FIFO overrun occurs. (except in Sleep mode) Flag(s) and FIFO are cleared when this bit is set. The FIFO then becomes immediately available for the next transmission / reception. Set in Tx when the complete packet has been sent. Cleared when exiting Tx. Set in Rx when the payload is ready (i.e. last byte received and CRC, if enabled and CrcAutoClearOff is cleared, is Ok). Cleared when FIFO is empty. Set in Rx when the CRC of the payload is Ok. Cleared when FIFO is empty. Set when the battery voltage drops below the Low Battery threshold. Cleared only when set by the user. RSSI trigger level for Rssi interrupt : - RssiThreshold / 2 [dBm] Timeout interrupt is generated TimeoutRxStart*16*Tbit after switching to Rx mode if Rssi interrupt doesn’t occur (i.e. RssiValue > RssiThreshold) 0x00: TimeoutRxStart is disabled Timeout interrupt is generated TimeoutRssiThresh*16*Tbit after Rssi interrupt if PayloadReady interrupt doesn’t occur. 0x00: TimeoutRssiThresh is disabled www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 6.6. Packet Engine Registers Table 26 Packet Engine Registers Name (Address) Bits Variable Name Mode Default Description Value 0x00 Size of the preamble to be sent (from TxStartCondition fulfilled). (MSB byte) RegPreambleMsb (0x2c) 7-0 PreambleSize(15:8) rw RegPreambleLsb (0x2d) 7-0 PreambleSize(7:0) rw 0x03 7 SyncOn rw 1 6 FifoFillCondition rw 0 5-3 SyncSize rw 011 2-0 7-0 SyncTol SyncValue(63:56) rw rw 000 0x00 RegSyncValue2 (0x30) 7-0 SyncValue(55:48) rw 0x01 * 2nd byte of Sync word Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) >= 2. RegSyncValue3 (0x31) 7-0 SyncValue(47:40) rw 0x01 * 3rd byte of Sync word. Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) >= 3. RegSyncValue4 (0x32) 7-0 SyncValue(39:32) rw 0x01 * 4th byte of Sync word. Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) >= 4. RegSyncValue5 (0x33) 7-0 SyncValue(31:24) rw 0x01 * 5th byte of Sync word. Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) >= 5. RegSyncValue6 (0x34) 7-0 SyncValue(23:16) rw 0x01 * 6th byte of Sync word. Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) >= 6. RegSyncValue7 (0x35) 7-0 SyncValue(15:8) rw 0x01 * 7th byte of Sync word. Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) >= 7. RegSyncValue8 (0x36) 7-0 SyncValue(7:0) rw 0x01 * 8th byte of Sync word. Used if SyncOn is set and (SyncSize +1) = 8. RegSyncConfig (0x2e) RegSyncValue1 (0x2f) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 69 Size of the preamble to be sent (from TxStartCondition fulfilled). (LSB byte) Enables the Sync word generation and detection: 0 Æ Off 1 Æ On FIFO filling condition: 0 Æ if SyncAddress interrupt occurs 1 Æ as long as FifoFillCondition is set Size of the Sync word: (SyncSize + 1) bytes Number of tolerated errors in Sync word 1st byte of Sync word. (MSB byte) Used if SyncOn is set. www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING PacketFormat rw 0 6-5 DcFree rw 00 4 CrcOn rw 1 3 CrcAutoClearOff rw 0 2-1 AddressFiltering rw 00 0 7-0 PayloadLength rw rw 0 0x40 RegNodeAdrs (0x39) 7-0 NodeAddress rw 0x00 Defines the packet format used: 0 Æ Fixed length 1 Æ Variable length Defines DC-free encoding/decoding performed: 00 Æ None (Off) 01 Æ Manchester 10 Æ Whitening 11 Æ reserved Enables CRC calculation/check (Tx/Rx): 0 Æ Off 1 Æ On Defines the behavior of the packet handler when CRC check fails: 0 Æ Clear FIFO and restart new packet reception. No PayloadReady interrupt issued. 1 Æ Do not clear FIFO. PayloadReady interrupt issued. Defines address based filtering in Rx: 00 Æ None (Off) 01 Æ Address field must match NodeAddress 10 Æ Address field must match NodeAddress or BroadcastAddress 11 Æ reserved unused If PacketFormat = 0 (fixed), payload length. If PacketFormat = 1 (variable), max length in Rx, not used in Tx. Node address used in address filtering. RegBroadcastAdrs (0x3A) 7-0 BroadcastAddress rw 0x00 Broadcast address used in address filtering. RegAutoModes (0x3B) 7-5 EnterCondition rw 000 4-2 ExitCondition rw 000 1-0 IntermediateMode rw 00 Interrupt condition for entering the intermediate mode: 000 Æ None (AutoModes Off) 001 Æ Rising edge of FifoNotEmpty 010 Æ Rising edge of FifoLevel 011 Æ Rising edge of CrcOk 100 Æ Rising edge of PayloadReady 101 Æ Rising edge of SyncAddress 110 Æ Rising edge of PacketSent 111 Æ Falling edge of FifoNotEmpty (i.e. FIFO empty) Interrupt condition for exiting the intermediate mode: 000 Æ None (AutoModes Off) 001 Æ Falling edge of FifoNotEmpty (i.e. FIFO empty) 010 Æ Rising edge of FifoLevel or Timeout 011 Æ Rising edge of CrcOk or Timeout 100 Æ Rising edge of PayloadReady or Timeout 101 Æ Rising edge of SyncAddress or Timeout 110 Æ Rising edge of PacketSent 111 Æ Rising edge of Timeout Intermediate mode: 00 Æ Sleep mode (SLEEP) 01 Æ Standby mode (STDBY) 10 Æ Receiver mode (RX) 11 Æ Transmitter mode (TX) RegPacketConfig1 (0x37) RegPayloadLength (0x38) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 7 DATASHEET Page 70 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING RegFifoThresh (0x3C) RegPacketConfig2 (0x3D) 7 TxStartCondition rw FifoThreshold InterPacketRxDelay rw rw 3 2 RestartRx rw w 1 AutoRxRestartOn rw 0 AesOn rw 6-0 7-4 DATASHEET 1 * Defines the condition to start packet transmission : 0 Æ FifoLevel (i.e. the number of bytes in the FIFO exceeds FifoThreshold) 1 Æ FifoNotEmpty (i.e. at least one byte in the FIFO) 0001111 Used to trigger FifoLevel interrupt. 0000 After PayloadReady occurred, defines the delay between FIFO empty and the start of a new RSSI phase for next packet. Must match the transmitter’s PA ramp-down time. - Tdelay = 0 if InterpacketRxDelay >= 12 - Tdelay = (2InterpacketRxDelay) / BitRate otherwise 0 unused 0 Forces a new RSSI phase to start a new packet reception. Always reads 0. 1 Enables automatic Rx restart (RSSI phase) after PayloadReady occurred and packet has been completely read from FIFO: 0 Æ Off. RestartRx can be used. 1 Æ On. Rx automatically restarted after InterPacketRxDelay. 0 Enable the AES encryption/decryption: 0 Æ Off 1 Æ On (payload limited to 66 bytes maximum) 0x00 1st byte of cipher key (MSB byte) RegAesKey1 (0x3E) 7-0 AesKey(127:120) w RegAesKey2 (0x3F) 7-0 AesKey(119:112) w 0x00 2nd byte of cipher key RegAesKey3 (0x40) 7-0 AesKey(111:104) w 0x00 3rd byte of cipher key RegAesKey4 (0x41) 7-0 AesKey(103:96) w 0x00 4th byte of cipher key RegAesKey5 (0x42) 7-0 AesKey(95:88) w 0x00 5th byte of cipher key RegAesKey6 (0x43) 7-0 AesKey(87:80) w 0x00 6th byte of cipher key RegAesKey7 (0x44) 7-0 AesKey(79:72) w 0x00 7th byte of cipher key RegAesKey8 (0x45) 7-0 AesKey(71:64) w 0x00 8th byte of cipher key RegAesKey9 (0x46) 7-0 AesKey(63:56) w 0x00 9th byte of cipher key RegAesKey10 (0x47) 7-0 AesKey(55:48) w 0x00 10th byte of cipher key RegAesKey11 (0x48) 7-0 AesKey(47:40) w 0x00 11th byte of cipher key RegAesKey12 (0x49) 7-0 AesKey(39:32) w 0x00 12th byte of cipher key RegAesKey13 (0x4A) 7-0 AesKey(31:24) w 0x00 13th byte of cipher key RegAesKey14 (0x4B) 7-0 AesKey(23:16) w 0x00 14th byte of cipher key Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 71 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET RegAesKey15 (0x4C) 7-0 AesKey(15:8) w 0x00 15th byte of cipher key RegAesKey16 (0x4D) 7-0 AesKey(7:0) w 0x00 16th byte of cipher key (LSB byte) 6.7. Temperature Sensor Registers Table 27 Temperature Sensor Registers Name (Address) Bits Variable Name RegTemp1 (0x4E) 7-4 3 RegTemp2 (0x4F) Mode TempMeasStart r w 2 TempMeasRunning r 1 0 AdcLowPowerOn 7-0 TempValue r rw r Default Description Value 0000 unused 0 Triggers the temperature measurement when set. Always reads 0. 0 Set to 1 while the temperature measurement is running. Toggles back to 0 when the measurement has completed. The receiver can not be used while measuring temperature 0 unused 1 ADC low-power mode: 0 Æ normal mode 1 Æ low-power mode enabled. Power consumption is decreased Measured temperature -1°C per Lsb Needs calibration for accuracy 6.8. Test Registers Table 28 Test Registers Name (Address) RegTestLna (0x58) RegTestOok (0x6E) Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Bits Variable Name Mode 7-0 SensitivityBoost rw 7-0 OokDeltaThreshold rw Default Description Value 0x1B High sensitivity or normal sensitivity mode: 0x1B Æ Normal mode 0x2D Æ High sensitivity mode 0x0C Tweaks the OOK Peak Threshold * Page 72 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 7. Application Information 7.1. Crystal Resonator Specification Table 29 shows the crystal resonator specification for the crystal reference oscillator circuit of the SX1231. This specification covers the full range of operation of the SX1231 and is employed in the reference design. Table 29 Crystal Specification Symbol Description FXOSC XTAL Frequency RS Conditions Min Typ Max 26 - 32 MHz XTAL Serial Resistance - 30 140 ohms C0 XTAL Shunt Capacitance - 2.8 7 pF CLOAD External Foot Capacitance 8 16 22 pF On each pin XTA and XTB Unit Notes - the initial frequency tolerance, temperature stability and ageing performance should be chosen in accordance with the target operating temperature range and the receiver bandwidth selected. - the loading capacitance should be applied externally, and adapted to the actual Cload specification of the XTAL. - A minimum XTAL frequency of 28 MHz is required to cover the 863-870 MHz band, 29 MHz for the 902-928 MHz band 7.2. Reset of the Chip A power-on reset of the SX1231 is triggered at power up. Additionally, a manual reset can be issued by controlling pin 6. 7.2.1. POR If the application requires the disconnection of VDD from the SX1231, despite of the extremely low Sleep Mode current, the user should wait for 10 ms from of the end of the POR cycle before commencing communications over the SPI bus. Pin 6 (Reset) should be left floating during the POR sequence. VDD Pin 6 (output) Undefined Wait for 10 ms Chip is ready from this point on Figure 36. POR Timing Diagram Please note that any CLKOUT activity can also be used to detect that the chip is ready. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 73 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 7.2.2. Manual Reset A manual reset of the SX1231 is possible even for applications in which VDD cannot be physically disconnected. Pin 6 should be pulled high for a hundred microseconds, and then released. The user should then wait for 5 ms before using the chip. VDD Pin 6 (input) High-Z > 100 us Wait for 5 ms ’’1’’ High-Z Chip is ready from this point on Figure 37. Manual Reset Timing Diagram Note whilst pin 6 is driven high, an over current consumption of up to ten milliamps can be seen on VDD. 7.3. RC Oscillator Calibration The calibration of the internal oscillator is required when using the Listen mode of the SX1231. The calibration procedure source code is the following: /////// RC CALIBRATION (Once at POR) /////// SetRFMode(RF_STANDBY); WriteRegister(0x57, 0x80); WriteRegister(REG_OSC1, ReadRegister(REG_OSC1) | 0x80); while (ReadRegister(REG_OSC1) & 0x40 == 0x00); WriteRegister(REG_OSC1, ReadRegister(REG_OSC1) | 0x80); while (ReadRegister(REG_OSC1) & 0x40 == 0x00); WriteRegister(0x57, 0x00); //////////////////////////////////////////// 7.4. Reference Design Please contact your Semtech representative for evaluation tools, reference designs and design assistance. Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 74 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 8. Packaging Information 8.1. Package Outline Drawing The SX1231 is available in a 24-lead QFN package as show in Figure 38. A DIMENSIONS MILLIMETERS MIN NOM MAX B D DIM E PIN 1 INDICATOR (LASER MARK) A1 A2 A SEATING PLANE aaa C A A1 A2 b D D1 E E1 e L N aaa bbb 0.80 1.00 0.00 0.05 - (0.20) 0.25 0.30 0.35 4.90 5.00 5.10 3.20 3.25 3.30 4.90 5.00 5.10 3.20 3.25 3.30 0.65 BSC 0.35 0.40 0.45 24 0.08 0.10 C LxN D1 E/2 E1 2 1 N bxN e/2 bbb C A B e D/2 NOTES: 1. CONTROLLING DIMENSIONS ARE IN MILLIMETERS (ANGLES IN DEGREES). 2. COPLANARITY APPLIES TO THE EXPOSED PAD AS WELL AS THE TERMINALS. Figure 38. Package Outline Drawing 8.2. Recommended Land Pattern K DIMENSIONS (C) H G Z Y X DIM C G H K P X Y Z MILLIMETERS (4.90) 4.10 3.30 3.30 0.65 0.35 0.80 5.70 P NOTES: 1. CONTROLLING DIMENSIONS ARE IN MILLIMETERS (ANGLES IN DEGREES). 2. THIS LAND PATTERN IS FOR REFERENCE PURPOSES ONLY. CONSULT YOUR MANUFACTURING GROUP TO ENSURE YOUR COMPANY'S MANUFACTURING GUIDELINES ARE MET. 3. THERMAL VIAS IN THE LAND PATTERN OF THE EXPOSED PAD SHALL BE CONNECTED TO A SYSTEM GROUND PLANE. FAILURE TO DO SO MAY COMPROMISE THE THERMAL AND/OR FUNCTIONAL PERFORMANCE OF THE DEVICE. 4. SQUARE PACKAGE-DIMENSIONS APPLY IN BOTH X AND Y DIRECTIONS. Figure 39. Recommended Land Pattern Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 75 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 8.3. Thermal Impedance The thermal impedance of this package is: Theta ja = 29° C/W typ., calculated from a package in still air, on a 4-layer FR4 PCB, as per the Jedec standard. 8.4. Tape & Reel Specification Figure 40. Tape & Reel Specification Note Single Sprocket holes Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 76 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET 9. Revision History Table 30 Revision History Revision 1 Date Oct 2009 2 Nov 2009 Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Comment First FINAL datasheet version Clarification and adjustment on the specification Corrections throughout the document Improve AGC setting description, Temp sensor description Page 77 www.semtech.com SX1231 ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS & SENSING DATASHEET © Semtech 2009 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without the prior written consent of the copyright owner. The information presented in this document does not form part of any quotation or contract, is believed to be accurate and reliable and may be changed without notice. No liability will be accepted by the publisher for any consequence of its use. Publication thereof does not convey nor imply any license under patent or other industrial or intellectual property rights. Semtech assumes no responsibility or liability whatsoever for any failure or unexpected operation resulting from misuse, neglect improper installation, repair or improper handling or unusual physical or electrical stress including, but not limited to, exposure to parameters beyond the specified maximum ratings or operation outside the specified range. SEMTECH PRODUCTS ARE NOT DESIGNED, INTENDED, AUTHORIZED OR WARRANTED TO BE SUITABLE FOR USE IN LIFE-SUPPORT APPLICATIONS, DEVICES OR SYSTEMS OR OTHER CRITICAL APPLICATIONS. INCLUSION OF SEMTECH PRODUCTS IN SUCH APPLICATIONS IS UNDERSTOOD TO BE UNDERTAKEN SOLELY AT THE CUSTOMER’S OWN RISK. Should a customer purchase or use Semtech products for any such unauthorized application, the customer shall indemnify and hold Semtech and its officers, employees, subsidiaries, affiliates, and distributors harmless against all claims, costs damages and attorney fees which could arise. Contact information Semtech Corporation Advanced Communication and Sensing Products Division 200 Flynn Road, Camarillo, CA 93012 Phone: (805) 498-2111 Fax: (805) 498-3804 E-mail: [email protected] [email protected] Internet: http://www.semtech.com Rev 2 - Nov 2009 Page 78 www.semtech.com