Use the Sigfox Network Emulator in Russia (RC7 Configuration)

The Sigfox network in Russia will use a dedicated radio configuration, called RC7. This configuration is very similar to the RC1, used in Europe, Middle East and Africa. The main difference is that the central frequency is at 868.8 MHz instead of 868.1 MHz.

This tutorial will show you how to configure a RC1 development kit (here, a Unashield and use it in RC7 configuration in Russia.

Setup

You need

• 1 SDR Dongle. This USB key comes with a dedicated Sigfox Network Emulator softwaren allowing to locally emulate the Sigfix network
• 1 Arduino Uno board
• 1 Sigfox shield with a Wisol RC1 module, could be
  • 1 Unabiz Arduino shield
  • 1 Wisol breakout from Yadom

The test can be done with either

• Over the air, using an antenna on both the SDR dongle and the shield. Please note that this emulator is intended for close-range testing (a few meters), not to reflect the long distance communications of the live service
• In conducted mode, with a SMA cable and an attenuator which are included in the SDR Dongle package

SDR Dongle configuration

To work under RC7 specifications the SDR dongle software must be configured like this:

Radio frequencies

Set the Uplink center frequency at 868800000Hz, Downlink center frequency at 869100000Hz and bit rate at 100 bits/second

Devices whitelist

The Network Emulator software will only process Sigfox messages coming from a whitelist of devices.

Extract the ID of your own device, and set it in the Devices menu as in this example:

Callbacks

You can use the callbacks menu to configure a Sigfox callback to push incoming data to your own application server.

Arduino code for your Unashield

Upload the sample Arduino code to your Arduino board.

This sample code will do the following :

• Set up the proper central frequencies and emulator mode, using the module documented AT commands
  • AT$IF=868800000 — Uplink central frequency
  • AT$DR=869100000 — Downlink central frequency
  • ATS410=1 — Mode public key on
  • ATS302=15 — Set output power to max value
  • AT$WR — Save configuration
• Send hardcoded messages. Check the code 🧐

Received messages

In the messages panel (example below), you will see :

• Incoming uplink messages, with payload 0xC0FFEE
• Incoming downlink messages, with payload 0xBABE
  • Downlink means that the device request a reply, and will wake up after a few seconds to receive it
  • You will see an Out of Band message, which is the ACK sent by the device (including voltage & received signal strength information) after receiving the downlink response