Using LoRa wireless long-range IoT connectivity
Support for the development of tracking, positioning, and metering applications


STMicroelectronics announced on the 21st that it has released the ready-to-use LoRa development packs P-NUCLEO-LRWAN2 and P-NUCLEO-LRWAN3 for $99 each.

The two development packs support not only companies but also individual designers, hobby developers, and students in developing applications such as tracking, positioning, and metering using LoRa long-range low-power wireless IoT connectivity.

Both packs utilize ST’s STM32 Nucleo evaluation boards and provide a LoRaWAN development chain including gateway and end-node boards, firmware, and tools. Each pack, available regionally for 868MHz/915MHz/923MHz and sub-550MHz ISM frequency bands, includes dedicated gateway software and ST’s end-node software, I-CUBE-LRWAN. The node and gateway boards come with antennas and onboard debuggers.

The LoRa gateway included in each pack is implemented using the NUCLEO-F746ZG, an STM32 Nucleo-144 development board equipped with an STM32F746ZGT6 MCU. Unlike commercial gateways, users can easily access device pins that support development. This gateway acts as a basic 'Packet Forwarder' capable of forwarding incoming data from the development node to a LoRaWAN network server.

ST has signed agreements with LoRaWAN network server providers LoRIOT, Actility, and TTN (The Things Network) to enable users to connect gateways to basic network server functions for free. Additionally, users can control devices and visualize sensor data using the Cayenne IoT Builder dashboard for LoRa on myDevices.

The node is based on the NUCLEO-L073RZ Nucleo-64 board, which features an embedded STM32L073RZT6 ultra-low power MCU, and comes with a battery socket. Each pack includes a LoRa node expansion board, consisting of an ultra-low power STM32-based module that executes the AT instruction stack. Various motion and environment sensors are also provided on the board.

The P-NUCLEO-LRWAN2 pack is for the high-frequency (868MHz/915MHz/923MHz) ISM band. This pack comes with the I-NUCLEO-LRWAN1 node expansion board designed by USI and combines STM32L0-based modules with ST's sensor devices, including the LSM303AGR MEMS electronic compass (accelerometer/magnetic sensor), LPS22HB pressure sensor, and ST HTS221 temperature and humidity sensor.

The P-NUCLEO-LRWAN3 pack for low-frequency (433/470 MHz) ISM regions is provided with a node expansion board containing an STM32L0-based RisingHF module RHF0M003, an ST LSM6DS33D accelerometer, an ST LPS22HB pressure sensor, and an HTS221 temperature and humidity sensor.

Both packs are currently available, and developers are provided with a comprehensive set of software tools, including the LoRaWAN protocol stack and free IDEs such as Keil MDK-ARM, as well as the STM32CubeMX MCU Initializer and Configurator.