Ampy to transfer files to Pycom microcontroller

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Introduction

This guide will demonstrate the use of thge Adafruit MicroPython tool (ampy) to load (put) and download (get) files and run code on a Pycom LoPy4 board connected to the serial port of the Raspberry Pi.

Authors

For more information contact Adam Simankowicz or Edmond Lascaris

References

Updating Pycom Device Firmware

  • It is very important to always keep the firmware on a microcontroller updated to the most current stable version.
  • Firmware is equivalent to a small operating system pre-installed on a device that helps it perform its core functions.
  • Updating firmware will help to resolve bugs, give you access to new features and fix security issues.
  • In this lesson we will upgrade the firmware on the Pycom4 microcontroller using the Expansion Board version 3.1.
  • Full details on how to complete the firmware upgrade are availa- ble at Updating Device Firmware (pycom.io)
  • The updated was conducted on a MacOS 10.13.6

Updating Firmware on the Pycom4

  • Plug the Pycom4 into the Pycom Expansion Board V3.1.
  • Note that if you are using another Pycom device or expansion board you will need to refer to specific instructions for that setup.
  • Download the Pycom Firmware updater tool (Mac, PC, Linux) from the URL below and install the software.
https://docs.pycom.io/updatefirmware/device/


  • Connect the Pycom4/Expansion board to your computer and then start the Pycom Firmware updater software.
  • In the Welcome screen ensure only the latest stable release is installed, not developmental releases.
  • The latest version at the time of this writing is 1.16.6

  • Follow any special setup instructions.

Communications settings

  • The software should identify that the Pycom device is connected to the serial port (USB).
  • Ensure that the following settings are selected then click Continue.

Pybytes resistration

  • The following window will ask for Pybytes registration. Pybytes is an online programming tool for the Pycom microcontrollers.
  • We will not be using this feature so press Skip.

Advanced settings

  • The next window is the Advanced Settings.
  • Include the following selections:
    • File System: LittleFS – filing system optimised for microcontrollers
    • Erase during update – reformat the memory using this file system
    • RESET Config and NVS partitions
    • LoRa Region – Australia and frequency AU915
  • Then press Continue.

Upgrading

  • The upgrade process will take less than one minute.

Successful update

  • When completed the following output will be provided.
  • It is not important to record these details, however you may wish to note down:
    • Firmware version (1.20.2.r6)
    • Device ID: 807D3A938770
    • LoRa MAC: 70B3D54990CFD875
  • Click Done when finished.
  • The Pycom board can then be disconnected from the computer.

Register the Pycom LoPy4 to The Things Network

Log into The Things Network

  • Go to The Things Network in Australia
https://www.thethingsnetwork.org/country/australia/

  • Create and account and login.
  • Enter the Console
  • Select the region Australia

Create an Application

  • An Application is specially configured software that relates to a Things device.
  • In this case the device is a Pycom Lopy4 microcontroller that will transmit temperature data.
  • Click on Goto Applications

  • Click on Create Application

  • Enter
    • Application ID
    • Application name
    • Description

Register end device

  • Click on Register end device to start the registration process.

  • Click on Enter device specific manually
  • Freq plan - Australia FSB 2
  • LoRaWAN version - MAC V1.0.2
  • Regional Parameters - PHY V1.0.2 REV B

Advanced Activation settings

  • Activation mode - Over the air activation (OTAA)
  • Additional LoRaWAN class capabilities - None (Class A only)
  • Network defaults - Use network's default MAC settings

Provisioning information

  • The JoinEUI (formerly called APPEUI) is a 64 bit extended unique identified used to identify a new device during activation.
  • Registering a device on The Things Network
  • The DevEUI should be a globally unique identifier for the device.
  • You can run the code below on you Pycom module to retrieve its EUI.
  • This code can be executed as a program ampy on the Raspberry Pi.
  • See details for using ampy below.
from network import LoRa
import ubinascii

lora = LoRa()
print("DevEUI: %s" % (ubinascii.hexlify(lora.mac()).decode('ascii')))
  • Save the python file using Thonny with the file name joinEUI-test.py

  • Open the Terminal and enter the following command to upload the python file to the Pycom microcontroller.
ampy -p /dev/ttyACM0 put /home/pi/joinEUI-test.py /flash/joinEUI-test.py


  • It needs to be randomly generated using a python script in the Terminal
import secrets
secrets.token_hex(8)


  • Each output will be different because the hexadecimal numbers are ramdomly generated.
  • In this case the number is 0430ab1144df0a68
  • Enter this number for the JoinEUI
  • Click on Confirm

DevEUI

Using Ampy to upload software to the Pycom

Installation of Ampy

sudo pip3 install adafruit-ampy

  • To check that ampy has installed correct enter the following in the Terminal.
ampy --help

  • To upgrade ampy to the latest version enter the code
sudo pip3 install adafruit-ampy --upgrade

Connecting to Pycom using Ampy

  • To connect to the Pycom enter the following command:
ampy -p /dev/ttyACM0 ls
  • Commands need to be entered one at a time.
  • This command list the main directory on the Pycom /flash
  • All files on the Pycom are found within this directory.
    • -p the Pycom on the Raspberry Pi is always connected to port /dev/ttyACM0

  • To list all files and directories on the Pycom enter the command:
ampy -p /dev/ttyACM0 ls -l /flash

Get files from Pycom using Ampy

  • Use the get command to copy files from the pycom.
  • The following commands serves as an example to get the boot.py file from the Pycom to the host computer.
  • The get command will always overwrite files on the computer without warning!
ampy -p /dev/ttyACM0 get /flash/boot.py /home/pi/boot_backup.py

  • The get command without a destination file name will print the contents of the file.
ampy -p /dev/ttyACM0 get /flash/boot.py

Put files onto the Pycom using Ampy

  • Put files onto the Pycom with the command:
ampy -p /dev/ttyACM0 put /home/pi/test.py /flash/test.py

Run code using Ampy

  • You can copy code to the Pycom and then run the code.
  • Save the following code in a file named /home/pi/test.py
print('Hello world! I can count to 100:')
for i in range(1,100):
    print(i)

Registering the Pycom to The Things Network

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