LoRaWAN node working, Meshtastic installed.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
You can see: I don't care about the off-grid stuff that much. I want a mesh network to connect a local community in better ways. And on the next level connect these local meshes together in a useful way.
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Ian W.replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
@jwildeboer I've not gotten to the point of setting mine up to an MQTT broker. Are there any good guides out there that can walk me through it?
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Ian W. last edited by
@uid0 I will set it up myself, using my already existing MQTT broker as soon as I have another node to work with. I find https://meshtastic.org/docs/configuration/module/mqtt/ to be quite understandable, when you know a bitt about MQTT.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
@uid0 Setting up a MQTT broker is dependent on your operating system. I only use Linux for that, so it was quite simple. Just install Mosquitto [1] from the standard repositories, open port 1883 in the firewall, run the broker, done.
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Ype Kingmareplied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
Interesting.
I need secure local connections for a software system that I'm building, open source. It aggregates smart meter values in real time, with full privacy for the meter values. The goal is to use the results to have local cheaper energy by allowing an energy cooperation to use the aggregate on the energy markets.
I'm using local fixed internet connections now, but not everyone has that. Bandwidth is low, but connectivity should ideally be always on. Could that fit?
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Ype Kingma last edited by
@KingmaYpe Yep. Collect data locally, use LoRa mesh to send it around, have one or more nodes with MQTT so you can use them to forward all data. LoRa and MQTT for sensor networks is not an uncommon approach, BTW
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
@KingmaYpe (German page) here's a simple solution (not meshtastic, though) for your use case: https://de.elv.com/p/elv-bausatz-lorawan-energiezaehler-sensorschnittstelle-elv-lw-esi-P157439/?itemId=157439
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Danie van der Merwereplied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
@jwildeboer yes and encrypted channels with bounce across other nodes without them being able to read, unless they have the PSK as well. New v2.5 of the node firmware will enable proper E2EE between nodes as DMs soon too.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Danie van der Merwe last edited by [email protected]
@danie10 Yep, my T-Deck is on 2.5.1 And tomorrow I should receive two Heltec V3 boards so I have more than one node.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by [email protected]
Today two Heltec V3 boards [1] arrived and I put the first one in its nice looking case that I printed yesterday (model used: https://www.printables.com/model/936437-heltec-lora-32-v3-ht-slimpro-cases-by-alley-cat). Flashed the #meshtastic firmware on it and done. Connected to the other node, first message sent. Nice Will go out for a walk later to see what range I can get.
[1] https://heltec.org/project/wifi-lora-32-v3/
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
Ah, why not. Took me just 3 minutes. Second Heltec board joined the mesh and has a nice case too So now I have a 3 node LoRa mesh at home Tomorrow the 2000 mAh battery packs arrive, making the nodes mobile
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Benjaminreplied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
@jwildeboer I'm totally not looking into the hardware for this right now...
Which modules did you get? 868 MHz or 915 MHz? Is the distinction important in Germany?
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Benjamin last edited by
@blindcoder Must be 433 or 868 MHz for Europe, AFAICS. See https://www.thethingsnetwork.org/docs/lorawan/frequencies-by-country/ and https://meshtastic.org/docs/configuration/radio/lora/
433 is not used that often. 868 MHz is far more popular.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
(I must admit that putting new experiments in nice looking cases that I can print myself on my 3D printer elevates the fun to experiment to a whole new level
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
And I already start to see more meshtastic nodes that aren't mine Nice! Time for that walk outside ...
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by [email protected]
Well. Walking around with my T-Deck is a disappointment. It needs a better antenna (which is on its way, should arrive tomorrow). The included sticker antenna just isn't doing enough. It sees no nodes out here. Bummer.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by [email protected]
Slowly understanding the meshtastic mesh. Seems that naming your node "Meshtastic <last 2 bytes of BLE MAC address>" is the norm. So I renamed my 3 nodes to "Meshtastic e69c", "Meshtastic e99c" and "Meshtastic 1edc". And I am seeing a few more nodes directly and via hops (meaning that I go through a nearby node that forwards to more nodes out of direct reach). Nice!
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
Tomorrow I should receive two GPS modules that I can connect to my T-Decks (one I already have, a second one will arrive soon, I hope), allowing me to also collect positioning data.
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Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange:replied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
And entering the world of antenna design for LoRa reminds me of high-end audio madness with argon filled coax cables for speakers But I ordered some antennas that supposedly are really good for 868 MHz transmissions
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Richard Hughesreplied to Jan Wildeboer 😷:krulorange: last edited by
@jwildeboer details please! I tried to get into lora a few years ago but everything was a bit raw and new.