NB Scan Networks

This example prints out the IMEI number of the modem, then checks to see if it's connected to a carrier and prints out its signal strength. It also scans for all nearby networks.

Hardware Required

Circuit

Code

First, import the NB library

#include <MKRNB.h>

SIM cards may have a PIN number that enables their functionality. Define the PIN for your SIM. If your SIM has no PIN, you can leave it blank :

#define PINNUMBER ""

Initialize instances of the classes you're going to use. You're going to need the NB, NBScanner, and NBModem classes.

NB nbAccess;
NBScanner scannerNetworks;
NBModem modemTest;

Create a variable to hold the IMEI number, and a status messages to send to the serial monitor:

String IMEI = "";

String errortext = "ERROR";

In setup, open a serial connection to the computer. After opening the connection, send a message to the Serial Monitor indicating the sketch has started. Call @scannerNetworks.begin()@@ to reset the modem.

void setup(){
  Serial.begin(9600);
  Serial.println("NB networks scanner");
  scannerNetworks.begin();

Create a local variable to track the connection status. You'll use this to keep the sketch from starting until the SIM is connected to the network :

boolean connected = true;

Connect to the network by calling gsmAccess.begin(). It takes the SIM card's PIN as an argument. By placing this inside a while() loop, you can continually check the status of the connection. When the modem does connect, nbAccess() will return NB_READY. Use this as a flag to set the connected variable to true or false. Once connected, the remainder of setup will run.

while(!connected)
  {
    if ((nbAccess.begin(PINNUMBER) == GSM_READY) &&
       (gprs.attachGPRS() == GPRS_READY)) {
     connected = true;
    else
    {
      Serial.println("Not connected");
      delay(1000);
    }
  }

Get the IMEI of the modem with modemTest.getIMEI() and print it out to the serial monitor.

Serial.print("Modem IMEI: ");
  IMEI = modemTest.getIMEI();
  IMEI.replace("\n","");
  if(IMEI != NULL)
    Serial.println(IMEI);

In loop(), scan and print out all available networks. This may take some time

Serial.println("Scanning available networks. May take some seconds.");
  Serial.println(scannerNetworks.readNetworks());

Print out the current connected carrier, and the strength of the signal. Signal strength is on a scale of 0-31, where 0 is the lowest, and 31 is the highest. close the loop().

Serial.print("Current carrier: ");
  Serial.println(scannerNetworks.getCurrentCarrier());

  Serial.print("Signal Strength: ");
  Serial.print(scannerNetworks.getSignalStrength());
  Serial.println(" [0-31]");

Once your code is uploaded, open the serial monitor to see the status of the connection.

The complete sketch is below.

/*

 NB Scan Networks

 This example prints out the IMEI number of the modem,
 then checks to see if it's connected to a carrier.
 Then it scans for nearby networks and prints out their signal strengths.

 Circuit:
 * MKR NB 1500 board
 * Antenna
 * SIM card

 Created 8 Mar 2012
 by Tom Igoe, implemented by Javier Carazo
 Modified 4 Feb 2013
 by Scott Fitzgerald
*/


// libraries
#include <MKRNB.h>

#include "arduino_secrets.h"
// Please enter your sensitive data in the Secret tab or arduino_secrets.h
// PIN Number
const char PINNUMBER[] = SECRET_PINNUMBER;

// initialize the library instance
NB nbAccess;     // include a 'true' parameter to enable debugging
NBScanner scannerNetworks;
NBModem modemTest;

// Save data variables
String IMEI = "";

// serial monitor result messages
String errortext = "ERROR";

void setup() {
  // initialize serial communications and wait for port to open:
  Serial.begin(9600);
  while (!Serial) {
    ; // wait for serial port to connect. Needed for Leonardo only
  }

  Serial.println("NB IoT/LTE Cat M1 networks scanner");
  scannerNetworks.begin();

  // connection state
  boolean connected = false;

  // Start module
  // If your SIM has PIN, pass it as a parameter of begin() in quotes
  while (!connected) {
    if (nbAccess.begin(PINNUMBER) == NB_READY) {
      connected = true;
    } else {
      Serial.println("Not connected");
      delay(1000);
    }
  }

  // get modem parameters
  // IMEI, modem unique identifier
  Serial.print("Modem IMEI: ");
  IMEI = modemTest.getIMEI();
  IMEI.replace("\n", "");
  if (IMEI != NULL) {
    Serial.println(IMEI);
  }
}

void loop() {
  // currently connected carrier
  Serial.print("Current carrier: ");
  Serial.println(scannerNetworks.getCurrentCarrier());

  // returns strength and ber
  // signal strength in 0-31 scale. 31 means power > 51dBm
  // BER is the Bit Error Rate. 0-7 scale. 99=not detectable
  Serial.print("Signal Strength: ");
  Serial.print(scannerNetworks.getSignalStrength());
  Serial.println(" [0-31]");

  // scan for existing networks, displays a list of networks
  Serial.println("Scanning available networks. May take some seconds.");
  Serial.println(scannerNetworks.readNetworks());
  // wait ten seconds before scanning again
  delay(10000);
}

See Also:




Last revision 2018/11/27 by SM