This page contains application examples, document references, tips and tricks and so on related to STM32 cellular.
1. What are Cellular LTE CatM and NBIoT?
LTE CatM and Narrowband Internet of Things (NBIoT) are low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) radio technology standards developed by 3GPP to enable a wide range of cellular devices and services.
NBIoT focuses specifically on the indoor coverage, low cost, long battery life, and high connection density.
The advantage of LTE CatM over NBIoT is its higher data rate, mobility, and voice over the network. However it requires more bandwidth and is more costly.
Check GSMA's NBIoT / LTE CatM world wide coverage information
2. Getting started with STM32 and Cellular LTE Cat M and NBIoT
On hardware point of view, STMicroelectronics offers various possibilities to setup a STM32 with the Cellular connectivity solution:
| P-L496G-CELL01: Kit with a screenless 32L496GDISCOVERY Discovery board and a STMod+ board with the Quectel UG96 modem | |
| P-L496G-CELL02: Kit with a screenless 32L496GDISCOVERY Discovery board and a STMod+ board with the Quectel BG96 modem | |
| B-L475E-IOT01A IoT Discovery board and add-on board with the Quectel BG96 modem | |
| B-L475E-IOT01A IoT Discovery board and add-on board with the Sequans® GM01Q modem | |
| 32L496GDISCOVERY Discovery board and modem board based on the Sequans® GM01Q or the Quectel UG96 or the BG96 modem |
Note that to connect the STMod+ board to the B-L475E-IOT01A IoT Discovery board, an Arduino / STMod+ adapter (X-NUCLEO-STMODA1) is needed.
On software side, the X-CUBE-CELLULAR (X-CUBE Expansion Package) provides a software solution to allow customers to quickly and easily develop their own Firmware:
- Based on FreeRTOS
- Users can choose whether to use either the IP stack in the modem or in the STM32 (LwIP)
- Menu and command line through Virtual COM UART over USB ST-LINK to configure the cellular connectivity parameters (technology selection, bands, APN, and others), and the connection to the cloud IoT platform (HTTP or MQTT)
- Easy to support a new modem.
Several applications are provided as examples including: PING, ECHO, HTTP, and MQTT.
For more information check X-CUBE-CELLULAR
New hardware setups and new software features in X-CUBE-CELLULAR are to be provided to customers over time.
Zigbee 3.0 mesh to cloud over cat-M with BLE 5.0 user control (MWC/EW 2020)
ST at CES 2019 - LTE IoT Starter Kits
STM32 Cellular to Cloud Discovery Packs: 2G/3G and Espruino JS, LTE IoT! Embedded World 2018
4. STM32 compliant with Cellular LTE CatM and NBIoT
X-CUBE-CELLULAR
P-L496G-CELL02
B-L475E-IOT01A
32L496GDISCOVERY
X-NUCLEO-STMODA1
GM01Q
5. Specific tools
STMicroelectronics’ STM32 Power Shield to power and analyze current consumption
Network simulator for both LTE CatM & NBIoT
6. STMicroelectronics resources
| Doc Number | Title |
|---|---|
| DB3582 | Cellular connectivity software expansion for STM32Cube |
| UM2567 | Getting started with the X-CUBE-CELLULAR cellular connectivity Expansion Package for STM32Cube |
| UL2426 | X-CUBE-CELLULAR cellular connectivity Expansion Package for STM32Cube |