The Adafruit Feather M0 with an RFM9x LoRa 868/915 MHz radio module that transmits and receives small packets of data is designed to make flexible wireless networks without the high power requirements of WiFi.
Each Adafruit LoRa device comes with a small label that contains a MAC address in the form 98:76:B6:xx:yy:zz. This might be a sticker attached to the device itself or included separately. The MAC address is needed when connecting the Feather to LoRaWAN. Speaking from experience, I suggest taking a photo of this sticker as a backup plan for when the sticker goes missing.
To make it easy to use the Feather for portable projects, Adafruit added a connector for a 3.7V Lithium polymer battery. The Feather can run off a battery or a micro USB, and you can use the USB input to recharge the battery. The Feather will automatically switch from the battery to USB power when available. The battery is also tied through a divider to an analog pin, so you can measure and monitor the battery voltage to detect when you need a recharge.
The module can be programmed in the Arduino IDE. To get the battery’s voltage, connect the battery to D9 (A7), read the pin voltage, and then double it to get the battery voltage.
The tutorial is an entry point into the world of solar-powered IoT. Programming and sizing a system are some of the practical aspects of designing energy-efficient remote data monitoring devices. Introducing the LIC demonstrates that a capacitor can provide a viable alternative to a battery for truly low-power devices. Using The Things Network and Qubitro dashboard brings an added dimension of network connectivity and data visualization to the project, making it a perfect blend of the practical IoT challenges you will face when designing your applications.
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Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7:30pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat and our Discord!
Python for Microcontrollers – Adafruit Daily — Python on Microcontrollers Newsletter: CircuitPython Comes to the ESP32-P4, Emulating Arm on RISC-V, and Much More! #CircuitPython #Python #micropython @ThePSF @Raspberry_Pi
EYE on NPI – Adafruit Daily — EYE on NPI Maxim’s Himalaya uSLIC Step-Down Power Module #EyeOnNPI @maximintegrated @digikey
