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

Arduino MKR NB 1500
antenna
SIM card enable for Data

Circuit

MKRNB1500 bb

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);
}

Table of Contents

NB Scan Networks

Hardware Required

Circuit

Code

See Also: