65 lines
2.6 KiB
ReStructuredText
65 lines
2.6 KiB
ReStructuredText
Introduction to the WiPy
|
|
========================
|
|
|
|
To get the most out of your WiPy, there are a few basic things to
|
|
understand about how it works.
|
|
|
|
Caring for your WiPy and expansion board
|
|
----------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
Because the WiPy/expansion board does not have a housing it needs a bit of care:
|
|
|
|
- Be gentle when plugging/unplugging the USB cable. Whilst the USB connector
|
|
is well soldered and is relatively strong, if it breaks off it can be very
|
|
difficult to fix.
|
|
|
|
- Static electricity can shock the components on the WiPy and destroy them.
|
|
If you experience a lot of static electricity in your area (eg dry and cold
|
|
climates), take extra care not to shock the WiPy. If your WiPy came
|
|
in a ESD bag, then this bag is the best way to store and carry the
|
|
WiPy as it will protect it against static discharges.
|
|
|
|
As long as you take care of the hardware, you should be okay. It's almost
|
|
impossible to break the software on the WiPy, so feel free to play around
|
|
with writing code as much as you like. If the filesystem gets corrupt, see
|
|
below on how to reset it. In the worst case you might need to do a safe boot,
|
|
which is explained in detail in :ref:`wipy_boot_modes`.
|
|
|
|
Plugging into the expansion board and powering on
|
|
-------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
The expansion board can power the WiPy via USB. The WiPy comes with a sticker
|
|
on top of the RF shield that labels all pins, and this should match the label
|
|
numbers on the expansion board headers. When plugging it in, the WiPy antenna
|
|
will end up on top of the SD card connector of the expansion board. A video
|
|
showing how to do this can be found `here on YouTube <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47D9MZ9zFQw>`_.
|
|
|
|
Expansion board hardware guide
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
The document explaining the hardware details of the expansion board can be found
|
|
`in this PDF <https://github.com/wipy/wipy/blob/master/docs/User_manual_exp_board.pdf>`_.
|
|
|
|
Powering by an external power source
|
|
------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
The WiPy can be powered by a battery or other external power source.
|
|
|
|
**Be sure to connect the positive lead of the power supply to VIN, and
|
|
ground to GND. There is no polarity protection on the WiPy so you
|
|
must be careful when connecting anything to VIN.**
|
|
|
|
- When powering via ``VIN``:
|
|
|
|
**The input voltage must be between 3.6V and 5.5V.**
|
|
|
|
- When powering via ``3V3``:
|
|
|
|
**The input voltage must be exactly 3V3, ripple free and from a supply capable
|
|
of sourcing at least 300mA of current**
|
|
|
|
Performing firmware upgrades
|
|
----------------------------
|
|
|
|
For detailed instructions see :ref:`OTA How-To <wipy_firmware_upgrade>`.
|