LoRa - Long-Range Radio for IoT | Arduino, ESP32, RPI Pico
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Published 2023-09-11
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If you need to send small amounts of data, such as sensor readings, over long distances, then LoRa (Long Range) radio is the technology for you. You can achieve incredible distances using low-cost modules and basic antennas. You can measure these distances in miles or kilometers with the right equipment.
Today, we will experiment with two readily available, low-cost LoRa modules: the HopeRF RFM95W and the Adafruit RFM9x. They are essentially the same module, with the Adafruit device having onboard voltage regulation and logic-level conversion, making it compatible with both 5-volt and 3.3-volt microcontrollers. The Adafruit offering is also easier to handle, as the HopeRF module is not breadboard-friendly.
We will use these modules with an Arduino Uno, a Raspberry Pi Pico, and an ESP32. We’ll program with both C++ in the Arduino IDE and MicroPython using the Thonny IDE.
Here is the Table of Contents for today's video:
00:00 - Introduction
01:30 - LoRa Primer
07:38 - HopeRF RFM95W & Adafruit RFM9x
11:08 - LoRa Antennas
13:06 - Seeedstudio LoRa-E5
14:35 - Heltec ESP32-LoRa
16:09 - Installing & Using the LoRa Library
18:32 - Adafruit RFM9x Hookup
21:24 - Demo 1 - Simple data transmission
25:43 - Demo 2 - One-way remote control
30:34 - Demo 3 - Callback & Two-way remote control
36:43 - Raspberry Pi Pico MicroPython & Hookup
39:13 - LoRa with MicroPython Code & Demo
45:39 - Data Gathering Project Intro
46:35 - Data Gathering Hookup & Operation
53:11 - Data Gathering Code
1:02:45 - Data Gathering Demos
1:05:07 - Conclusion
While this is a long video, it barely scratches the surface of what you can accomplish using LoRa. You’ll be seeing more LoRa-related projects and tutorials here soon, including one on LoRaWAN.
Hope you enjoy the video!
Bill
All Comments (21)
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Hi everyone - It's come to my attention that there has been someone masquerading as myself, responding to some comments here with a link to a Telegram chat to win a prize from me. THIS IS A SCAM, I am not holding a contest, nor do I have a Telegram account. PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THESE MESSAGES!! It's happening on a lot of my videos, I'm taking steps to remove them manually, but as I have 162 videos, it will take some time. If you do run across a suspicious comment, I would appreciate you letting me know at info@dronebotworkshop.com/ Thanks! Bill (The real one!)
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Originally I was going to do a video about LoRa & LoRaWAN, however it was far too much for one video. I'll have a follow-up LoRaWAN video out very soon.
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Why don't we people say thanks to library makers! Who makes our code so easy!
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Whenever I am looking for a clear explanation of new development tech I always come to the DroneBot Man. My favorite nerd!
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Bill, you have created some amazing content over the years and have helped me quite a bit., and I am sure so many microcontroller enthusiasts. I love how thorough you are and the pace you teach at, it is perfect for me! Please keep up the great work. A sincere Thank you is in order!
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I like the way you explain the hardware and software so clearly without getting bogged down with explaining the familiar patterns.
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Thanks Bill. I was finally able to get some Lora modules working AND I really appreciate that you covered Arduino/C/C++ , MicroPython , and the 3 different microcontrollers. Hope you can continue to do that with all your projects moving forward.
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I was waiting for this video after reading your news letter and it didn't disappoint. A BIG thank you for including MicroPython in your video. This really helps me with my microcontroller journey. 📡
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A group of us did a 100+ node LoRa Meshtastic cluster at DEF CON this year. I love this technology.
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Andreas Spiess is the king of anything LORA related. He's got terrific knowledge and has done some incredible things with it. A simple search for his channel will find him. The guy with the Swiss accent!
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As a radio ham (VA3MVW) I really liked this particular issue of your vlog, Bill. Super stuff!
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Been using LoRa for a while now with most my devices.. i love it
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This Super Thanks thing is new to me. I'm glad to have an easy way to reward great content creators like you. My students call you the DroneBot Man.
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Your videos are so well thought out, thorough and easy to grasp. Well done!
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Thanks! Once again you have inspired me. Great video I’ve been wanting to know more about LoRa and you filled all the blanks for me. Can’t wait for the LoRaWan video.
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For some years I’ve been following your content. I’ve always thought it was interesting. But I’ve legit been looking for a video explaining the simplest terms and way to even do this. This video comprehensively makes sense. It makes me excited to order some parts and get going. Hope this helps some at all, albeit not much. Thanks for all the content and being a good steward in teaching us all how to get going.
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Very nice video! An excellent introduction to LoRa with a lot of background information. I can't wait to see the follow-ups, too!
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Your presentations are just fantastic. All your preparation and diagrams make a complex subject very easy to understand.
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Awesome explanations and demos as usual. Thank you very much! Looking forward to the LoRaWAN video.
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Thanks for doing a video on this! I was just thinking about trying some of these modules out!
