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LimeSDR Family » History » Version 51

laforge, 10/01/2019 03:49 PM

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This page contains information about using LimeSDR family devices from Lime Microsystems together with Osmocom software.
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h1. LimeSDR USB
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The "LimeSDR":https://myriadrf.org/projects/limesdr/ is a low-cost SDR board featuring the Lime Microsystems LMS7002 RF chip.
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!{width:700px}LimeSDR_transp_3.jpg!
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Key characteristics include:
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* RF Transceiver: Lime Microsystems LMS7002M MIMO FPRF
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* FPGA: Altera Cyclone IV EP4CE40F23 – also compatible with EP4CE30F23
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* Memory: 256 MBytes DDR2 SDRAM
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* USB 3.0 controller: Cypress USB 3.0 CYUSB3014-BZXC
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* Oscillator: Rakon RPT7050A @ 30.72MHz
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* Continuous frequency range: 100 kHz – 3.8 GHz
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* Bandwidth: 61.44 MHz
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* RF connection: 10 U.FL connectors (6 RX, 4 TX)
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* Power Output (CW): up to 10 dBm
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* Multiplexing: 2×2 MIMO
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* Power: micro USB connector or optional external power supply
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* Status indicators: programmable LEDs
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* Dimensions: 100 mm x 60 mm
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h2. RF Output Power
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* +11dB in gsm900 (arfcn 5)
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* +3dB in dcs1800 (arfcn 871)
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in dcs1800 a reduction in rx power improves phase noise (e.g. max_power_red 7). the resulting rf output will be around -6dB, but will meet phase noise requirements (<5°rms).
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there is a graph from myriad showing the power vs frequency plot in this thread: https://discourse.myriadrf.org/t/limesdr-s-maximum-transmitting-power-at-different-frequencies/1649
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h2. Clock
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The on-board clock is a 250ppb VCTCXO.  GSM strictly requires 30ppb, but 250ppb _should_  be sufficient for laboratory use.
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h3. Using external clock reference
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using "clock-ref external" the clock-ref input can be fed with a 10MHz clock from e.g. a gpsdo.
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the signal slope is not really important since there is a full pll which can handle sine as well as rectangle signals.
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the internal clock reference should be fine for short testing in the lab(<30min) but is not stable enough for longterm use.
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h1. LimeSDR Mini
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The "LimeSDR Mini":https://myriadrf.org/projects/limesdr/ is a smaller, less expensive version of the original LimeSDR.
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!{width:600px}limesdr-mini-1024x561.jpg!
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Key characteristics include:
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* RF Transceiver: Lime Microsystems LMS7002M FPRF
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* FPGA: Altera MAX 10 (10M16SAU169C8G)
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* EEPROM memory: 2 x 128 KB for RF transciever MCU firmware and data
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* Flash memory: 1 x 4 MB flash memory for data
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* USB 3.0 controller: FTDI FT601
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* Rakon 30.72 MHz VCTCXO
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* Continuous frequency range: 10 MHz – 3.5 GHz
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* Bandwidth: 30.72 MHz
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* RF Connection: 2 x SMA connectors (each can be switched between high and low frequency bands) + 1x U.FL REF CLK
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* Power Output (CW): up to 10 dBm
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* Dimensions: 69 mm x 31.4 mm
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h2. RF Output Power
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* +3dB in gsm900 (arfcn 5)
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* -12dB in dcs1800 (arfcn 871)
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h2. Clock
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the internal clock is ok, but not stable enough (longterm) to run a gsm network. for short term lab use it should be ok. (few minutes).
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h3. Using external clock reference
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providing an external clock is tricky:
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according to the spec from the clockchip used (ti LMK00105) the input signal needs to have "sharp rectangles 2V/ns or better".
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this is a limitation of the LimeSDR mini due to no extra pll chip being present, in contrast to the LimeSDR-USB.
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h2. Notes
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Due to some yet unknown issue with the usb bridge chip used on limesdr mini, some machines have issues getting a reliable usb connection and loose an extreme amount of USB packets. Since the extra bandwith of USB3 is not necessary for normal use of osmo-trx-lms, a *simple work-around is to force the device down to USB2*. This can be done easily by selecting a port which does not have a USB3 socket or use a USB2 only cable/extension to connect the device.
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The board also gets quite warm and can make good use of an extra fan and/or some heatsinks.
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it also takes 800-1000mA of current from the USB socket, so using a 'Y cable' to feed it can help with stability. issues.
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h1. LimeNet Micro
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!{width:700px}640px-LimeSDR-Micro_v2.1_board.png!
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LimeNet Micro is a small all-in-one board combining the sdr, a gpsdo and some rf filters with a raspberry pi compute module3.
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Due to the integrated gpsdo it should have no problems running tdma networks like gsm.
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there are different board variants of which some provide internal diplexers, poe pd, wifi module, hdmi and audio sockets.
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our tests happened with a poe enabled variant without wifi, no diplexers.
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setup: install default raspbian (see getting started link below) and osmocom latest or nightly feeds.
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config: use LNAL or LNAH for rx-path, BAND1 for tx
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h2. RF Output Power
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* +7dB in gsm900 (arfcn 5)
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* -5dB in dcs1800 (arfcn 871)
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h2. Clock
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do not select a specific clock on LimeNet Micro. (remove clock-ref line)
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when this type of hardware is detected osmo-trx defaults to the gps synchronized clock from the fpga (gpsdo).
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see led4/led5 for gps status https://wiki.myriadrf.org/LimeNET-Micro_v2.1_hardware_description#Indication_LEDs
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the external reference clock input socket is currently not supported.
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h2. further information
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https://wiki.myriadrf.org/LimeNET_Micro
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https://wiki.myriadrf.org/Getting_Started_with_the_LimeNET-Micro
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https://wiki.myriadrf.org/LimeNET-Micro_v2.1_hardware_description
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h1. LimeSDR PCIe
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!{width:700px}limesdr-pcie-1-1_jpg_project-body.jpg!
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TBD
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currently not supported
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h1. OsmoTRX on LimeSDR
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In terms of OsmoTRX for LimeSDR, we now have @osmo-trx-lms@ which avoids the previously complex driver stack with UHD, SoapyUHD, SoapySDR, etc. All you need in terms of specific dependencies is:
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* "LimeSuite":https://github.com/myriadrf/LimeSuite.git containing the actual drivers and utilities for LimeSDR (*version 17.09 or later required*, last release @18.06.0@ or @master@ really advised)
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** for LimeSDR-mini, you will need 17.10 or later (last release @18.06.0@ or @master@ really advised)
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If your distro doesn't ship with a LimeSuite new enough, it is advised that you install LimeSuite from osmocom repositories, see [[cellular-infrastructure:MacroBinaryPackages]].
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{{graphviz_link()
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digraph G{
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  rankdir = LR;
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  LimeSDR -> LimeSuite [label = "USB/libusb"];
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  LimeSuite -> OsmoTRX [label = "osmo-trx-lms"];
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}
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}}
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h3. Verifying the driver stack
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You can ensure that LimeSuite recognizes your device using the *LimeUtil* part of LimeSuite:
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<pre>
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$ LimeUtil --find
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  * [LimeSDR-USB, media=USB 3.0, module=STREAM, addr=1d50:6108, serial=0009060B00xxyyzz]
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</pre>
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h3. Running osmo-trx-lms with LimeSDR
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If @rt-prio@ is set in .cfg file, running as root may be required.
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A sample cfg file to run @osmo-trx-lms@ with a LimeSDR device can be found in @osmo-trx.git@ in @doc/examples/osmo-trx-lms/osmo-trx-limesdr.cfg@.
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<pre>
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osmo-trx-lms -C osmo-trx.git/doc/examples/osmo-trx-lms/osmo-trx-limesdr.cfg
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</pre>
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h2. Other LimeSDR related information
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