u-blox EVK-VERA-P174 Evaluation Kit User Guide

This document provides a comprehensive guide to setting up and utilizing the EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation kit for the VERA-P1 series host-based V2X transceiver modules.

1. Evaluation Kit Description

The VERA-P1 is a compact, embedded transceiver module enabling Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communication systems. It integrates a MAC/LLC/Baseband processor and RF front-end components, connecting to a host processor via USB or SPI.

The EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation kit offers a streamlined method for evaluating VERA-P1 modules. It serves as an evaluation and development platform, providing full access to the VERA-P1 module's interfaces and facilitating integration with external PC or host processor development platforms.

Main Features of the EVK-VERA-P174:

Table 1: EVK-VERA-P174 Evaluation Kit Versions

Evaluation Kit Description Suitable for evaluation of
EVK-VERA-P174 Evaluation kit for the VERA-P1 module VERA-P173 (with single radio firmware)
VERA-P174 (with dual radio firmware)

For more details on VERA-P1 series modules, refer to the VERA-P1 series data sheet [1] and VERA-P1 series system integration manual [2].

The EVK-VERA-P174 comprises two boards connected via a board-to-board connector. The upper board houses the VERA-P174 and NEO-M8U GNSS modules. The lower power supply board includes the USB interface and main power supply, allowing direct connection to a compatible host board.

1.2 Kit Includes

The EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation kit includes:

1.3 Software and Documentation

Linux drivers, firmware, and basic evaluation tools for VERA-P1 modules are available via u-blox support. Software distribution requires signing the u-blox Limited Use License Agreement (LULA-N).

Contact u-blox support for your region to obtain the software package.

1.4 System Requirements

1.5 Specifications

The following tables detail the absolute maximum ratings and operating conditions for the EVK-VERA-P174:

Table 2: Absolute Maximum Ratings

Symbol Description Min. Max. Unit
V_Sys Main power supply 9 – 28 V -0.3 28.0 V
5V0_A1, 5V0_A2 Power supply voltage 5 V -0.3 6.0 V
3V3 Power supply voltage 3.3 V -0.3 3.9 V
VIO I/O supply voltage 1.8 V/3.3 V -0.3 3.9 V
TSTORAGE Storage temperature -40 +95 °C

Table 3: Operating Conditions

Symbol Description Min. Typ Max. Unit
V_Sys Main power supply voltage 9 12 28 V
5V0_A1, 5V0_A2 Power supply voltage 5.0 V 4.5 5.0 5.5 V
3V3 Power supply voltage 3.3 V 3.0 3.3 3.6 V
VIO I/O supply voltage 1.8 V/3.3 V 1.65 1.8 1.95 V
TA Ambient operating temperature -40 3.0 3.3 3.6 °C
Ripple Noise Peak-to-peak voltage ripple on 3V3 supply lines 175 mV
Peak-to-peak voltage ripple on 5V0 supply lines 125 mV

Table 4: Digital Pad Ratings

Symbol Description Conditions Typ Max. Unit
VIH Input high voltage 0.7*VIO1 VIO1 V
VIL Input low voltage -0.3 0.62 V
VHYS Input hysteresis 0.18 V
VOH Output high voltage Iomax = 5 mA VIO - 0.4 V
VOL Output low voltage Iomax = -5 mA 0.4 V

1 1PPS pad always uses 1.8 V internally generated IO supply regardless of the VIO pad voltage.
2 RSTn pad is internally pulled high to VIO voltage by 100k. During reset, it should be below 0.2 V.

2. Getting Started

Follow these basic steps to evaluate VERA-P1 modules using the EVK-VERA-P174:

  1. Ensure jumpers are placed on the current measurement pin headers on the main board as shown in Figure 2. For 5 V, 3.3 V, and 1.8 V supplies, jumpers must be placed on the power supply board to utilize the on-board voltage regulators. The VIO voltage selection jumper on the power supply board defaults to 3.3 V. Refer to the board's back for jumper location details.
  2. Place jumpers on Boot_0 and Boot_1 to select USB DFU boot mode.
  3. Connect two external 5.9 GHz antennas to the VERA-P1 module's SMA antenna connectors. Ensure RF ports are terminated to a 50 Ω load (e.g., antenna, spectrum analyzer, or 802.11p receiver). If connecting two EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation kits directly, use a minimum attenuation of 50 dB to prevent module damage.
  4. Connect a 9 – 28 V, 12 W power adapter to the power supply board's barrel power connector. The power and reset LEDs should illuminate.
  5. Connect the power supply board's micro USB connector to a host processor or PC. The USB LED should illuminate.
  6. Follow the quick start instructions in Section 4.1 to build the Linux driver and applications for VERA-P1 modules and download the firmware.

3. Board Description

This section details the EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation board, its connectors, and configuration settings.

3.1 Block Diagram

Figure 3 illustrates the general block diagram of the evaluation board.

Figure 3: Block diagram of the EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation board

3.2 Overview

Table 5 lists connectors on the EVK-VERA-P174 main board, and Table 6 lists connectors on the power supply board, along with their functions.

3.2.1 Main board

Figure 4: EVK-VERA-P1 Main board assembly overview

Table 5: EVK-VERA-P174 Main board connector description

Designator Connector Description
J112 Bootstrapping Jumpers to select the VERA-P1 boot mode.
J105 SPI SPI interface connector.
J108 1PPS Jumper and connector for the internal or external 1PPS signal.
J109 3V3 current measure Pin header to measure current on 3V3 rail.
J110 VIO current measure Pin header to measure current on VIO rail.
J111 5V current measure Pin header to measure current on 5V rail.
J102 ANT1 SMA connector for antenna 1 of VERA-P1.
J103 ANT2 SMA connector for antenna 2 of VERA-P1.
J113 SPI CS Jumper to configure SPI chip select routing between VERA-P1, SPI flash, and host.
J104 GNSS antenna SMA connector for the GNSS antenna.
J106 GNSS connector Connector for GNSS UART/1PPS signals.
J101 Host interface connector Board-to-board connector to the power supply board.

3.2.2 USB and power supply board

Figure 5: USB Power supply board assembly overview

Table 6: EVK-VERA-P174 Power supply board connector description

Designator Connector Description
J1 Main supply 2.5 x 5.5 mm barrel connector for 9 – 28 V power supply. Connect jumpers J7, J8, J9 and J10 before using.
J8 Jumper for 5 V supply Disconnect to use external 5 V supply on J5.
J7 Jumper for 3.3 V supply Disconnect to use external 3.3 V supply on J4.
J5 External 5 V supply Connector for external 5 V supply.
J4 External 3.3 V supply Connector for external 3.3 V supply.
J10 VIO select Jumper to select VIO voltage 1.8 V or 3.3 V.
J9 Jumper for 1.8 V supply Disconnect to use external 1.8 V supply on J6.
J6 External 1.8 V supply Connector for external 1.8 V supply.
J2 Micro USB USB interface connector.
J3 Host interface connector Board-to-board connector to the main board.

3.3 Connectors

3.3.1 Power supply and configuration

The VERA-P1 module supports 3.3 V, 5 V, and VIO (3.3 V or 1.8 V) supplies. The evaluation board is powered via a DC power jack (J1) with a 9-28 V input. Supply voltages can be generated by on-board DC-DC converters and LDO regulators, or supplied externally via connectors J5 (5 V), J4 (3.3 V), and J6 (1.8 V) on the power supply board. Disconnect jumpers J8, J7, or J9 to use external power supply connectors. The VIO voltage for the VERA-P1 module can be selected using jumper J10 on the power supply board (1.8 V or 3.3 V). Individual current consumption on the 3.3 V, 5 V, and VIO rails can be measured using pin headers J109, J111, and J110 on the main board.

3.3.2 USB interface

The USB host communication for the VERA-P1 module is handled by the micro USB connector (J2) on the power supply board. This connector links to a USB 2.0 hub, which connects to the following downstream devices:

3.3.3 Bootstrapping

The bootstrapping jumper (J112) on the main board selects the VERA-P1 module's boot mode. Table 7 lists the valid bootstrap options. To set a logic level 0, connect the boot pin to GND with a jumper. Leave the pin open for logic level 1.

Table 7: Boot mode configuration

Boot mode Boot 2 Boot 1 Boot 0 Description
SPI master 1 0 1 VERA-P1 acts as an SPI master, automatically downloading a bootloader or firmware from an SPI flash.
SPI slave 1 0 1 Firmware download is controlled by an external SPI master. VERA-P1 acts as SPI slave.
USB-DFU 1 0 0 USB Device Firmware Upgrade (DFU) boot mode. VERA-P1 presents itself as a DFU device for downloading SDR firmware.

The EVK-VERA-P174 includes an on-board SPI flash for the SPI master boot option. Refer to section 3.3.5 for SPI chip select routing options.

3.3.4 SPI interface

The SPI interface connector (J105) on the main board connects to the VERA-P1 module's SPI interface or the on-board SPI flash. SPI chip select jumpers configure the SPI chip select signal routing between the VERA-P1 module and the SPI flash.

3.3.5 SPI chip select

The EVK-VERA-P174 features an 8 Mbit SPI flash (SST25VF080B) for storing radio firmware or bootloaders. The SPI chip select pin header (J113) on the main board configures the routing of the SPI chip select signal between the VERA-P1, host, and SPI flash. Table 8 shows possible configurations.

Table 8: SPI Chip select configuration

SPI CS routing Jumper settings3 (J113) Description
Host to flash via USB 2(1-3) Programs the flash from the host via USB. The SPI flash is accessible via the USB interface on the power supply board. A USB-to-SPI bridge (FT2232H) connects the SPI flash to the USB.
Host to flash via J105 2(1-3), 4(5-6) Programs the flash from the host directly over SPI. The SPI flash is accessible via the SPI interface connector or the host interface connector. Jumper on 5-6 disables the USB-to-SPI bridge.
VERA-P1 to flash 1 (1-2), 4(5-6) Connects VERA-P1 to the SPI flash for firmware or bootloader download when boot mode "SPI master" is selected (see 3.3.3).
Host to VERA-P1 via J105 3(2-4), 4 (5-6) Connects VERA-P1 to the host over SPI when boot mode "SPI slave" is selected (see 3.3.3). The VERA-P1 SPI interface is accessible via the SPI interface connector or the host interface connector.

3 Italic number is the designation as printed on the EVK.

3.3.6 1PPS interface

A 1PPS UTC reference signal is required by the IEEE1609.4 MAC for aligning transmissions during channel switching and timekeeping. The 1PPS pin header (J108) on the main board connects the 1PPS signal from the on-board NEO-M8U GNSS receiver to the VERA-P1 module's 1PPS input. Place a jumper on pins 1 and 2 of the 1PPS pin header to connect the 1PPS signal from the NEO-M8U GNSS module to the VERA-P1 module. Pins 2 (VERA-P1 1PPS) and 3 (GND) can be used to connect an external 1PPS signal to the VERA-P1 module. The signal level for external 1PPS can range from 1.8–5 V and is converted to 1.8 V via a level shifter.

3.3.7 GNSS interface

GNSS UART and 1PPS signals are available on connector J106.

3.3.8 SMA connectors

The EVK-VERA-P174 includes two SMA connectors, ANT1 (J102) and ANT2 (J103), for connecting external antennas or measurement instruments to the VERA-P1 module's antenna pins. A third SMA connector (J104) connects an active antenna to the on-board NEO-M8U GNSS module. The SMA connectors are specified for RF signals up to 18 GHz. Always ensure RF ports are terminated to a 50 Ω load. Direct connection of two EVK-VERA-P174 evaluation kits requires a minimum attenuation of 50 dB to prevent module damage.

3.3.9 Host interface connector

The host interface connector connects the VERA-P1 main board to the power supply and USB interface board. It can also connect the VERA-P1 main board directly to a compatible host board. The main board connector is a QMS-052-0675-L-D-PC4, and the power supply board counterpart is a QFS-052-0675-L-D-PC4.

3.4 LEDs

Table 9 lists the LEDs on the EVK-VERA-P174:

Table 9: LED Description

Name Designator Location Function
Power LED1 Power supply board Indicates 3.3 V supply (LED on).
USB LED2 Power supply board Indicates USB connection to the host (LED on).
Reset LED103 Main board, near pin 1 of VERA-P1 Indicates VERA-P1 module in reset (LED off).
1PPS LED102 Main board Indicates 1PPS signal (LED blinking).
Firmware LED101 Main board Indicates firmware loaded (LED on) through current measurement.

3.5 Buttons

The reset button on the main board (S101) resets the VERA-P1 module. The button on the power supply board (S1) resets the on-board power supply for the EVK.

3.6 Design files

Schematics for the EVK-VERA-P174 are shown in Figures 6 and 7. Full design files are available via u-blox support. To obtain these documents, email the support team for your area, as listed in the Contact section.

4. Software

A standalone software package, "LLC Remote," is available through u-blox support for VERA-P1 modules. It includes:

The LLC driver and some tools are provided as source code. Cohda Wireless Pty developed the LLC driver and SDR firmware. The release process combines firmware binary and LLC Remote driver implementation with the Cohda MKx Software Development Kit release. The LLC Remote package versioning follows the Cohda SDK numbering.

A release notes document with quick start instructions for compiling the software is included with each package. Recipes for integrating the software package into Yocto-based projects can be provided by u-blox upon request.

To evaluate VERA-P1 modules, connect the EVK-VERA-P174 via USB to a native Linux PC or a virtual machine running Linux. This guide uses a virtual machine running Ubuntu 18.04 LTS with Linux kernel 4.15.0-23-generic (x86_64).

4.1 Quick start instructions

Copy the LLC Remote package archive to your Linux development environment. Extract the content and navigate to the extracted directory:

$ tar -xzf V2X_LLC_Remote_V15.0.0.tar.gz
$ cd llc-remote

Run the install.sh script in a new development environment to automatically install package dependencies. This script requires system privileges and an active internet connection. Main dependencies include:

$ sudo ./install.sh

Build the software package by running make:

$ make

If make fails due to a missing pcap library, create a symbolic link:

$ ln -sr bsp/app/libpcap/$(uname -m)/libpcap.a cohda/app/llc/lib/

Then run make again. This compiles and installs:

The LLC user-space tool, plugins, and library are installed in the ./bin subdirectory. The cw-llc driver is copied to ./drivers/<kernel_version>.

Connect the EVK-VERA-P174 to the PC and the USB device to the virtual machine. The VERA-P1 module appears as "NXP SAF510x DFU" with USB device ID 1fc9:0102. Use lsusb to verify.

$ lsusb
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 1fc9:0102 NXP Semiconductors

Run the ./load script to detect the VERA-P1 module and download radio firmware via USB DFU. Select option 2 for SDRMK5Dual.bin (VERA-P174) or option 4 for SDRMK5Single.bin (VERA-P173).

$ ./load

NOTE: dfu-util might fail under VMWare. Unplugging and restarting ./load may be necessary.

The script prompts for firmware selection:

Select file to download (1-4): 2

The output indicates firmware file usage and progress.

dfu-util details are displayed, including copyright and version information.

After firmware download, reset the USB to return to runtime mode. If using a virtual machine, repeat the ./load script until the cw-llc driver module loads. Ensure the new 802.11p radio device (USB ID 1fc9:0103) is automatically connected.

Once detected, the ./load script output will appear as:

$ ./load
0

LLC plugins for channel configuration, sending, and receiving packets are provided as source code. Other plugins are binary only.

4.2 Module calibration

The EVK-VERA-P174 modules require manual calibration after each power cycle and firmware load. Instructions for calibration parameters and files are in the VERA-P1 series system integration manual [2].

4.3 Usage examples

Basic tests can be performed using the LLC tool and plugins after loading firmware and the LLC driver. The tool and plugins are in the ./bin subdirectory. Run ./llc -C to list available commands/plugins. Table 10 describes basic plugins.

Table 10: Description of LLC plugins

Plugin Description
count Displays transmit and receive counters for both radios.
config Displays configuration (mode/antenna/freq) of both radios.
txqueue Displays Tx MAC state and queue counts.
status Displays instantaneous radio status, queued packets, and medium state.
cfg Reads or writes RadioConfig data.
version Reports SDR firmware image version details.
dmesg Displays debug messages from the ARM/VDSP1/VDSP2 processor.
rxphylast Displays details of the last received frames by the PHY.
txphylast Displays details of the last transmitted frames by the PHY.
chconfig Sets channel configuration for both radios.
test-tx Generates and transmits test packets.
test-rx Receives test packets.

4.3.1 Transmit and receive counters

Use the command ./llc count to display transmit and receive counters for both radios:

This command helps verify module access.

$ ./llc count

The output shows counters for Radio A and Radio B, including MAC and PHY frames, errors, and other statistics.

4.3.2 Channel configuration

Configure channel settings for VERA-P1 radios using the chconfig LLC plugin via the Control Channel (CCH) or Service Channel (SCH). The plugin uses the LLC Remote API for setup, start, stop, and retrieval of CCH/SCH configurations.

Example: Configure and start the control channel (radio channel configuration 0) on radio A, channel 184, using both antennas:

$ ./llc chconfig -s -w CCH -c 184 -r a -a 3

4.3.3 Transmitter test

The test-tx LLC plugin transmits packet bursts. CCH or SCH must be configured prior to transmission. The settings define default packet configurations.

Example: Transmit 100 test packets (200 bytes each) on channel 184 using both antennas, with output power set to 40 and modulation set to ½ QPSK:

$ ./llc test-tx -c 184 -p 40 -a 3 -m MK2MCS R12QPSK -n 100 -1 200

4.3.4 Receiver test

The test-rx command receives test packets sent by another module using the test-tx command. The application reports received packet counts and packet error rate. The receiver must be running before transmission starts.

To test packet transmission between two VERA-P1 modules, use two host PCs or virtual machines.

Receiving side:

$ ./llc chconfig -s -w CCH -c 184
$ ./llc test-rx -c 184

Transmitting side: Sends 1000 packets at 100 packets/second.

$ ./llc chconfig -s -w CCH -c 184
$ ./llc test-tx -c 184 -a1 -p30 -n1000 -r100

The receiver output will show packet statistics, including approximate PER and matched/unmatched frames.

4.3.5 LLC native IPv6 functionality

The LLC driver supports native IPv6 functionality using the Linux IPv6 stack since release 15. It creates two network interfaces: llc-cch-ipv6 and llc-sch-ipv6 for IPv6 communication between VERA-P1 modules. These interfaces map to channel configuration 0 of radio A and radio B, respectively. All VERA-P1 modules must use the same DSRC channel for communication.

Enable IPv6 support by loading the driver module with the option IPv6Enabled=1. The optional argument IPv6MCS can set the transmission rate for IPv6 packets. Pass module options to the load script in the ./drivers subdirectory after downloading the radio firmware.

$ cd drivers; ./load IPv6Enabled=1; cd

Deactivate the Linux host's Network Manager or configure it to ignore LLC IPv6 interfaces (set to Link-Local only) and disable IPv4 to avoid interface configuration interference.

Use chconfig to configure the DSRC channel on all VERA-P1 modules. Example: set channel configuration 0 of radio A to channel 180 for communication using the llc-cch-ipv6 network interface:

$ llc chconfig -s -w CCH -r a -c 180

Use the following commands to enable the llc-cch-ipv6 network interface and get the automatically assigned link-local IPv6 address:

$ ip link set llc-cch-ipv6 up
$ ip addr show llc-cch-ipv6

The IPv6 address can be used for IPv6 ping requests from another VERA-P1 module over the llc-cch-ipv6 interface:

$ ping6 -I llc-cch-ipv6 fe80::8a8c:22ae:976d:cdde

Test throughput over IPv6 between two VERA-P1 modules using the iperf3 tool. Start the iperf3 server on one side:

$ iperf3 -s -D

Then start the throughput test on the client side, connecting to the server's IPv6 address:

$ iperf3 -6 -c fe80::8a8c:22ae:976d:cdde%llc-cch-ipv6

4.4 Building the software for a different target platform

Building the LLC Remote package for a different target system requires a toolchain and configured kernel sources. The following example cross-compiles the LLC driver and tools for an Arm architecture using the gcc-arm-linux-gnueabi toolchain. Configured kernel sources should be in /home/duser/work/linux-3.10.107/.

Recipes for Yocto-based projects integration are available from u-blox.

To cross-compile the LLC driver:

$ cd cohda/kernel/drivers/cohda/llc
$ make BOARD=mk5 ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=arm-linux-gnueabi- KERNELDIR=/home/duser/work/linux-3.10.107/

To cross-compile the LLC tool, library, and plugins:

$ cd cohda/app/llc
$ make BOARD=mk5 ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=arm-linux-gnueabi- CC=arm-linux-gnueabi-gcc LD=arm-linux-gnueabi-ld

After successful compilation, deploy the following files to the target system:

The dfu-util tool is required on the target system to download the SDR firmware to the VERA-P1 module.

6 Not all plugins are provided as source code. Binary plugins are available for i686, x86-64, and mk5 (Arm) architectures.

Appendix A: Glossary

Table 11: Explanation of the abbreviations and terms used

Abbreviation Definition
1PPS 1 Pulse Per Second
API Application Programming Interface
CMOS Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor
DFU Device Firmware Upgrade
DSRC Dedicated Short Range Communication
ETSI European Telecommunications Standards Institute
EVB Evaluation Board
EVK Evaluation Kit
IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
ITS Intelligent Transport Systems
GNSS Global Navigation Satellite System
GPS Global Positioning System
MAC Medium Access Control
LLC Logical Link Control
OS Operating System
PC Personal Computer
PHY Physical Layer
QPSK Quadrature Phase-Shift Keying
RF Radio Frequency
SDK Software Development Kit
SDR Software Defined Radio
USB Universal Serial Bus
UTC Coordinated Universal Time
V2X Vehicle-to-Everything

Related documents

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