BoronDatasheet(v001)
Functionaldescription
TheBoronLTEisapowerfulLTECAT-M1/NB1enableddevelopmentkitthatcanactaseithera
standalonecellularendpointorLTEenabledgatewayforParticleMeshnetworks.Itisbasedonthe
NordicnRF52840andhasbuilt-inbatterychargingcircuitrysoit’seasytoconnectaLi-Poand
deployyourlocalnetworkinminutes.
TheBoronisgreatforconnectingexistingprojectstotheParticleDeviceCloudorasagatewayto
connectanentiregroupoflocalendpointswhereWi-Fiismissingorunreliable.
u-bloxSARAR410LTEmodem(BoronLTE)
LTECATM1/NB1modulewithglobalhardwaresupport(MVNOsupportforUSonly)
3GPPRelease13LTECatM1
u-bloxSARAU2012G/3Gmodem(Boron2G/3G)
HSPA/GSMqqwithglobalhardwareandSIMsupport
Bands800/850/900/1900/2100MHz
3GPPRelease7
NordicSemiconductornRF52840SoC
ARMCortex-M4F32-bitprocessor@64MHz
1MBflash,256KBRAM
IEEE802.15.4-2006:250Kbps
Bluetooth5:2Mbps,1Mbps,500Kbps,125Kbps
SupportsDSPinstructions,HWacceleratedFloatingPointUnit(FPU)calculations
ARMTrustZoneCryptoCell-310Cryptographicandsecuritymodule
Upto+8dBmTXpower(downto-20dBmin4dBsteps)
NFC-Atag
On-boardadditional2MBSPIflash
20mixedsignalGPIO(6xAnalog,8xPWM),UART,I2C,SPI
MicroUSB2.0fullspeed(12Mbps)
IntegratedLi-Pochargingandbatteryconnector
JTAG(SWD)Connector
RGBstatusLED
ResetandModebuttons
DualSIMsupport:Nano4FFandMFF2
On-boardPCBantenna
u.FLconnectorforexternalantenna
MeetstheAdafruitFeatherspecificationindimensionsandpinout
FCCandPTCRBcertified
RoHScompliant(lead-free)
OVERVIEW
FEATURES
Interfaces
USBPORT
TheUSBportistheeasiestwaytopoweruptheBoron.PleasemakesurethattheUSBportisable
toprovidedatleast500mA.PowerfromtheUSBisregulateddownto3.3VbytheonboardTorex
XC9258Astep-downregulator.
ForpoweringtheBoron2G/3Gversion,you'lleitherneedaUSBportthatisablesupport2Acurrent,
orhavetheLiPobatterypluggedinwhenpoweringoverUSB.Thisisbecausetheon-boardu-blox
modemcanconsumesupto1.8Apeakcurrentwhenoperatingin2Gmode.TheBoronwill
intelligentlysourcepowerfromtheUSBmostofthetimeandkeepthebatterycharged.During
peakcurrentrequirements,theadditionalpowerwillbesourcedfromthebattery.Thisreducesthe
charge-dischargecycleloadonthebattery,thusimprovingitslongevity.
VUSBPIN
ThepinisinternallyconnectedtotheVBUSoftheUSBport.Thenominaloutputshouldbearound
4.5to5VDCwhenthedeviceispluggedintotheUSBportand0whennotconnectedtoaUSB
source.Youcanusethispintopowerperipheralsthatoperateatsuchvoltages.Donotexceedthe
currentratingoftheUSBport,whichisnominallyratedto500mA.
LiPo
Ifyouwanttomakeyourprojectstrulywireless,youcanpowerthedevicewithasinglecellLiPo
(3.7V).TheBoronhasanonboardLiPochargerthatwillchargeandpowerthedevicewhenUSB
sourceispluggedin,orpowerthedevicefromtheLiPoaloneintheabsenceoftheUSB.
{{boxop="start"cssClass="boxedwarningBox"}}NOTE:Pleasepayattentiontothepolarityofthe
LiPoconnector.NotallLiPobatteriesfollowthesamepolarityconvention!{{boxop="end"}}
BLOCKDIAGRAM
POWER
Li+PIN
ThispinisinternallyconnectedtothepositiveterminaloftheLiPoconnector.Youcanconnecta
singlecellLiPo/LithiumIonoraDCsupplysourcetothispinforpoweringtheBoron.Remember
thattheinputvoltagerangeonthispinis3.6to4.2VDC.
FortheBoron2G/3Gversion,makesurethattheexternalDCsupplyisabletosupport2Apeak
currentreauirments.
3V3PIN
Thispinistheoutputoftheonboard3.3Vstep-downswitchingregulator(TorexXC9258A).The
regulatorisratedat1000mAmax.Whenusingthispintopowerotherdevicesorperipherals
remembertobudgetinthecurrentrequirementoftheBoronfirst.UnliketheXenonortheArgon,
thispinCANNOTbeusedtopowertheBoron.
TherearetworadiosontheBoron.AMeshradio(nRF52840)andacellularradio(u-blox).Forthe
cellularradio,wehaveprovideau.FLconnectortopluginthecellularantenna.Thisisrequiredif
youwishtousethecellularconnectivity.
TherearetwooptionsfortheMeshantennaontheBoron.Itcomeswithanon-boardPCBantenna
whichisselectedbydefaultinthedeviceOSandau.FLconnectorifyouwishtoconnectan
externalantenna.Ifyouwishtousetheexternalantenna,you'llneedtoissueanappropriate
commandinthefirmware.
Mesh
ParticleDevice Frequency AntennaType Manufacturer MFG.Part# Gain
Boron 2400-2500MHz PCBAntenna Particle ANT-FLXV2 2.0dBipeak
Cellular
ParticleDevice Frequency AntennaType Manufacturer MFG.Part# Gain
Boron 698-3000MHz PCBAntenna Taoglas FXUB63.07.0150C 5.00dBipeak
PeripheralType Qty Input(I)/Output(O)
Digital 20 I/O
Analog(ADC) 6 I
UART 1 I/O
SPI 1 I/O
I2C 2 I/O
USB 1 I/O
PWM 8 O
Note:AllGPIOsareonlyratedat3.3VDCmax.
TheBoronhasadedicated10pindebugconnectorthatexposestheSWDinterfaceofthe
nRF5280.ThisinterfacecanbeusedtodebugyourcodeorreprogramyourBoronbootloader,
deviceOS,ortheuserfirmwareusinganystandardSWDtoolsincludingourMeshDebugger.
ANTENNA
FCCAPPROVEDANTENNAS
PERIPHERALSANDGPIO
SWD
Memorymap
Bootloader(48KB,@0xF4000)
UserApplication(128KB,@0xD4000)
System(656KB,@0x30000)
SoftDevice(192KB)
OTA(1500KB,@0x00289000)
Reserved(420KB,@0x00220000)
FAC(128KB,@0x00200000)
LittleFS(2M,@0x00000000)
NRF52840FLASHLAYOUTOVERVIEW
EXTERNALSPIFLASHLAYOUTOVERVIEW(DFUOFFSET:0X80000000)
Pinsandbuttondefinitions
PINMARKINGS
PINOUTDIAGRAM
YoucandownloadahighresolutionPDFversionofthepinouthere.
Pin Description
Li+ ThispinisinternallyconnectedtothepositiveterminaloftheLiPobatteryconnector.
VUSB ThispinisinternallyconnectedtotheUSB(+ve)supply.
3V3 Thispinistheoutputoftheon-board3.3Vregulator.
GND Systemgroundpin.
EN Deviceenablepinisinternallypulled-up.Todisablethedevice,connectthispintoGND.
RST Active-lowsystemresetinput.Thispinisinternallypulled-up.
MD ThispinisinternallyconnectedtotheMODEbutton.TheMODEfunctionisactive-low.
RX PrimarilyusedasUARTRX,butcanalsobeusedasadigitalGPIO.
TX PrimarilyusedasUARTTX,butcanalsobeusedasadigitalGPIO.
SDA PrimarilyusedasdatapinforI2C,butcanalsobeusedasadigitalGPIO.
SCL PrimarilyusedasclockpinforI2C,butcanalsobeusedasadigitalGPIO.
MO,MI,SCK ThesearetheSPIinterfacepins,butcanalsobeusedasadigitalGPIO.
D2-D8 ThesearegenericGPIOpins.D2-D8arePWM-able.
A0-A5 TheseareanaloginputpinsthatcanalsoactasstandarddigitalGPIO.A0-A5arePWM-able.
PINDESCRIPTION
SystemRGBLED
ForadetailedexplanationofdifferentcolorcodesoftheRGBsystemLED,pleasetakealook here.
ChargestatusLED
State Description
ON Charginginprogress
OFF Chargingcomplete
Blinkat1Hz Faultcondition[1]
Rapidblinking Batterydisconnected[2]
Notes:
[1]Afaultconditioncanoccurduetoseveralreasons,forexample,batteryover/undervoltage,
temperaturefaultorsafetytimerfault.Youcanfindtherootcausebyreadingthefaultregisterof
thepowermanagementICinfirmware.
[2]YoucanstopthisbehaviorbyeitherpluggingintheLiPobatteryorbydisablingchargingusing
firmwarecommand: PMIC().disableCharging(); .
LEDSTATUS
Technicalspecifications
Parameter Symbol Min Typ Max Unit
SupplyInputVoltage VIN-MAX +6.2 V
BatteryInputVoltage VLiPo +6.5 V
SupplyOutputCurrent I3V3-MAX-L 1000 mA
StorageTemperature Tstg -30 +75 °C
ESDSusceptibilityHBM(HumanBodyMode) VESD 1 kV
[1]Stressesbeyondthoselistedunderabsolutemaximumratingsmaycausepermanentdamage
tothedevice.Thesearestressratingsonly,andfunctionaloperationofthedeviceattheseorany
otherconditionsbeyondthoseindicatedunderrecommendedoperatingconditionsisnotimplied.
Exposuretoabsolute-maximum-ratedconditionsforextendedperiodsmayaffectdevicereliability.
Parameter Symbol Min Typ Max Unit
LiPoBatteryVoltage VLiPo +3.3 +4.4 V
SupplyInputVoltage V3V3 +3.0 +3.3 +3.6 V
SupplyOutputVoltage V3V3 +3.3 V
OperatingCurrent(uCon,RadioON) ILi+avg 100 200 mA
PeakCurrent(BoronLTE) ILi+pk 120 490 mA
PeakCurrent(Boron2G/3G) ILi+pk 800[1] 1800[2] mA
OperatingCurrent(uCon,RadioOFF) ILi+avg 6 60 mA
OperatingCurrent(ENpin=LOW) Idisable 70 75 uA
SleepCurrent(4.2VLiPo,RadioOFF) IQs TBD TBD mA
DeepSleepCurrent(4.2VLiPo,RadioOFF) IQds TBD TBD uA
OperatingTemperature Top -20 +60 °C
HumidityRangeNoncondensing,relativehumidity 95 %
Notes:
[1]3Goperation
[2]2Goperation
Boronhastworadiomodules.
NordicSemiconductornRF52840forMesh.
Feature Description
OperatingFrequencies 2360to2500MHz
OutputPower Programmable-20dBmto+8dBm
PLLchannelspacing 1MHz
Ontheairdatarate 125to2000kbps
ABSOLUTEMAXIMUMRATINGS[1]
RECOMMENDEDOPERATINGCONDITIONS
RADIOSPECIFICATIONS
u-bloxSARAU201(2G/3G)andR410(LTE)forcellular.
BORON CompatibleCountries
2G/3G Worldwide
LTE USAonly
ThesespecificationsarebasedonthenRF52840datasheet.
Parameter Symbol Conditions Min Typ Max Unit
Inputhighvoltage VIH 0.7*3.3 -- 3.3 V
Inputlowvoltage VIL 0 0.3*3.3 V
CurrentatGND+0.4V,outputsetlow,highdrive IOL,HDL V3V3>=2.7V 6 10 15 mA
CurrentatV3V3-0.4V,outputsethigh,highdrive IOH,HDH V3V3>=2.7V 6 9 14 mA
Pull-upresistance RPU 11 13 16 kΩ
Pull-downresistance RPD 11 13 16 kΩ
I/OCHARACTERISTICS
Mechanicalspecifications
Weight=10grams
TheBoronusestwosinglerow0.1"pitchmaleheaderpins.Oneofthemis16pinwhiletheotheris
12pin.Itcanbemountedwithmatching0.1"pitchfemaleheaderswithatypicalheightof0.335"
(8.5mm).Whenyousearchforpartsliketheseitcanbedifficulttonavigatethethousandsofparts
availableonlinesohereareafewgoodchoicesfortheBoron:
Description MFG MFGPartNumber
16-pin0.1"(2.54mm)FemaleHeader Sullins PPTC161LFBN-RC
16-pin0.1"(2.54mm)FemaleHeader TE 6-535541-4
12-pin0.1"(2.54mm)FemaleHeader Sullins PPTC121LFBN-RC
12-pin0.1"(2.54mm)FemaleHeader TE 6-534237-0
DIMENSIONSANDWEIGHT
MATINGCONNECTORS
RecommendedPCBlandpattern
TheBoroncanbedirectlysolderedontothePCBorbemountedwiththeabovementionedfemale
headers.
Schematic
ThecompleteschematicandboardfilesareopensourceandavailableonParticle'sGitHub
repositoryhere.
POWER
NRF52840
U-BLOX
SIM
SPIFLASH
FUELGAUGE
INTERFACES
Orderinginformation
Boronsareavailablefromstore.particle.ioinsinglequantitiesin2G/3GandLTEversions.
Qualificationandapprovals
BORONLTE
ModelNumber:BRN402
RoHS
CE
PTCRB
FCCID:2AEMI-BRN402
IC:20127-BRN402
BORON2G/3G
ModelNumber:BRN310
RoHS
CE
FCCID:2AEMI-BRN310
IC:20127-BRN310
ProductHandling
TheBoroncontainshighlysensitiveelectroniccircuitryandisanElectrostaticSensitiveDevice
(ESD).HandlingBoronwithoutproperESDprotectionmaydestroyordamageitpermanently.
ProperESDhandlingandpackagingproceduresmustbeappliedthroughouttheprocessing,
handlingandoperationofanyapplicationthatincorporatesBoron.ESDprecautionsshouldbe
implementedontheapplicationboardwheretheBoronismounted.Failuretoobservethese
precautionscanresultinseveredamagetotheBoron!
TherearefourconnectorsontheBoronthatwillgetdamagedwithimproperusage.TheJST
connectoronthecircuitboard,whereyouplugintheLiPobattery,isverydurablebutthe
connectoronthebatteryitselfisnot.Whenunpluggingthebattery,takeextraprecautiontoNOT
pulltheconnectorusingthewires,butinsteadholdtheplugatitsbasetoavoidputtingstresson
thewires.Thiscanbetrickywithbarehands-nosepliersareyourfriendhere.
ThemicroBUSBconnectorontheBoronissolderedonthePCBwithlargesurfacepadsaswellas
coupleofthroughholeanchorpoints.Despitethisreinforcement,itisveryeasytoripoutthe
connectoriftoomuchstressisputonintheverticaldirection.
Theu.FLantennaconnectorisaveryfragilepieceofhardware(andisfancytoowithallthegold
plating).Theconnectorwasnotdesignedtobeconstantlypluggedandunplugged.Caremustbe
ESDPRECAUTIONS
CONNECTORS
takennottoputstressonitatanytime(yes,swingingtheBoronbytheantennaisaverybadidea,
thisisnotyourcat).Theantennapinisalsothemoststaticsensitiveandyoucandestroytheradio
withimproperhandling.Ifyouarefeelingadventurous,wehighlyrecommendputtingatinydab
ofglue(epoxy,rubbercement,liquidtapeorhotglue)ontheconnectortosecurelyholdtheplug
inplace.
The10pinSWDconnectorprovidesaneasyin-systemdebuggingaccesstothedevice.Thepinson
theconnectorcaneasilybedamagedifthematingconnectorcableisinsertedimproperly.Ifyou
aretryingtodebugthedevice,youprobablyarenotinagoodmoodtobeginwith.Thelastthing
youwantistorendertheconnectoruseless.Benice,andbegentleontheconnector.Goodluck
withthedebugging!
ThebreadboardprovidedwiththeBoronisspecificallydesignedtorequirelowinsertionforce.This
makesiteasytoplugtheBoroninandoutofthebreadboard.Ifyouendupusingadifferent
breadboard,rememberthatitmayrequiremoreforce.Inthiscase,alwaysremembertopinch-
holdyourpreciousBoronbythesides(alongtheheaderpins)whenplugging-unpluggingandnot
bytheUSBconnector(don'tbethisperson).
BREADBOARDING
Defaultsettings
TheBoroncomespreprogrammedwithabootloaderandauserapplicationcalledTinker.This
applicationworkswithaniOSandAndroidappalsonamedTinkerthatallowsyoutoveryeasily
toggledigitalpins,takeanaloganddigitalreadingsanddrivevariablePWMoutputs.
Thebootloaderallowsyoutoeasilyupdatetheuserapplicationviaseveraldifferentmethods,USB,
OTA,SerialY-Modem,andalsointernallyviatheFactoryResetprocedure.Allofthesemethods
havemultipletoolsassociatedwiththemaswell.
FCCICCEWarningsandEndProductLabeling
Requirements
FederalCommunicationCommissionInterferenceStatementThisequipmenthasbeentested
andfoundtocomplywiththelimitsforaClassBdigitaldevice,pursuanttoPart15oftheFCC
Rules.Theselimitsaredesignedtoprovidereasonableprotectionagainstharmfulinterferenceina
residentialinstallation.Thisequipmentgenerates,usesandcanradiateradiofrequencyenergy
and,ifnotinstalledandusedinaccordancewiththeinstructions,maycauseharmfulinterference
toradiocommunications.However,thereisnoguaranteethatinterferencewillnotoccurina
particularinstallation.Ifthisequipmentdoescauseharmfulinterferencetoradioortelevision
reception,whichcanbedeterminedbyturningtheequipmentoffandon,theuserisencouraged
totrytocorrecttheinterferencebyoneofthefollowingmeasures:
Reorientorrelocatethereceivingantenna.
Increasetheseparationbetweentheequipmentandreceiver.
Connecttheequipmentintoanoutletonacircuitdifferentfromthattowhichthereceiveris
connected.
Consultthedealeroranexperiencedradio/TVtechnicianforhelp.
FCCCaution:Anychangesormodificationsnotexpresslyapprovedbythepartyresponsiblefor
compliancecouldvoidtheuser'sauthoritytooperatethisequipment.Thisdevicecomplieswith
Part15oftheFCCRules.Operationissubjecttothefollowingtwoconditions:
1. Thisdevicemaynotcauseharmfulinterference,and
2. Thisdevicemustacceptanyinterferencereceived,includinginterferencethatmaycause
undesiredoperation.
FCCRadiationExposureStatement:ThisequipmentcomplieswithFCCradiationexposurelimits
setforthforanuncontrolledenvironment.Thistransmittermodulemustnotbeco-locatedor
operatinginconjunctionwithanyotherantennaortransmitter.ThisEndequipmentshouldbe
installedandoperatedwithaminimumdistanceof20centimetersbetweentheradiatorandyour
body.
IMPORTANTNOTE:Intheeventthattheseconditionscannotbemet(forexamplecertainlaptop
configurationsorco-locationwithanothertransmitter),thentheFCCauthorizationisnolonger
consideredvalidandtheFCCIDcannotbeusedonthefinalproduct.Inthesecircumstances,the
OEMintegratorwillberesponsibleforre-evaluatingtheendproduct(includingthetransmitter)
andobtainingaseparateFCCauthorization.
EndProductLabelingThefinalendproductmustbelabeledinavisibleareawiththefollowing:
ContainsFCCID:2AEMI-BRN402(BORONLTE)
ContainsFCCID:2AEMI-BRN310(BORON2G/3G)
ManualInformationtotheEndUserTheOEMintegratorhastobeawarenottoprovide
informationtotheenduserregardinghowtoinstallorremovethisRFmoduleintheuser’s
manualoftheendproductwhichintegratesthismodule.
CanadaStatementThisdevicecomplieswithIndustryCanada’slicence-exemptRSSs.Operationis
subjecttothefollowingtwoconditions:
1. Thisdevicemaynotcauseinterference;and
2. Thisdevicemustacceptanyinterference,includinginterferencethatmaycauseundesired
operationofthedevice.
LeprésentappareilestconformeauxCNRd’IndustrieCanadaapplicablesauxappareilsradio
exemptsdelicence.
L’exploitationestautoriséeauxdeuxconditionssuivantes:
1. l’appareilnedoitpasproduiredebrouillage;
2. l’utilisateurdel’appareildoitacceptertoutbrouillageradioélectriquesubi,mêmesilebrouillage
estsusceptibled’encompromettrelefonctionnement.
CautionExposure:Thisdevicemeetstheexemptionfromtheroutineevaluationlimitsinsection
2.5ofRSS102anduserscanobtainCanadianinformationonRFexposureandcompliance.Le
dispositifrépondàl'exemptiondeslimitesd'évaluationderoutinedanslasection2.5deRSS102et
lesutilisateurspeuventobtenirdesrenseignementscanadienssurl'expositionauxRFetlerespect.
Thefinalendproductmustbelabelledinavisibleareawiththefollowing:TheIndustryCanada
certificationlabelofamoduleshallbeclearlyvisibleatalltimeswheninstalledinthehostdevice,
otherwisethehostdevicemustbelabelledtodisplaytheIndustryCanadacertificationnumberof
themodule,precededbythewords“Containstransmittermodule”,ortheword“Contains”,or
similarwordingexpressingthesamemeaning,asfollows:
ContainstransmittermoduleIC:20127-BRN402(BORONLTE)
ContainstransmittermoduleIC:20127-BRN310(BORON2G/3G)
ThisEndequipmentshouldbeinstalledandoperatedwithaminimumdistanceof20centimeters
betweentheradiatorandyourbody.Cetéquipementdevraitêtreinstalléetactionnéavecune
distanceminimumde20centimètresentreleradiateuretvotrecorps.
Theendusermanualshallincludeallrequiredregulatoryinformation/warningasshowninthis
manual.
Revisionhistory
Revision Date Author Comments
v001 26Oct2018 MB Initialrelease
KnownErrata
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