This software is mainly written in python. It requires python to be installed on the machine that will execute the code.
The installation process described here should not require any elevated privileges or super user privileges on Windows.
Python can be installed in the AppData folder of normal user.
The final usage of the Lr1110 Host tools still needs a USB access to the embedded Dev Kit. Therefore you must ensure you company policy and local configuration allow you to plug and use USB devices.
Open a command line and type:
python --versionYou MUST have at least Python 3.5 to use this software. If it is the case, go directly to Ensure you can run pip section.
If it is not the case, there are two possibilities:
- You get an error on previous command stating you don't have python at all
- and you actually never installed python: see Python is not installed
- and you did install python but it is not recognize: see Python is installed but not found
- You have a python version that is older than
3.5: see Python is too old
The pip program is a package installer for python. To validate you have pip installed with the correct version, start a shell and enter the following:
pip --versionIt must returns a version number, and its location and the python version it is referring to. Ensure that the python version corresponds to the one you plan to use (at least python 3.5), and that it correspond to the python folder you plan to use.
If you get an error at this stage, see section Issues with Pip.
NOTE At this point, it considered that you have a correct python installation.
The installation process described here supposes that you have received the source distribution of the host software.
This source distribution is typically named lr1110FieldTest-<version_number>.tar.gz.
If you do not have it, contact your provider to get it.
In a shell, navigate in the folder that contains the source distribution file and type:
pip install "lr1110FieldTest-<version_number>.tar.gz"This command must not fail.
If it does fail, ensure the pip program is correctly installed (refer to previous section.
An exception may also occur if wheel package is not installed (refer to Wheel package is not installed).
Check that your PATH environment variable contains the folder where the pip.exe is installed.
This project install several projects. To validate the installation, we'll here just ensure that one of them is correctly installed. To do so, type in a shell:
Lr1110FieldTest --versionIt must returns a version number. If it is not the case, see section Issues with installed software.
Here, it is assumed the command Lr1110FieldTest --version did return the correct version number.
The purpose of this section is to use the dedicated host software UsbConnectionCheck (that has been installed with Lr1110FieldTest) and the dedicated embedded firmware usb_check.bin.
These dedicated tools implement a light exchange that validates the communication between host and a Nucleo L476RG board.
Only a Nucleo L476RG board is required. The Lr1110 shield is not required, nor the touch screen.
First of all, ensure the communication host software is correctly installed by typing the following in a shell:
UsbConnectionCheck --versionThe above must return the same version number as for Lr1110FieldTest --version.
Then, plug the Nucleo board to your computer using a USB cable, and flash the Nucleo board with the binary usb_check.bin.
On Windows, the Nucleo board is identified as a disk in the file explorer where you can simply drag & drop the usb_check.bin file.
The Nucleo must starts to flash the MCU with this binary file (the LD1 LED must blink, indicating the flash is running).
Once the flash is terminated, open a shell and type the following:
UsbConnectionCheckThis command starts the communication check program (it will run forever, you can hit Ctrl-C to stop it).
The exchanges that should occur between host and embedded are the following:
- the embedded code is sending periodically (almost every second) a token on the USB port
- the host software waits for this message and send back a response (it prints
Got message from embedded. Sending question...on screen indicating it received the token) - the embedded gets the response and send back another message to the host
- the host gets this new message and prints
Got response from embedded. Communication ok.to indicate the exchange ran successfully
All the messages are exchanged at 921600 baud.
The trace on the shell must be:
$ UsbConnectionCheck
Started
Waiting for embedded to send command...
Got message from embedded. Sending question...
Got response from embedded. Communication ok.
Got message from embedded. Sending question...
Got response from embedded. Communication ok.
Got message from embedded. Sending question...
Got response from embedded. Communication ok.
...If you don't see the above trace or get an error, go to section Issues with UsbConnectionCheck.
This article provides a good step by step install process for python. Hereafter is an extract of the main steps.
If you are running Windows:
- Navigate to the Python Download page
- Download the installer corresponding to Windows
- Execute it (it should not require any elevated privileges)
IMPORTANT NOTICE If you are running Windows, don't forget to check the box to update the PATH environment variable. See this section
If you have python installed but it is not recognize when entering python --version, then it is probably because the above important notice has not been followed.
To fix it, you first need to locate your current python install folder. Search for the file python.exe which is probably located under a path like:
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python<version>\After finding it, ensure that it correspond to python version at least 3.5. To do so, either trust the folder path that may display a folder like PythonX.Y/, or start a shell, navigate to the folder containing the python.exe file, and execute python --version.
If you figure out the python version is older than 3.5, then proceed to a complete new python installation following Python is not installed. Your actual python will not be erased.
If the python version you have is of version at least 3.5, then you simply have to update the PATH environment variable.
Let's say that the absolute path of you python.exe file is C:\wonderfull\path\python.exe. Then you have to add the two following folders to the PATH environment variable:
C:\wonderfull\path\C:\wonderfull\path\Scripts\
In this case, you can follow Install Python. It will not remove the actual install of python.
However, you must ensure that, after the install, the command python --version actually calls the newer install (and not the older one).
To do so, simply start a new shell (yes, you must open the shell AFTER the end of the installation) and type
python --versionIf the python version is the one you just installed, you're good to go. Otherwise, you will have to modify the PATH environment variable so that the new python.exe is found but not the older one.
To do so, simply remove from the PATH environment variable the folder corresponding to the old python path, and ensure the folder of the new one is indeed in the PATH variable.
After fixing the PATH, you must start a new shell and try the command python --version again. It must returns the new version of python.
The former contains the python.exe, and the later will contain all command line programs that will be installed by this project.
If you have python version at least 3.4, the tool ensurepip can be used to bootstrap pip.
Running the following command in a shell to use it and install pip (the argument --default-pip is here to install the pip script, otherwise it install only pipX and pipX.Y):
python -m ensurepip --user --default-pipIf that still don't work, you have to download the get-pip.py script and execute it by
python get-pip.pyNow, typing pip --version in a new shell must give you the correct information.
If this command fails with an error similar to:
$ pip --version
Unknown option: versionIt is probably that the pip command is not the one from Python, but from Perl.
To validate that point, run the following in a shell:
where pipIt should return a path similar to ...\python\python<version>\Scripts\pip.exe. But in the case of the incorrect pip, it may return a path like ...\perl\bin\pip.bat.
To overcome this issue, you can try an alternate name of Python's pip program:
pip3 --versionIf the above returns the correct version number associated with the correct python installation, you can keep following this guide by replacing all calls to pip program by the alternate name pip3.
The symptom of the missing wheel package error is typically a long error trace displayed after calling the pip install command.
The error trace typically contains messages like ERROR: Command errored out with exit status 1: and WARNING: The wheel package is not available..
This error appears when an installation process needs to build a wheel package, but it is not installed. To solve it, execute first the command:
$ pip install wheelThen try again the pip install command that were failing previously.
You should only need to do this once. The further package installation will not need to re-install the wheel package.
If you get an error indicating that the command Lr1110FieldTest is unknown, you probably have an issue with the PATH environment variable.
To figure it out, try to find the entry point of the Lr1110FieldTest software in the python distribution folder.
It probably is under a path like:
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python<version>\Scripts\Lr1110FieldTest.exeIf you do find the Lr1110FieldTest.exe at that location, then your PATH is probably badly configured.
Modify it to include the folder C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python<version>\Scripts\.
For more details about the environment variable and how to change it, you can have a look on https://superuser.com/questions/284342/what-are-path-and-other-environment-variables-and-how-can-i-set-or-use-them.
If the file is not here, there are several possible problems. Either the install process failed, or you have another python distribution installed, and the software got installed in another place.
In the later, you have to ensure you install the software for the correct python version, with the correct pip program.
If you get a python exception trace like:
$ UsbConnectionCheck
Traceback (most recent call last):
File ".../UsbConnectionCheck", line 8, in <module>
sys.exit(entry_point_connection_tester())
File ".../SerialHandlerConnectionTest.py", line 65, in entry_point_connection_tester
launch_test()
File ".../SerialHandlerConnectionTest.py", line 41, in launch_test
port = serial_handler.discover(SerialHandler.DISCOVER_PORT_REGEXP)
File ".../SerialHandler.py", line 94, in discover
regexp)
lr1110evk.SerialExchange.SerialHandler.SerialHandlerExceptionNoPorts: No port connected that could be STM32 (used regexp '(STM.*)|(374B)')It means that there is no Nucleo board detected. It may not be connected. If it is indeed connected, try with another Nucleo board.
If you get a trace like:
$ UsbConnectionCheck
Traceback (most recent call last):
File ".../UsbConnectionCheck", line 8, in <module>
sys.exit(entry_point_connection_tester())
File ".../SerialHandlerConnectionTest.py", line 65, in entry_point_connection_tester
launch_test()
File ".../SerialHandlerConnectionTest.py", line 41, in launch_test
port = serial_handler.discover(SerialHandler.DISCOVER_PORT_REGEXP)
File ".../SerialHandler.py", line 97, in discover
regexp, ports)
lr1110evk.SerialExchange.SerialHandler.SerialHandlerExceptionTooManyPorts: Too many ports could be the STM32 (used regexp '(STM.*)|(374B)'): [...,...]then you may possibly have several Nucleo board connected.
Disconnect all but one, and reflash the one you keep connected with the usb_check.bin.
If the trace stays stuck to the following:
$ UsbConnectionCheck
Started
Waiting for embedded to send command...
...then it means that either the embedded is broken (firmware is not executing), or the link is broken. This may also happen if there are several Nucleo Board connected.
Check that the COM port receives messages from the embedded by opening a Terminal Emulator software on the Nucleo COM port configured with 921600 baud.
Check that the word !TEST_HOST is received almost every second.
If the trace looks like:
Unexpected data received from embedded: '<something>'. Communication KO!where <something> is any set of characters, then the channel from embedded to host is corrupted, or not on the correct baud.
Check that there is no other tool or shell listening on the Nucleo COM port. The baud is a hard configuration on the system so it should not be an issue.
If the trace looks like:
$ UsbConnectionCheck
Started
Waiting for embedded to send command...
Got message from embedded. Sending question...
Got message from embedded. Sending question...
Got message from embedded. Sending question...
...where there is never the line Got response from embedded. Communication ok., it suggests that the embedded never get the response from host (that one that is sent on step 2.).
In this case check the configuration of the COM port. Ensure the Nucleo board has not been modified to disconnect the Serial 2 from the ST-Link.
Any software that is installed on a system can be accessed from a shell by entering its name (and not its complete absolute path) if the folder that contains it is referenced in the PATH environment variable.
Therefore, when you hit python --version in a shell, the shell search for a file called python (or python.exe) in all folders referenced by PATH environment variable.
In this project there are several programs to consider. First, there is the python interpreter.
Second is the set of command line programs that are installed by this project (Lr1110Demo, Lr1110FieldTest, et al.).
These are called entry points (it is the equivalent of main function in C).
All these programs must resides in a folder that is in the PATH environment variable in order to be accessible from command line.
Typicals folder paths holding python.exe interpreters and entry points are respectively:
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python<version>\C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python<version>\ScriptsTherefore, a python-based software that is installed in the Scripts\ folder is accessible from the shell only if the PATH environment variable contains the folder.
If at some point you figure out that an installed python software is not accessible from command line, consider checking the value of the PATH environment variable.