Starnote connection issues

Troubleshooting
1

Hi, I recently acquired a Startnote Startup kit – I successfully created a project & connected to the “WiFi” notecard & am able to send “notes” to Notehub (viewable in Events). For the Starnote card, I bought and then installed the suggested outdoor antenna peripherals. (The antenna is around 3 feet off the ground – about 10 feet away from the house). The Starnote board is inside – ‘taped’ to a window with the GPS antenna along the window.

To test out the Starnote board, I force the transport to be “ntn” …

{“req”:“card.transport”,“method”:“ntn”}
{“method”:“ntn”}

and then sent a note … (and turn on trace)

{“req”:“note.add”,“file”:“sat.qo”,“body”:{“temp”:12.3,“humidity”:45.6}}

{“template”:true}

trace +req

R04:27.18 trace options:
requested: +req
now: comm,sync,req,mem,gps

{“req”:“hub.sync”,“out”:true}

{}
S04:45.86 transport: switched from wifi: to ntn:
S04:45.86 sync: connect requested by explicit sync request (DATA)
S04:45.88 connect: 4.36V 20.69C before comms power-on (2024-09-06T12:15:11Z UTC)
<< {“cmd”:“ntn.status”,“id”:2,“time”:1725624911,“ltime”:1725540470,“lat”:42,“lon”:-71}

{“cmd”:“ntn.status”,“id”:3,“time”:1725624911,“status”:“{ntn-idle}”}
<< {“cmd”:“ntn.connect”,“id”:3,“time”:1725624912,“ltime”:1725540470,“lat”:42,“lon”:-71}

(Note the Lat/Lon – I eliminated any GPS issues by “fixing” the L/L to 42/-71)

… More diagnostics … but I do not observe the output shown in Starnote QuickStart - item 14.

S04:46.89 ntn: idle {disconnected} {ntn-idle}

{“cmd”:“ntn.status”,“id”:4,“time”:1725624911,“status”:“{ntn-connecting}”}
S04:47.91 ntn: waiting for wireless service {wait-service} {connecting} {ntn-connecting}
{“cmd”:“ntn.status”,“id”:5,“time”:1725624912,“status”:“powering up {ntn-connecting}”}
S04:48.42 ntn: waiting for wireless service {wait-service} {connecting} powering up {ntn-connecting}

It appears that the Starnote board is not connecting … in addition, when in this mode, the Serial connection continually cycles from off line & on-line – if I force the transport back to “wifi”, the connection becomes stable.

Is there a simple query that would just hand back “connected/Not connected” state? Any other thoughts?

regards, Rich …

2

Hi @richf,

My first two thoughts are:

  1. The lat/lon you provided for the fixed coordinates may not be specific enough. Accurate coordinates are critical for being able to spot a satellite.
  2. The antenna needs a clear view of the sky (buildings and trees can sometimes block the signal). It’s worth double checking that you’re clear there.

Rob