Wi-Fi module porting

Overview

The following figure shows the basic flow.

Chip adaptation

Before you port the IoT Platform SDK, confirm that the Wi-Fi chip in your module supports AliOS or Link Kit. If it does not, you can ask the chip vendor to port the SDK.

The following table lists the Wi-Fi chips that the IoT Platform SDK supports.

Module porting

1. Obtain the SDK for AliOS Things. For more information, see Get the SDK.

2. Place the application code in the appropriate SDK folder.

3. Define the Bootloader and Flash partitions.

   The Bootloader and Flash partitions are important components that are defined in the module's folder within the `board` directory.

   AliOS Things maintains a Flash partition table for its features. This table includes the bootloader, Application, Over-the-Air (OTA) TMP, and parameters partitions, as shown in the following diagram.

   

   Adjust the Flash partitions based on the module's Flash size and Bootloader implementation. The principles for sizing Flash partitions are as follows.

   • Obtain the Flash size of the chip platform.

   • Obtain the bootloader information. This includes the upgrade type supported by the bootloader (in-place or ping-pong) and the bootloader jump address. A ping-pong upgrade has two jump addresses.

   • Partition the entire Flash based on the information obtained from the bootloader.

   This section uses the HF-LPT230 module as an example to explain how to apply these principles to Flash partitions. This module uses the RDA5981A chip, and its Flash size is 1 MB. The partition table array hal_logic_partition_t hal_partitions[] is defined in the board/hf-lpt230/board.c file.

   Partition	Address range	Size	Notes
   Bootloader	0x18001000–0x18004000	12 KB	Stores the bootloader firmware
   Application	0x18004000–0x18095000	580 KB	Application code partition
   OTA Storage	0x18095000–0x180F7000	372 KB	OTA code partition
   PARAMETER1	0x180F7000–0x180F8000	4 KB	OTA parameter storage area
   PARAMETER2	0x180F8000–0x180FA000	8 KB	Key-value (KV) storage area
   PARAMETER3	0x180FA000–0x180FB000	4 KB	User-defined
   PARAMETER4	0x180FB000–0x180FC000	4 KB	Storage area for security-related parameters, such as ID² keys
   SYS RF Data	0x180FC000–0x180FD000	4 KB	Wi-Fi module RF parameters
   HFILOP	0x180FD000–0x180FF000	8 KB	Used by the module vendor to store device certificates and MAC addresses

Module self-test

After you port the SDK to the module, you must complete the module self-test. Use the test cases specified in the IoT Platform Module Vendor Self-Test Use Case Set document.

The self-test validates the module's features and stability in the following areas.

• Device pairing

• Device control (cloud and local)

• Channel stability

• Firmware upgrade

Submitting a module for testing

Module testing is optional. After you port the IoT Platform SDK to a module, you can start to develop products. To determine whether module testing is required, you must first confirm with the Alibaba Cloud IoT Smart Living team or the Tmall Genie team.

To submit a module for testing, provide the following items to feiyan_certification@alibabacloud.com.

• Location of the code repository, including the path to the `board` folder

• Self-test report

• Eight module development boards with power cables, serial cables (to obtain device logs), antennas, and other accessories

The module testing flow is as follows.

FAQ

Q: What is the relationship between the IoT Platform SDK, AliOS, and Link Kit?

A: The IoT Platform SDK is a stable, production-ready version based on AliOS v1.3.4 and Link Kit v2.3.0. It features optimized connections for regions outside China and is customized for IoT Platform services.

Q: My module is already adapted for another version of AliOS or Link Kit. Do I still need to switch to the IoT Platform SDK?

A: The IoT Platform SDK is optimized for pairing success rate, stability, connections outside China, and customization for IoT Platform services. For mass-produced products, especially those shipped in large quantities to regions outside China, you must switch to the IoT Platform SDK. If you do not switch, you may encounter issues with device pairing, cloud connectivity, stability, and compatibility.

Q: How do I start the device pairing and binding process for a module?

A: Compile the `linkkitapp` application using the command aos make clean; aos make linkkitapp@yourboardname. After the application starts, run the awss command, followed by the active_awss command. The device then enters the pairing and binding process.