ADH8066 GSM Module Problems

Hi,

I have about a dozen [ADH8066 modules. Today, one stopped getting a signal. The signal reported by +CSQ is always 0, and +CREG always returns 0 as well. I’ve triple checked the antenna hook-up, and everything looks great. I just can’t get a signal. The card is still able to retrieve it’s number from the SIM card, and well as read and write messages to the SIM card. I’ve issued the AT&F command to reset things to factory default, but it didn’t seem to help.

The weird thing is I can plug a different ADH8066 module into the same board and antenna and it works right away.

Has anyone had one of these modules go bad? Are there other settings I’m missing that I may have mucked up?

Also, how are you guys updating the firmware? Can somebody upload the tools to do so?

Thanks! :D](http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10138)

It sounds like you can, but can you at least communicate with the module? Like write/read a register?

Yeah. Everything is working except it doesn’t get a signal and won’t camp on the network. It’s acting like it has no antenna connected.

Only I definitely do have an antenna connected. When it stopped working, I was just issuing commands through the terminal. I wasn’t messing with the hardware at all.

Thanks!

Interesting. Since it used to work, that means your interface is correct, and since you can communicate with the module, I would go on a limb here and say your board has ‘died’. Check the antenna again, but it sounds like it just does not work. I would try contacting SFE technical staff to make sure they don’t have a solution.

Sorry about your luck.

Thanks for your reply. I’ll send an e-mail to Sparkfun in the morning.

I was hoping to hear if anybody else had similar problems, or if anybody had a copy of the firmware update. In the product comments several people talk about the firmware update, but I’ve never seen it. My broken module does have an older firmware version than the more recent ones I’ve boughten (reported with AT+SFUN=VER).

This problem just has me baffled. When it stopped working the unit was secured in a metal enclosure, so my problem almost has to be software. And yet issuing the factory reset command doesn’t fix it.

Well shouldn’t you be able to copy the firmware from one to the other?

I have no idea. The manuals don’t mention any way to upload or download firmware. I only think it’s possible because of customer comments on the SparkFun product page.

Ah. I have personally never used this module, but experience with other modules like this, I find it weird that it is not an option. I would talk to sparkfun. I don’t know what else to say.

Sorry about your luck.

Okay, so I contacted Spark Fun, they told me to contact the manufacturer.

So I e-mailed ADH Technology, and they replied very quickly with a firmware update and update utility. I updated the firmware without issues, and my problem was completely and instantly resolved. :dance: After struggling with this thing for hours, it feel good to have it working again.

I am quite relieved to know that it was a firmware problem and not a hardware problem. I also highly suggest to anybody reading, if you have an older firmware version, update.

My old, buggy version was: 0105F00100331006

The newest firmware today is: 0105F00100341002

Well I’m glad you got your problem solved. Hope all goes well.

Is there a link to the firmware / tools etc?