Interface Sparkfun Simultaneous RFID Reader and Raspberry Pi

Sensors NFC & RFID
1

Hello Sparkfun.

I have purchased your RFID simultaneous reader and have a couple of questions. First, do you guys have a library of commands and functions (i.e serial commands) that I can use to program the reader using python or raspberry pi? I am trying to interface both devices using a serial connection for a project. Second, using the Windows Universal Reader Assistant I noticed that the reader will not read tags unless I decrease the reading power from 27dBm (default) to 5 dBm. Is there a way I can access the reader’s settings to modify this number? Or, is there a way I can create a code in python to modify this value? My intention is not to use the Universal Reader Assistant, but instead use the RPi.

Note: I am not using an Arduino. I am connecting the Sparkfun directly to the Raspberry Pi.

Thank you for your help,

Enrique

2

Hi Enrique,

Unfortunately, we do not have any example code for using the Simultaneous RFID Reader with Python or the Raspberry Pi. The board was designed to act either as an Arduino Shield or to connect via the UART pins broken out for direct communication with a computer via a Serial to USB converter. You might be able to use the source code from our Arduino library to try and write a Python library for this or there may be a user-created one out there but we are not aware of one and do not provide support for any you may find.

I am not sure I understand your question regarding the read power settings. This can be adjusted either via the Universal Reader Assistant or you can set it using the examples in our [Arduino Library. Most likely, the issue you are experiencing with the M6E not reading tags at 27dBm is related to your power supply. We recommend using a dedicated power supply for the M6E if you are trying to use it at max read power as it can draw over 1A when that read power is set to maximum. [This section of our Hookup Guide goes over the power input for the Simultaneous RFID Reader in more detail.](https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/simultaneous-rfid-tag-reader-hookup-guide/power-supply-considerations)](GitHub - sparkfun/SparkFun_Simultaneous_RFID_Tag_Reader_Library: Arduino library to control the M6E-Nano RFID module from ThingMagic)

3

I have connected the Sparkfun Nano to Raspberry Pi and have been using the standard Mercury API from Jadak/Thingmagic. I have done a number of interface ( e.g. allow to connect remote over TCP, connect remote over bluetoorth or create Nodejs server.) see https://github.com/paulvha/ThingMagic for different projects.

Actually if you look on github you will be able to find others who have made a python connection:

https://github.com/search?l=Python&q=m6 … positories

4

Thanks so much for sharing, Paul! We are going to look at those Python libraries and see if we can add them to our guide or our Support Tips for the Simultaneous RFID Reader. I am sure a lot of other users who would like to use this board on a Pi or other Python-capable board would love this information.

5

Hey,

I have a Raspberry Pi and am using this Python Wrapper and it works like a charm:

https://github.com/gotthardp/python-mercuryapi

The forum is also very good and the developer answers pretty fast.