Hi! I just picked up the Simultaneous RFID reader with the M6E-NANO and soldered all the header pins on to connect to an Arduino Uno. I also have an external antenna connected. I am using the reader as an Arduino shield, and have an external power supply connected to the Arduino, as well as the USB to my computer. I am trying to run the constant read sketch (example 1), but I keep getting “Module Failed to Respond: Please Check Wiring”. I’ve checked the soldering on all the header pins and they are all making good connections. Do I need to connect the external power supply directly to the reader? Or do I need to cut the JP1 on the bottom of the board? I’m not sure which of these I need to do, or if there is something else. Any help is appreciated!
Couple of things to check first:
Assuming you use SoftwareSerial : Make sure the switch on the Nano is in SW uart.
Make sure the FTDI connection on the front of the board does NOT connect with USB metal cover. (it will easily once you placed it on)
Thanks for the tip! Double checked all those things, still no response.
can you share pictures?
Something I just noticed while troubleshooting myself: in the code, it says: SoftwareSerial softSerial(2, 3); //RX, TX, but on my Arduino, the RX and TX pins are 0 and 1 respectively. Should this be reflected in the code? Something like ```
SoftwareSerial softSerial(0, 1); //RX, TX
thanks. try pushing the board a bit more on the UNO, but make sure it does not connect to the USB
If you an ohm meter check this with the board on the UNO
pin 2 on the Uno should connect with TX on the FTDI-connector
pin 3 on the Uno should connect with RX on the FTDI-connector
check there is no short circuit between pin 2 and 3
Move the switch to HW UART and back to SW UART (sometimes a switch maybe not connect that well)
Make sure in the sketch you have the right pins SoftwareSerial softSerial(2, 3); //RX, TX
As an alternative you could remove the NANO from the UNO and connect with loose wires on the FTDI:
NANO – UNO
GND -----GND
VCC ------5V
TX ------ pin 2
RX ------- Pin 3
Tried those options, still failed to respond. I do not have an ohm meter, so I wasn’t able to check the UNO. I do have three quick questions: shouldn’t the RX and TX pins on the board connect to the RX and TX pins (0 and 1) on the Arduino? If that’s not the case, then I can’t connect the board to the UNO as a shield. Second, should I power the board through the VCC and GND on the board or the 5V and GND on the board (that connects to the Arduino if used as a shield). Third question, should I cut the JP1 connector on the bottom of the board if I am using the reader as a shield?
shouldn’t the RX and TX pins on the board connect to the RX and TX pins (0 and 1)
If the switch is set to SW the connection is to pin 2 and 3, if the switch is set to HW they connect to pin 0 and 1. BUT pin 0 and 1 are hard connected to the USB so you should not do that.
should I power the board through the VCC and GND on the board or the 5V and GND on the board (that connects to the Arduino if used as a shield).
Either way is fine. they are already connected with a jumper JP1 in between. The board is having 3V3 (as the power led is on)
should I cut the JP1 connector on the bottom of the board if I am using the reader as a shield?
cutting is only necessary if you connect a USB/serial on the FTDI AND power the Nano directly with the 5V pin. Then the 2 power supplies ( the 5V from the Arduino and 5V from the USB) COULD interfere.
The fact it has a wiring issue is very basic. I suspect that problem is with pin 2 or 3 connections. Try loose wires and remove from the UNO, even for test.
Hmm. Do you mean connect 2 and 3 (on the Arduino) to RX and TX on the Nano? And, do you think having the external antenna connected makes a difference?
Connect like this:
NANO – UNO
GND -----GND
VCC ------5V
TX ------ pin 2
RX ------- Pin 3
For now you could remove the external antenna, although I do not expect too much from that. The program has not even started any action. It will send a code to request the HW /SW levels. That fails already…
Update: Got it to work! I had taped the wire connecting to the uFL connector to the board using electrical tape, and when I took it off, the board connected to the Arduino and worked great. Thanks again for your help, Paul.
very weird… but good to know !
Hi, I have a very similar issue but I haven’t got it to work.
I’m using the same configuration from the SparkFun simultaneous RFID tag reader video https://www.sparkfun.com/products/14066. I’m using a UHF RFID tag with a frequency range of 902 – 928 MHz.(https://www.rfidinc.com/amfile/file/download/file/701/). I’m using example 1 Constant read from the sparkfun library, I read online to use different baud and power numbers and still doesn’t work. Any help would be very much appreciated.
Try running through everything here form the beginning, and double-check all of your wiring/soldering/etc (the problem for that user was their use of electrical tape!)
Share a photo of the wiring/setup