Quick Start

2025-04-10

Hardware preparation

Environment construction

Hardware connection

Connect the hardware according to the following diagram:

  1. Connect the LTE antenna to the antenna connector labeled with the word 'LTE'
  2. Connect the GNSS antenna to the antenna connector marked with the word 'GNSS'
  3. Insert a usable Nano SIM card into the back of the development board at the position shown in the diagram
  4. Use jumper caps to short-circuit the two pins marked with the words 'GNSS-EN' to enable the development board's built-in GNSS function
  5. Connect the development board and computer using a Type-C data cable

Cloud Service Platform

Follow these steps to create, configure, and connect to the Alibaba Cloud IoT platform:

Create products and devices

For details, please refer to the Alibaba Cloud documentation: Creating Products and Devices.

  • create productaliyun_create_product

  • create device

aliyun_create_device

Define object model

For details, please refer to the Alibaba Cloud documentation: Defining Product Models.

The object model can provide a more intuitive view of the uploaded data values. This solution provides a demo of the object model, which can be directly imported into the object_model_demo/ai_cloud_object_model.json file in the engineering project for automatic generation, without the need for manual creation.

aliyun_import_object_model

Device development

This section focuses on how to modify the configurations or code that users need to pay attention to in their business, so that they can quickly get started.

Before starting, use VSCode to open the project source code and locate the configuration file starting with settings _ in the code for configuration.

This solution supports two optional platforms: Alibaba IoT and Thingsboard. This mainly introduces the configuration and connection of using Alibaba IoT.

IoT Platform Connection Information

settings_server.py is used to configure IoT platform connection information.

class AliIotConfig:
    product_key = ""
    product_secret = None
    device_name = ""
    device_secret = ""
    server = "iot-as-mqtt.cn-shanghai.aliyuncs.com"
    qos = 1

class ThingsBoardConfig:
    host = ""
    port = 1883
    username = ""
    qos = 0
    client_id = ""

Positioning module configuration information

settings_loc.py is used to configure the configuration information of the positioning module (built-in GNSS/external GNSS serial port, authentication information for base station/WiFi positioning)

This solution is based on the built-in GNSS function implementation of the EC200UEUAA QuecPython standard development board.

# GNSS
gps_cfg = {
    "gps_mode": _gps_mode.internal,		# builtin GNSS
    "UARTn": UART.UART2,
    "buadrate": 115200,
    "databits": 8,
    "parity": 0,
    "stopbits": 1,
    "flowctl": 0,
    "PowerPin": None,
    "StandbyPin": None,
    "BackupPin": None,
}

# Cell
cell_cfg = {
    "serverAddr": "www.queclocator.com",
    "port": 80,
    "token": "xxxxxxxxxx",
    "timeout": 3,
    "profileIdx": profile_idx,
}

# Wifi
wifi_cfg = {
    "token": "xxxxxxxxxx"
}

User business configuration information

settings_user.py is used to configure relevant configuration parameters for user business functions (such as alarm switches, low power thresholds, etc.)

class _server:
    none = 0x0
    AliIot = 0x1
    ThingsBoard = 0x2

class _drive_behavior_code:
    none = 0x0
    sharply_start = 0x1
    sharply_stop = 0x2
    sharply_turn_left = 0x3
    sharply_turn_right = 0x4

class _ota_upgrade_module:
    none = 0x0
    sys = 0x1
    app = 0x2

debug = 1
log_level = "DEBUG"
checknet_timeout = 60
server = _server.AliIot
phone_num = ""
low_power_alert_threshold = 20
low_power_shutdown_threshold = 5
over_speed_threshold = 50
sw_ota = 1
sw_ota_auto_upgrade = 1
sw_voice_listen = 0
sw_voice_record = 0
sw_fault_alert = 1
sw_low_power_alert = 1
sw_over_speed_alert = 1
sw_sim_abnormal_alert = 1
sw_disassemble_alert = 1
sw_drive_behavior_alert = 1
drive_behavior_code = _drive_behavior_code.none
loc_method = _loc_method.all
loc_gps_read_timeout = 300
work_mode = _work_mode.cycle
work_mode_timeline = 3600
work_cycle_period = 30
user_ota_action = -1
ota_status = {
    "sys_current_version": "",
    "sys_target_version": "--",
    "app_current_version": "",
    "app_target_version": "--",
    "upgrade_module": _ota_upgrade_module.none,
    "upgrade_status": _ota_upgrade_status.none,
}

Power on

After completing the hardware connection work, the development board will automatically power on and check if there are any COM ports containing the words' Quectel USB 'in the port list of the computer device manager.

Download firmware

Refer to this chapter, burn firmware package QPy_OCPU_SETA0001_EC200U_SUAA_FW To the development board.

Script import and execution

  1. Refer to this chapter To transfer files between modules, import all files from the 'code' folder in the source code directory into the module file system, as shown in the following figure:

  2. Refer to this chapter, Execute the script file and execute the main program file _main. py.

  3. Refer to this chapter, stop program running.

Debugging

Program startup

After executing the _main.py script, the program starts running and the project running status can be viewed on the interactive page:

The program needs to run for a period of time to obtain GNSS positioning information, please refer to the relevant document for details.

tracker_running

On the Alibaba Cloud IoT platform, device status information can be viewed.

aliyun_tracker_running_saas_view

Cloud control

Send instructions to the device end for device control and data exchange through online debugging.

aliyun_online_send_message

OTA

Firmware upgrade only supports differential upgrade, not full package upgrade ;
Project file upgrade package, made by modifying the project code file extension to '. bin', uploaded to the cloud, can upload multiple files .

Firmware Upgrade

  1. Create firmware upgrade differential package (contact firmware developers);
  2. Create an OTA module and name it after the device platform, such as: EC200U-EUAA。

aliyun_ota_fota_module

  1. Create OTA upgrade package

    The upgrade package name is named after PROJECT-NAME in settings.py, for example: QuecPython-Tracker

aliyun_ota_fota_upgrade_package

  1. Select batch upgrade and create upgrade plan

aliyun_ota_fota_plain

  1. Wait for device upgrade and view upgrade results

    • When the device enables OTA upgrade and OTA automatic upgrade, wait for the device upgrade to complete and view the upgrade results;

    • When the device enables OTA upgrade but does not enable automatic upgrade, the OTA upgrade can be performed by issuing the object model setting command user_ota.action=1 through the online debugging module.

aliyun_ota_fota_upgrade_process

Project Upgrade

  1. Create an OTA module named PROJECT-NAME in settings.py, for example: QuecPython-Tracker。

aliyun_ota_sota_module

  1. Change the file extension of the project that needs to be upgraded to .bin
  2. Create OTA upgrade package
    • Here, it is necessary to write the device full path file name corresponding to the upgrade file name in the custom information pushed to the device, such as：{"files":{"common.bin":"/usr/modules/common.py","settings.bin":"/usr/settings.py","test_tracker.bin":"/usr/test_tracker.py"}}

aliyun_ota_sota_upgrade_package

  1. Select batch upgrade and create upgrade planaliyun_ota_sota_plain

  2. Wait for device upgrade and view upgrade results

    • When the device enables OTA upgrade and OTA automatic upgrade, wait for the device upgrade to complete and view the upgrade results;
    • When the device enables OTA upgrade but does not enable automatic upgrade, the OTA upgrade can be performed by issuing the object model setting command user_ota.action=1 through the online debugging module.

aliyun_ota_sota_upgrade_process