Wi-Fi Modes

On start-up the PwrPak7 or SMART7 configures itself as an access point by default. This can be overridden with the WIFIMODE command and SAVECONFIG command. The WIFIMODE command supports three modes of operation (in addition to Off and On):

The term passkey and password are the same.

Enable the Wi-Fi Access Point

By default, the PwrPak7 or SMART7 is an Access Point.

  1. Start a command line interface (CLI) session with the receiver.
    Use a USB, Ethernet or Serial (COM) port connection.

  2. Use the WIFIMODE command to enable the Wi-Fi transceiver as an AP.

    WIFIMODE AP

  3. Use the SAVECONFIG command to store the change in Non-Volatile Memory.
    This ensures the changes are kept when the receiver is restarted.

The PwrPak7 or SMART7 has the ability to override the Access Point SSID to the existing Access Point. By default, the SSID is the enclosure PSN prefixed by 'PwrPak7-' or 'SM7-' (e.g. PwrPak7-NMPM191500004P or SM7-NMPX17500010L). Refer to Change the SSID for detailed instructions.

Enable the Wi-Fi Client

The PwrPak7 or SMART7 can also be configured as a client/station capable of connecting to an access point such as another PwrPak7 or SMART7 receiver. The primary reason for configuring a PwrPak7 or SMART7 receiver as a client is to allow the transmission of corrections from one receiver to another over Wi-Fi.

Prior to connecting to an Access Point, note the following information found on the receiver label:
The SSID in the form "PwrPak7-<Receiver PSN>" or "SM7-<Receiver PSN>" (e.g. "PwrPak7-ABCDEF1234567" or "SM7-ABCDEF1234567").
The Wi-Fi password (also known as passkey).

The information for up to four Access Points can be stored in the PwrPak7 or SMART7 using the WIFINETCONFIG command.

To configure the PwrPak7 or SMART7 as a client and connect it to an access point, follow these steps:

  1. Start a command line interface (CLI) session with the receiver.
    Use a USB, Ethernet or Serial (COM) port connection.

  2. Use the WIFIMODE command to enable the Wi-Fi transceiver as a Client.

    WIFIMODE CLIENT

  3. Configure the PwrPak7 or SMART7 as a Client to connect to the desired access point by issuing:

    WIFINETCONFIG 1 ENABLE "<ssid>" "<password>"

    Where <ssid> and <password> are the SSID and password of the Access Point to which the Client should connect. The "1" can be a value of 1-4 depending on the Access Point being configured.

  4. Use the SAVECONFIG command to store the change in Non-Volatile Memory.
    This ensures the changes are kept when the receiver is restarted.

The receiver will automatically connect to the access point (if it is in range).

The connection status of the receiver can be monitored by entering the following command and waiting for it to report CONNECTED_TO_AP

LOG WIFISTATUS ONCHANGED

The access points in range can be monitored by entering this command:

LOG WIFINETLIST ONCHANGED

A PwrPak7 or SMART7 operating as a client can be configured to automatically connect to one of several Access Points which may or may not be another receiver. This functionality is similar to what is provided by Smart phones which automatically connect to known Access Points. In the case of the PwrPak7 or SMART7, each access point is assigned a network id value so that when more than one Access Point is in range, the client connects to the Access Point with the lowest network ID.

The command to do this is WIFINETCONFIG command:

WIFINETCONFIG <network_id> <enabled> <ssid> <passkey> <dhcp_mode> <ip_address> <netmask> <gateway> <dns>

If the WIFIALIGNAUTOMATION command is enabled, the only Access Point the Client will connect to is the ALIGN Base Access Point.

When configured for Client Mode, the PwrPak7 or SMART7 initiates background scanning to periodically receive a list of nearby Access Points. Whenever a list of Access Points is received they are published in the WIFINETLIST log. If the Client is not currently connected to an Access Point, the list of available Access Points is compared to the Access Point specified by the WIFIALIGNAUTOMATION command or the list of Access Points in the WIFINETCONFIG command and automatically establishes a connection. If there is more than one match, the Client automatically connects to the Access Point with the lowest network ID.

Enable the Wi-Fi Concurrent

When operating in Concurrent mode, the receiver acts as both a Wi-Fi client and an access point at the same time. This makes it possible to configure the receiver using either the Web UI or an ICOM port in the event that the receiver is unable to establish a connection to any of its preconfigured access points.

When configured as a Client, communication with the receiver is limited to either physical communications such as USB, serial or Ethernet or through the Access Point to which it is connected. This can be problematic if none of the access points stored in the receiver are in range. To ensure the receiver is accessible over a Wi-Fi connection, it is possible to configure it in Concurrent mode, which allows it to operate as both an access point (for configuration/monitoring purposes) and as a Client (for the transfer of corrections).

  1. Start a command line interface (CLI) session with the receiver.
    Use a USB, Ethernet or Serial (COM) port connection.

  2. Use the WIFIMODE command to enable the Wi-Fi transceiver in concurrent mode. The PwrPak7 or SMART7 automatically connects to any Access Point in range which has been stored in the receiver with WIFINETCONFIG command and also accepts up to four incoming client connections.

    WIFIMODE CONCURRENT

  3. Use the SAVECONFIG command to store the change in Non-Volatile Memory.
    This ensures the changes are kept when the receiver is restarted.

If the Access Point chosen by the Concurrent Client is using a channel different than the one used by the Concurrent Access Point, the Wi-Fi module will be rebooted and configured to use the channel of the chosen access point. Any clients connected to the Concurrent Mode Access Point will lose their connection and may or may not automatically reconnect.

If the access point chosen by the Client, the Client is configured with the same IP address as the Concurrent Access Point, communication with the chosen access point will be blocked. To detect this situation, check the IPSTATUS log to verify that the IP address of the Concurrent Access Point is different than the Gateway IP address assigned to the Concurrent Client. To correct this situation, the IP address of the Concurrent Access Point should be updated using the WIFIAPIPCONFIG command followed by the WIFIMODE CONCURRENT command. In the example below, the IP address of the Concurrent Access point is changed from 192.168.19.1 to 192.168.20.1 to enable a communication path between the two receivers to be established.

 

WIFISTATUS COM1 0 74.0 FINESTEERING 2011 337605.032 02000000 8a58 32768 CONCURRENT_CONNECTED_TO_AP "SM7-NMPX18070011D" -31 11 "88:da:1a:04:c5:0c" WPA2 0

log ipstatus

IPSTATUS COM1 0 75.5 FINESTEERING 2011 337611.000 02000000 7fe2 32768

   3

      ETHA "10.129.32.50" "255.255.255.0" ""

      WIFI "192.168.19.1" "255.255.255.0" ""

      WIFI_CLIENT "192.168.19.100" "255.255.255.0" "192.168.19.1"

      1

      "192.168.19.1"

wifiapipconfig 192.168.20.1 255.255.255.0

wifimode concurrent

log ipstatus

IPSTATUS COM1 0 75.0 FINESTEERING 2011 337726.000 02000000 7fe2 32768

   3

      ETHA "10.129.32.50" "255.255.255.0" ""

      WIFI "192.168.20.1" "255.255.255.0" ""

      WIFI_CLIENT "192.168.19.100" "255.255.255.0" "192.168.19.1"

      1

      "192.168.19.1"