The IEEE 802.15.4 protocol is an industry-standard wireless networking solution, allowing the exchange of data between ultra low-power devices operating in license-free radio bands. The protocol is targeted at wireless network applications that require relatively infrequent data exchanges at low data-rates over a restricted area – for example, a home temperature monitoring and control network. The low-power devices may be battery-powered or self-powered through "energy harvesting" (e.g. using a solar panel), and may "sleep" to conserve power when not transmitting.
NXP® provide IEEE 802.15.4-based solutions for the 2.4GHz band through the JN516x and JN517x wireless microcontrollers and associated support software. IEEE 802.15.4 also forms the basis of other wireless networking protocols supported by NXP, such as ZigBee 3.0. These protocols incorporate enhanced networking functionality that would be the responsibility of the user application in a pure IEEE 802.15.4 solution.
IEEE 802.15.4 Software
IEEE 802.15.4 is available for the full range of JN516x and JN517x microcontrollers. The protocol and associated support software are supplied in the following Software Developer's Kits (SDKs), both designed to be used with an Eclipse-based Integrated Development Environment (IDE):
- JN516x IEEE 802.15.4 SDK (JN-SW-4163): Used with ‘BeyondStudio for NXP’ IDE (JN-SW-4141)
- JN517x IEEE 802.15.4 SDK (JN-SW-4263): Used with NXP LPCXpresso IDE (see SDK Release Notes for version)
Software, Documentation and Support Resources
A wide range of user resources are provided to aid in the development of custom IEEE 802.15.4 solutions, including an SDK, User Guides and Application Notes. Those resources that are relevant to IEEE 802.15.4 are listed below.
Hardware-related resources can be found on the Support Resources for JN516x MCUs and Support Resources JN517x MCUs pages.
Legacy software is listed at the bottom of the page.
Note: K32W061/41 or JN5189/88T are preferred for any new Zigbee®, Thread and Bluetooth® LE 5.0 design. No new software releases planned
| Part Number | Title | Description | Version | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software | ||||
| JN-SW-4263 | JN517x IEEE 802.15.4 SDK | Software for the development of IEEE 802.15.4 networks based on JN517x devices. Includes an application template for custom application development. Must be installed on top of the LPCXpresso toolchain. For details, refer to the Release Notes. | 1546 | |
| JN-SW-4163 | JN516x IEEE 802.15.4 SDK | Software for the development of IEEE 802.15.4 networks based on JN516x devices. Must be installed on top of the BeyondStudio for NXP toolchain. For details, refer to the Release Notes. | 1416 | |
| JN-SW-4141 | BeyondStudio for NXP | Toolchain for developing JN51xx applications. For details, refer to the Release Notes and User Guide JN-UG-3098. | 1308 | |
| JN-SW-4107 | JN51xx Production Flash Programmer | Utility for loading built applications into JN51xx devices in a production environment. For details, refer to the Release Notes and User Guide JN-UG-3099. | 1365 | |
| User Guides | ||||
| JN-UG-3024 | IEEE 802.15.4 Stack User Guide | Provides an introduction to IEEE 802.15.4 and details the NXP software resources for
developing IEEE 802.15.4 applications.
Read this first. |
2.6 | |
| JN-UG-3098 | BeyondStudio for NXP Installation and User Guide | Describes the installation and operation of BeyondStudio for NXP (JN-SW-4141). Also covers JN516x SDK installation. | 1.2 | |
| JN-UG-3109 | JN517x LPCXpresso Installation and User Guide | Describes the installation and operation of LPCXpresso for JN517x. Also covers JN517x SDK installation. | 1.2 | |
| JN-UG-3116 | JN51xx Core Utilities User Guide | Details a set of software utilities for use with the JN51xx devices, including the Persistent Data Manager (PDM). | 1.0 | |
| Application Notes | ||||
| JN-AN-1001 | Calculating JN516x Power Consumption | Describes how to calculate the power required by a JN516x wireless microcontroller running an IEEE 802.15.4-based application. | 1.6 | |
| JN-AN-1035 | Calculating 802.15.4 Data Rates | Describes how to calculate the data rates of an IEEE 802.15.4 wireless network. | 1.2 | |
| JN-AN-1059 | Wireless Network Deployment Guidelines | Provides RF guidelines for the deployment of an IEEE 802.15.4-based wireless network. | 1.2 | |
| JN-AN-1069 | IEEE 802.15.4 Serial Cable Replacement | Describes and provides software for creating a wireless IEEE 802.15.4 link between the UARTs on two JN516x/7x devices. | 4.0 | |
| JN-AN-1079 | Co-existence of IEEE 802.15.4 at 2.4 GHz | Highlights the issues affecting the co-existence of an IEEE 802.15.4-based system with other systems in the 2.4GHz radio band. | 1.1 | |
| JN-AN-1172 | JN516x Customer Module Evaluation Tool | Provides and describes a tool which can be used to place the JN516x microcontroller into a number of test modes that enable measurement of module performance. | 1.6 | |
| JN-AN-1174 | IEEE 802.15.4 Application Template for JN516x | Provides a template which can be used as a basis for IEEE 802.15.4 application coding. The use and structure of the template are described in the User Guide JN-UG-3024. | 1.4 | |
| JN-AN-1175 | Packet Error Rate Testing for JN516x | Provides and describes Packet Error Rate (PER) testing software that can be used on boards from a JN516x evaluation kit. | 1.3 | |
| JN-AN-1180 | 802.15.4 Home Sensor Demonstration for JN516x | Provides and describes the IEEE 802.15.4 Home Sensor Demonstration application that can be used with a JN516x evaluation kit. | 1.5 | |
| JN-AN-1193 | JN516x Lauterbach JTAG Debugger | Details the configuration of a debug environment for code running on a JN516x device using a Lauterbach JTAG Debugger. | 1.4 | |
| JN-AN-1202 | BeyondStudio Migration Guidelines | Provides guidance on migrating existing JN516x projects to BeyondStudio for NXP. | 1.1 | |
| JN-AN-1203 | JN516x JTAG Debugging in BeyondStudio | Describes use of the JTAG debugging features of the JN516x devices via the BeyondStudio for NXP software tool. | 1.2 | |
| JN-AN-1212 | Packet Error Rate Testing for JN517x | Provides and describes Packet Error Rate (PER) testing software that can be used on boards from a JN517x development kit. | 1.1 | |
| Related Documentation | ||||
| JN517x | JN517x Datasheet | Details the JN517x series of microcontrollers. | 1 | |
| JN5169 | JN5169 Datasheet | Details the JN5169 microcontroller | 1 | |
| JN5169M0x | JN5169-001-M0x-2 Datasheet | Details the JN5169-001-M0x series of modules | 3.0 | |
| JN-DS-JN516x | JN516x Datasheet | Details the JN516x series of microcontrollers. | 1.3 | |
| JN-DS-JN5168-001-MO | JN5168-001-Myy Datasheet | Details the JN5168-001-Myy series of modules. | 1.4 | |
| JN-RM-2003 | LPRF Board API Reference Manual | Details the Board API, used in application code to interact with components on the boards supplied in an evaluation kit. | 2.4 | |
| JN-UG-3075 | JenOS User Guide | Contains details of the JenOS Persistent Data Manager (PDM) that may be used in IEEE 802.15.4 applications. | 1.7 | |
| JN-UG-3087 | JN516x Integrated Peripherals API User Guide | Details the JN516x Integrated Peripherals API, used in application code to interact with JN516x on-chip peripherals. | 1.4 | |
| JN-UG-3093 | JN516x-EK001 Evaluation Kit User Guide | Describes the contents of this JN516x evaluation kit, and how to set up and run the pre-loaded demonstration. | 1.5 | |
| JN-UG-3099 | JN51xx Production Flash Programmer User Guide | Describes use of the JN51xx Production Flash Programmer (JN-SW-4107). | 1.1 | |
| JN-UG-3108 | JN516x-EK004 Evaluation Kit User Guide | Describes the contents of the JN516x-EK004 Evaluation Kit, and how to set up and run the pre-loaded demonstration. | 2.0 | |
| JN-UG-3118 | JN517x Integrated Peripherals API User Guide | Details the JN517x Integrated Peripherals API, used in application code to interact with JN517x on-chip peripherals. | 1.1 | |
|
Reference Designs for the JN516x devices are available from Support Resources for JN516x
MCUs. Reference Designs for the JN517x devices are available from Support Resources for JN517x MCUs. |
||||
Legacy Software
The software required to develop JN516x IEEE 802.15.4 applications using the former Eclipse-based toolchain (JN-SW-4041) is listed and described below. This is not recommended for new designs.
| Part Number | Title | Description | Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| JN-SW-4041 | JN51xx SDK Toolchain | Previous Eclipse-based toolchain for developing JN516x applications. For IEEE 802.15.4, must be used with JN-SW-4063. | 1.1 |
| JN-SW-4063 | JN516x IEEE 802.15.4 SDK | Software for the development of IEEE 802.15.4 systems based on JN516x devices. Must be installed on top of the JN51xx SDK Toolchain (JN-SW-4041). | 983 |
| JN-SW-4007 | JN51xx Flash Programmer | Utility for loading built applications into JN51xx Flash memory. | 1.8.9 |
| JN-AN-1178 | IEEE 802.15.4 Wireless UART for JN516x | Describes how to create a wireless serial link based on IEEE 802.15.4, using two sensor boards from a JN516x evaluation kit. | 1.1 |