Overview

The Nano Series devices are engineered to be a portable and durable solution for outdoor adventures such as hiking, piloting, skiing and more. They are designed to strike a balance between RF performance, size, ruggedness, and power efficiency, providing users with a reliable solution in various outdoor environments.
For the firmware, all Nano Series devices come with pre-installed Meshtastic. More detials could be found in the The Latest Firmware section.

nano_g1_explorer_overview.jpg The Meshtastic[1] Mesh Device Nano G1 Explorer represents a significant upgrade to the Nano G1, incorporating the latest RF technologies from B&Q Consulting. The Nano G1 Explorer features a new internal wideband Lora antenna, which supports frequencies from 815 Mhz to 940 Mhz. The wideband antenna, combined with an optimized wideband Lora RF frontend circuit, enables the Nano G1 Explorer to work with the majority of regions' LoRa frequency bands around the world without the need for antenna changes. The design of the device also takes into account the potential effect of the human body on its antenna performance, ensuring optimal RF performance even when carried in a pocket.

The upgrades are summarized in the tab below

RF Upgrades

  1. Nano G1 Explorer features a new internal wideband Lora antenna with supports for frequencies from 815 Mhz to 940 Mhz. The optimized wideband Lora RF frontend circuit provides the ability to cover majority of regions in the world without changing the antenna.
  2. The device has a new internal GPS antenna that significantly reduces GPS lock time compared to the Nano G1.
  3. Lora transceiver has been upgraded from SX1276 to SX1262, resulting in an increase in the maximum TX power from 20 dBm to 22 dBm.
  4. SX1262 circuit includes a TCXO (+-1.5 ppm) for improved frequency accuracy.
  5. GPS module can be set to a low-power mode with the GPS physical switch.

Other Upgrades

  1. Enhanced message notification circuit with the option of LED or Buzzer, configurable through a physical switch.
  2. Physical power switch for easy turn on/off of the system.
  3. Replaceable OLED screen with a FPC connector.
  4. Internal Li-Polymer Battery Charger , an optional 3.7V 603450 JST 1.25mm Rechargeable Li-Polymer Battery could be installed.
  5. Buck-boost converter, could provide stable 3.3V to the system even the Li-Polymer battery voltage drops as low as 2.5V. Supply voltage stability is very important to ensure that the performance of RF circuits meets design expectations.

Typical RF Performance:

Electrical Characteristics:

Dimension:

Hardware

Switch/Button Definitionnano_g1_explorer_switch_button_def.jpg

PCB

nano_edition_explorer_g1_pcb.jpg

  1. Power ON/OFF Switch
  2. LED or Buzzer Switch for Enhanced Message Notification Circuit
  3. GPS ON/OFF Switch
  4. Message Read Button - Clear New Message LED
  5. User Button
  6. ESP32 WROOM
  7. Enhanced Message Notification Circuit and New Message LED Indicator (Green)
  8. Buck-boost converter, > 95% efficiency, Texas Instruments(TI) TPS63051
  9. 32MHz TCXO (+-1.5 ppm), Part No. 1XXD32000MBA from DAISHINKU CORP. (KDS)
  10. USB Type C Socket
  11. CH9102F USB to UART Bridge
  12. Semtech SX1262 Lora Transceiver
  13. RF Switch
  14. Battery Charging LED Indicator （Red）
  15. Battery Standby LED Indicator (Green)
  16. FPC Connector for OLED Screen
  17. JST 1.25mm Connector for optional 3.7V 603450 Rechargeable Li-Polymer Battery
  18. Active Buzzer
  19. ATGM336H-5N Whole Constellation Positioning and Navigation Module
  20. GPS Pulse Per Second (PPS) LED Indicator, the PPS LED is functional if and only if the board is powered by the external power. (Improving the battery life)
  21. GPS Omni-directional Antenna
  22. Internal Wideband Lora Antenna
  23. 1.3 Inch OLED Screen

Mechanical Design

Similar as Nano G1, the Nano G1 Explorer is also constructed by stacking up PCB boards.This method offers a good balance of cost and mechanical strength. Compared with Nano G1, Nano G1 Explorer uses 5 more PCBs to build a built-in battery compartment. An optional 3.7V 603450 JST 1.25mm Rechargeable Li-Polymer Battery could be installed. nano_g1_explorer_mechanical_design.jpg Note: Blue Rectangle - Nylon Machine Screws and Nuts

RF Design - Lora

Conduction Test

Instrument Setup and Device Under Test...

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