How to build a LoRa gateway using Raspberry Pi

As its name suggests, long-range wide-area network or LoRaWAN technology is widely used for long-range, low-power communication in Internet-of-things (IoT) applications.

In this article, we’ll guide you through the process of connecting an SX130x 868M LoRaWAN Gateway Module to a Raspberry Pi 4 using hardware attached on top (HAT). This setup creates a LoRaWAN gateway, allowing Raspberry Pi (RPi) to communicate with LoRaWAN-enabled devices.

What’s required

Raspberry Pi 4 (Model B or higher is recommended) – link
The SX130x 868M LoRaWAN Gateway Module – link
A LoRa antenna that’s compatible with the module – and comes with SX1302
A MicroSD card with Raspbian OS installed (instructions below) – 32 GB
An SD card reader
Power supply for Raspberry Pi – Link
An Internet connection

Step 1. Gather the hardware
Before starting, You’ll need all required hardware components, including Raspberry Pi 4, the SX130x 868M LoRaWAN Gateway Module, a LoRa antenna, and a functional MicroSD card with Raspbian OS.

Step 2. Assemble the hardware
Insert the MicroSD card into Raspberry Pi (after RPi is installed — see Step 3 for instructions)

Attach the SX130x LoRaWAN Gateway Module to Raspberry Pi’s GPIO pins. Make sure the pins align correctly and the module is securely attached. It’s a HAT, so it should fit perfectly.

Figure 1. The assembled hardware between the SX130x LoRaWAN Gateway Module and the Raspberry Pi’s GPIO pins.

Step 3. Install Raspberry Pi with OS
Install Raspberry Pi Imager Software by using this link to download the software for installation on Windows.

Figure 2. The Raspberry Pi Imager Software

Click on ‘CHOOSE OS.’

Figure 3. Select ‘OS’ from the Imager Software.

Choose the OS Lite version (32-bit), and then choose the Storage Device option in the next step.

Figure 4. Select the Storage Device option.

Next, insert the SD card into your computer using the SD card reader. Select the displayed SD card. Be sure to click on the gear icon before clicking on the ‘Write’ button.

Figure 5. Use the gear button to change the Wi-Fi setting and other options. Then, click on the ‘Write’ image.

Now, change the settings to Wi-Fi and other options. Then, click on ‘Enable SSH’ and set your username and password. Click on the ‘Configure wireless LAN,’ and enter your Wi-Fi’s SSID and password. This allows RPi to boot without connecting it to a desktop screen.

Figure 6. Add your Wi-Fi’s SSID and password.

Click on the ‘Save’ and then the ‘Write’ buttons. Wait for the process to complete, and once finished, remove the SD card from your current device and insert it into Raspberry Pi.

Step 4. Connect Raspberry Pi using SSH
After assembling and inserting the SD card, power on the Raspberry Pi. Follow the following instructions to establish an SSH connection.

Figure 7. The power is on after connecting RPi using SSH.

Determining the IP address of the RPi is necessary for establishing a connection. To do so, download the Angry IP Scanner: link

Figure 8. The Angry IP software.

After clicking on ‘Start,’ the below screen will appear. Once the process is complete, locate the IP address with the host name “Raspberry pi.” You can also find the proper information in the DHCP section of your router’s configuration page.

Figure 9. The IP scanning process.

In our case, the IP address is 192.168.1.4. However, in your case, it will be different. Next, download the software bitvise ssh: link

Launch the software and login to the IP address using the username and password set during the SD card flashing process.

Figure 10. The process of moving SSH into RPi.

Click on the ‘New Terminal Console.’

Figure 11. Click on the ‘New Terminal Console.’

Afterward, you’ll be presented with the follow screen.

Figure 12. The ‘Terminal’ screen after logging in.

We’ve successfully established an SSH connection with Raspberry Pi.

Step 5. Configure RPi
Enable the SPI, Serial, and I2C using this command: “Raspi-config”

Figure 13. The ‘System Options’ window for configuring RPi.

Go to the ‘System Options’ and enable the SPI, Serial, and I2C.

Figure 14. Configure RPi by enabling SPI, I2C, and Serial on the interface window.

Click ‘Yes.’

Figure 15. Click ‘Yes’ for all three options.

It will then ask to reboot.

Step 6. Connecting SX1302
Install the SX1302 binaries for the gateway by following these steps:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install git
cd
git clone https://github.com/Lora-net/sx1302_hal.git
cd sx1302_hal
make clean all
make all
cp tools/reset_lgw.sh util_chip_id/
cp tools/reset_lgw.sh packet_forwarder/

Next, it’s necessary to verify if the hardware is properly connected.

Cd sx1302_hal/util_chip_id/- ./chip_id

Once there’s an established connection with the hardware, you’ll observe output similar to this…

Figure 16. The ‘Get Chip ID’ command.

Your EUI ID is the gateway’s MAC address, so be sure to make a note of it. Initiate the LoRa concentrator shield using this command, providing any configuration file from the folder.

cd sx1302_hal/packet_forwarder/-
./lora_pkt_fwd -c global_conf.json.sx1250.EU868

A successful connection to the LoRa concentrator will look similar to this:

Figure 17. The gateway is UP and a connection is successfully established to the LoRa concentrator

At this point, any data sent over the EU868 profile will be received by this screen.

Conclusion
Sending data through this gateway will enable data reception. The next step involves connecting to, configuring, and managing the gateway using Chirpstack.