Has anyone gotten a 4G modem to work on-board the NanoPC-T4?

[Daitaro]

Title says it all.

In any form?

[igorp]

Title says it all.

In any form?

This https://amzn.to/2Ue3BOC must work on Armbian OOB.

armbian-config -> network -> enable 4G connection

[v8dave]

Which OS. I have the SIMCOM SIM7600E-PCIE module working with the T4 under Android.

[Daitaro]

Android is the target OS. Which Carrier?

[v8dave]

I think the Quectel modem is supported out of the box with the T4 and Android 8. If you want to support another modem via USB, you need to build the OS to include the RIL for that modem. There is a generic RIL but I've never gotten it to work. Android doesn't support any modem out of the box and you will have to build your own custom OS for whatever you choose.

SIMCOM provide the RIL and all files needed to build support for their modems. If you use the SIM7600E-PCIE module and a USB to PCIE adapter, you can test it on the T4.

The RK3399 dev board has a PCI slot that takes a PCI Express modem. The SIMCOM7600E works in that for me but as I said, this is a custom build of Android 8.0 so support that modem.

[Daitaro]

Dave,

You're using the SIMCOM7600E in the pci-e slot on the back of the T4, yes? Which carrier are you using? I'm looking to specifically use that slot for mobile data, without having to go over the usb interface. You've gotten this to work under Android?

I'm in the middle of customizing 10 to my liking, and if you'd be willing to let me know what you've done so far so I can implement the same, I'll look into it. I have a usb-modem card, but I really don't want to use usb. Any help?

Thanks!

[v8dave]

The slot on the rear is not PCIE and it has no USB connection either.

I used it via one of the USB ports and a PCIE module to USB convertor board.

I've not yet seen Android 10 driver from SIMCOM and only managed to get this working with Android 8 although I have seen a number of websites offering Android 9 drivers.

I have downloaded and prebuilt Android 10 and made some custom changes but not yet done anything with the RIL.

[Daitaro]

The T4 is not pcie? That's exactly what it is. The M.2 slot has x4 capability with up to pcie 2.1.

But none of that is really that important... You said you got it to work on 8 over usb. Did the system recognize that it had mobile capabilities? Did the sim icon go away when it was plugged in, as the system detected a native connection? Or did it treat it as just a usb module in which you had to dial out and make your connection manually for internet functionality?

Thanks, Dave. I'm trying to figure out exactly how 'native' I can get internet on this board... it will effectively be headless where it's going and any full automation is welcome.

[v8dave]

My apologies, what I should have said was that it is not the PCI Express slot with the USB. It's an M.2 slot instead which is not the same as the card edge on the SIM7100E-PCIE module with different key position and that version has USB and SIM card connections.

Use the SIM7100E-PCIE card with a USB to PCIE adapter. Cheap on AliExpress, or design your own PCB. As I used the Nano PC T3 Plus, it has a USB port on one of the headers so I added a PCIE connector to the PCB and connected up the USB and SIM card to this. Works well.

The RIL that comes from SIMCOM integrates a full RIL implementation where the icon changes to show a 4G etc connection with fallback to WiFi if you switch this on. When you switch WiFi off, it automatically switches over to GPRS again. You can watch the output with LOGCAT -B RADIO when you have a modem installed.

Are you building your own custom Android based on the FA source? You'll need to add the RIL to this. As far as I can tell, they only supply a generic one for the Quectel modules. I've only just started to work with Android 10 and make the changes I need to get it to work with the T4. I use this to power an industrial data logger with the 11.6" K116 LCD.

Great place for documentation after you sign up. RIL drivers up to 8 available on there too.

https://techship.com/products/simcom-si ... mpcie-sim/

[Daitaro]

Ah yes. Wonderful clarification. I was worried we weren't discussing the same board.

So I've hit a fork. I was building a custom a10 build earlier and ran into some errors that didn't point to anything logical, so I started from scratch. Literally git'd the source and ran the build file, just to see if there was an issue with the source code. It error'd out again. Funny.

Have you built a custom a10 image yet? I would like to see if it's me, as I have built many a8 images using this setup... all of sudden, it won't build an a10 image...

All that to say this. If you have gotten a8 to work with the sim board and it accepts it as native and auto switches over, I am willing to go that route. I already have it rooted and half baked to my liking, so adding the RIL won't be too much, provided you're kind enough to walk me through what you've done. Honestly, I've never baked in anything like that before so I don't know where to begin.

[v8dave]

I've downloaded the GITLAB repository and built it first without any changes and it completed in a few hours.

I am running Ubuntu 12.04 64 bit as legacy because I also have an older Android 5.1 version that doesn't build under higher versions of Ubuntu although 8 and 10 should build with a later version. Google often recommends the best platform for Android builds.

What are the errors you are getting? It is likely that you are missing something or some libraries etc?

[Daitaro]

Dave,

My simcom module came in and I'm ready to integrate it. I'm on android 8 again out of reliability. Any tips for the RIL integration? Looking through the documentation, it's a bit convoluted and honestly, you know much more about working with a raw image than I do. I have the files downloaded and I'll poke around, but anything you can give me is appreciated. I have the 7600NA pcie module.

Thanks!

[v8dave]

Good day.

If you follow the instructions from the integration manual, it is fairly simple to add to the OS build. You'll need a little experience of the OS build to know what files to change.

Use the debug UART to monitor the radio debug (logcat -b radio) from the command line. This will indicate if the process was successful or not.

I think I might have updated Android 8.1 for the T4 so let me check and see if I can send you an image that you can try.

Do you have the RIL from SIMCOM for that modem?

[Daitaro]

Do you have the RIL from SIMCOM for that modem?

I do!

[Daitaro]

So for the android 8 build, you say you got the gps portion of the 7600 module to work?

Did you have to push the gps module from simcom? If so, where did you get it? My simcom ril package for android 8 does not include the gps.simcom.so file.

[Daitaro]

Hey Dave, everything ok? You normally don't go away from FE too long.

Not that I'm stalking you or anything. Just observant.

[v8dave]

Hey there. Just moved overseas to Perth, Australia and in quarantine so I was not logged in on the laptop.

Thanks for checking up though, it is much appreciated.

I get out of quarantine on the 25th Feb and once I get to the new home, I'll be back on the main PC where all my code is.

[Daitaro]

I see! Congrats on your move! And Australia... awesome! The friend I keep in contact with most lives there. Other side, though.

No worries. Just gotta look out for fellow tinkerers. Especially in (cliché incoming) these troubled times. Do your thing!

Troy

[v8dave]

I have the SIMCOM SIM7600E-PCIE module working with the T4 under Android.

Which Android version? I have it working with 5 and 7 on a T3 but have the drivers for 8 but not yet tested it on the T4.

[Daitaro]

Yes, can you help us with details? How you went about the file merges and all of that?

[Daitaro]

You got rather quiet there, eldritch. Any help on your last post?

[Daitaro]

Just bumping this thread... I knew a few of us were working towards this goal.

Has anyone made progress?

[paulvijayji]

I have downloaded and prebuilt Android 10 and made some custom changes but not yet done anything with the RIL.
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