8.
Radio Transceiver Usage
This section describes basic procedures to receive and transmit frames using the ATSAMR30M18A. For a detailed
description of different states of AT86RF212B, refer to the
8.1
Frame Receive Procedure
A frame reception comprises of two actions: The transceiver listens for, receives and demodulates the frame to the
Frame Buffer and signals the reception to the microcontroller. After or during that process, the microcontroller can
read the available frame data from the Frame Buffer via the SPI interface.
While being in state RX_ON or RX_AACK_ON, the radio transceiver searches for incoming frames with the selected
modulation scheme and data rate on the selected channel. Assuming the appropriate interrupts are enabled, the
detection of a frame is indicated by interrupt IRQ_2 (RX_START). When the frame reception is completed, interrupt
IRQ_3 (TRX_END) is issued.
Different Frame Buffer read access scenarios are recommended for:
• Non-time critical applications:
– Read access starts after IRQ_3 (TRX_END)
• Time-critical applications:
– Read access starts after IRQ_2 (RX_START)
For non-time-critical operations, it is recommended to wait for interrupt IRQ_3 (TRX_END) before starting a Frame
Buffer read access. The figure below illustrates the frame receive procedure using IRQ_3 (TRX_END).
Figure 8-1. Transactions between AT86RF212B and Microcontroller during Receive
A
T86RF212B
M
ic
ro
co
nt
ro
lle
r
IRQ issued (IRQ_2)
Read IRQ status, pin 24 (IRQ) deasserted
IRQ issued (IRQ_3)
Read frame data (Frame Buffer access)
Read IRQ status, pin 24 (IRQ) deasserted
Critical protocol timing could require starting the Frame Buffer read access after interrupt IRQ_2 (RX_START). The
first byte of the frame data can be read 32µs after the IRQ_2 (RX_START) interrupt. The microcontroller must be
sure to read slower than the frame is received. Otherwise, a Frame Buffer underrun occurs, IRQ_6 (TRX_UR) is
issued and the frame data may be not valid. To avoid this, the Frame Buffer read access can be controlled by using a
Frame Buffer Empty Indicator.
8.2
Frame Transmit Procedure
A frame transmission comprises of two actions, a write to Frame Buffer and the transmission of its contents. Both
actions can be run in parallel if required by critical protocol timing.
The following figure illustrates the ATSAMR30M18A frame transmit procedure, when writing and transmitting
the frame consecutively. After a Frame Buffer write access, the frame transmission is initiated by asserting
pin 11 (SLP_TR) or writing command TX_START to the TRX_CMD bits in the TRX_STATE register
(TRX_STATE.TRX_CMD). For more information on registers, see the
be either in PLL_ON state for Basic Operating mode or TX_ARET_ON state for Extended Operating mode. The
completion of the transaction is indicated by interrupt IRQ_3 (TRX_END).
ATSAMR30M18A
Radio Transceiver Usage
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Datasheet
DS70005384B-page 31