My NanoV3 with HC-05 Bluetooth and Windows 8.1 PC is working fine. Unfortunately, I need to extend the range by at least 20 feet, and since this goes through a couple of house walls, the HC-05, Class 2 solution does not work. I would like to do a simple swap of modules (both the PC dongle and the HC-05 to Class 1) to accomplish the upgrade. It appears that a Class 1 module for the Arduino is limited and costs relatively much ($35+ and $15+ PC dongle) compared to other possible solutions. Has anyone successfully done what I wish, inexpensively, and without code rewrites? Other possible solutions that meet the $$$ criteria and have minor software rewrites? I appreciate nay insight anyone can shed on the best way to do what I wish.
I have no idea what an HC-05 class 1 could possibly be, but you can be pretty sure of two things: it isn't worth the money, and it won't do the job. Ah, yes, and a third - an HC-05 is an HC-05, no matter how much it costs.
One thing you might try is to use an HM-10 instead. This is a Bluetooth 4 device that offers four clear advantages
Costs under $10, and about the same as you should have paid for your HC-05.
has about three times the range of the HC-05
is a drop-in replacement for the HC-05
no software changes required
The only condition is that that must change the PC dongle as you suggest, otherwise the BT4 devcie will revert to BT2, and you are back where you started.
The above path is the bleeding obvious, even if it doesn't work. I submit BT-4 is the path we will all be going down anyway -which I believe is reflected in HC-05 prices. You might also be able to test the risk of this with BT-4 phones without actually spending anything.
Failing that, I guess you are left with WiFi. This will certainly involve a substantial re-think in software at least, but not necessarily much in the dollar department. The ESP8266 costs about the same as an HC-05. I don't know anything about this but I understand it has a certain amount of intelligence. So, depending on what you are actually doing, you may find that not only does it solve the comms problem but also it renders the Nano redundant.
Nick,
Thanks for your input. For whatever reason I missed the HC-10 unit in my googling. Looks likt that may be my solution, since I already have a Bluetooth 4 PC dongle.
Jim
Is the range of the HM-10 really 100 meters? My friend had one, and he said that it didn't cross 30 feet!
He didn't mention whether he was using it indoors or outdoors.
varunvp:
He didn't mention whether he was using it indoors or outdoors.
Much more to the point would be mention of what he was communicating with. If it was a BT2 device, the BT4 will revert to BT2 to retain backward capability, and the maximum range will thus be about 30 feet.
If it's a BT4 device, like a modern Android phone? We were thinking of controlling the Arduino through an app made in Unity, with the appropriate plug ins.
The 30 foot range suggests the BT4 device is talking to a BT2 device. It also suggests the BT4 device is not a BT4 device, your friend just thinks it is. It would not be the first time that that has happened. There is also a faint chance that there are environmental constraints, but I would have though that that sort of degradation is unlikely. "Modern" is not confirmation the phone is BT4. There is an app to check that it is.
I have a phone with BT4 compatibility (I checked with an app.) So is it safe to say, that if I use an HM 10, it might give me a range of at least 30 meters? Or more? We are going to use this for a direct line of sight application, so obstructions won't be a problem here. Neither will other interference be.
Yes, it seems that 100m is the norm, not what I implied last year. So, if you want 30m, you shouldn't have a problem. I saw somewhere that there can be variations in power output, i.e. no rigorous standard, but I don't think it makes much difference. The big difference can be in standby current. I can't comment any further on your friend's problem.
So it seems I've bought the BT05, another version of the HM 10. It runs on the cc2541 chip. We needed to control the Arduino through an Android smartphone, but for some reasons, we have to use BT2, instead of BT4. Can the BT05 revert to Bluetooth 2, when connected to a BT2 device? Also, is there any way we can force the module to use BT2, so that BT2 phones detect it?
As I understand it, all BT4 devices revert by default to BT2 when connected to a BT2 device. You don't get a choice, and you don't get to force anything.