NXP 88W8987 User guide

UM11483

Getting Started with NXP Wireless Modules for i.MX 8M-Quad

Platforms

Rev. 1 — 15 October 2020 User manual

Document information

Information Content

Keywords i.MX 8M Quad board, i.MX 8M Quad Evaluation Kit (EVK), i.MX 8M Quad

platforms, 88W8987-based wireless module

Abstract Details the enabling of wireless solutions on i.MX 8M Quad platforms, the

bring-up of i.MX 8M Quad board and how to build the image from source for

i.MX 8M Quad platform.

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Revision history

Rev Date Description

v.1 20201015 Initial version

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1 About this document

1.1 Purpose and audience

This document details the enabling of wireless solutions on i.MX 8M Quad platforms.

The manual also covers the bring-up of i.MX 8M Quad platform, how to set up the

configurations for the build of BSP image from source and the hardware connection

with the 88W8987-based wireless module. The later chapters describe how to initialize/

configure the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth interface. The document is intended for the software,

hardware, and system engineers who are planning to use the wireless solutions on i.MX

8M Quad platforms.

Table 1. Targeted audience

Audience Purpose

Software engineers To design and develop software

Product architect To prepare the integration

1.2 Scope

This document specifies the hardware interconnection and software support for the i.MX

8M Quad and AzureWave AW-CM358-uSD/AW-CM358MA module to enable Wi-Fi/

Bluetooth functionality. The content explains how to access the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth features

on NXP 88W8987-based wireless modules, and provides the hardware architecture

information of i.MX 8M Quad platform and 88W8987 wireless module. Note that the

Azurewave module AW-CM358-uSD only supports the Wi-Fi with i.MX 8M Quad

platform.

Once you have enabled the Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth, refer to the user guide reference

UM11490 (Wireless Feature Configuration Guide for i.MX 8M Quad Platform) that details

the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth features and configurations for i.MX 8M Quad platforms.

1.3 Considerations

The i.MX 8M Quad is powered by Linux and the NXP Linux drivers added to support

88W8987 wireless device. This document does not provide a detailed description of the

i.MX 8M Quad BSP nor how to run and generate an image, and generate a rootfs as

these are covered in the i.MX Yocto Project User's Guide.

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1.4 References

Table 2. Reference documents

Document type Document title

Datasheet NXP – DS – 88W8987 2.4/5 GHz Dual-Band 1x1 Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 5 Solution

User Manual NXP – UM - i.MX Yocto Project User's Guide

This document describes how to build an image for an i.MX board by using a Yocto Project

build environment. Read more at link.

User manual NXP – UM - i.MX Linux

®

User's Guide

This document describes how to build and install the i.MX Linux

®

OS BSP. Read more at

link.

User Guide AzureWave – UG - uSD-1212 Adapter Board for AW-AM281-uSD and AW-CM358-uSD

(link).

User Guide NXP - UM - Wireless Feature Configuration Guide for i.MX 8M Quad Platform

This document details the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth features and configurations for i.MX 8M Quad

platforms (link).

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2 i.MX 8M Quad architecture

2.1 Overview

NXP i.MX 8M Quad Evaluation Kit (EVK) provides a platform for rapid evaluation of the

i.MX 8MQuad, i.MX 8MDual and i.MX 8MQuadLite Applications Processors, utilizing 2

to 4x ARM

®

Cortex

®

-A53s and 1x Cortex-M4 cores. The i.MX 8M Quad Linux Board

Support Package (BSP) supports the Linux Operating System (OS) on the i.MX 8M

Quad application processors. The purpose of this software package is to support Linux

OS on the i.MX 8M Quad of Integrated Circuits (ICs) and their associated platforms. It

provides the necessary software to interface the standard open-source Linux kernel to

the i.MX 8M Quad hardware. The i.MX 8M Quad BSP is based on the Linux kernel from

the official Linux kernel website. It is enhanced with the features provided by NXP and

can be accommodate customized Linux kernel configurations.

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2.2 Platform interfaces

Figure 1 shows the high-level block diagram of i.MX 8M Quad and the interface with

NXP Wi-Fi module based on 88W8987. The SDIO hardware interface is used for the

communication between the i.MX 8M Quad and the wireless module based on 88W8987.

Figure 1. Platform interface between the i.MX 8M quad and NXP Wi-Fi module

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2.3 Wi-Fi layer interfaces

This section details the layers between the user applications and 88W8987-based

wireless module. The wireless module requires a kernel driver loaded on the i.MX

8M Quad host system and a firmware running on 88W8987 SoC. The MLAN module

downloads the firmware binary to the SD8987 adapter when the SDIO bus driver detects

the SDIO interface of the module. The kernel driver (SD8987) is loaded between the bus

driver and the network stack from the "cfg80211" subsystem in the kernel. NXP kernel

driver includes a set of controls and configurations to communicate with the user space

through one of the following interfaces:

• Input/output control (IOCTL)

• Wireless Extension (Wext)

• CFG80211

The IOCTL provides a path to the user space applications, such as iwconfig and iwpriv

whereas cfg80211 provides a different path to the user space application, such as

wpa_supplicant, hostapd and iw.

Figure 2 illustrates the Wi-Fi layer interface.

Figure 2. Wi-Fi layer interface

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2.4 Bluetooth layer interfaces

Figure 3 illustrates the layers between the user applications and the 88W8987-based

Bluetooth module. The 88W8987-based wireless module requires a kernel driver loaded

on the i.MX 8M Quad host system and a firmware running on 88W8987 SoC. The Wi-Fi

driver loads the combo firmware. The hci_uart driver provides the HCI interface between

the firmware and user application.

Figure 3. Bluetooth layer interface

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3 i.MX 8M Quad EVK platform

3.1 Overview

This section briefly describes the i.MX 8M Quad Evaluation Kit based on i.MX 8M Quad,

as an introduction to i.MX 8M Quad applications processor. The EVK includes the

hardware design files, tools and board support packages (BSPs) for Linux

®

.

For more detail about the i.MX 8M Quad EVK, please refer to i.MX 8M Evaluation Kit on

NXP website.

3.2 i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board

The i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board is based on the NXP i.MX 8M Quad application

processor. The i.MX 8M Quad processor features an advanced implementation of the

Quad ARM Cortex

®

-A53+ ARM Cortex-M4 core which operates at speeds up to 1.5

GHz. The i.MX 8M Quad features an integrated power management module that reduces

the complexity of external power supply and simplifies the power sequencing. Each

processor provides a 32-bit LVDDR3L/DDR4/LPDDR4 memory interface and other

interfaces to connect peripherals such as HDMI, LCD, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth

™

, GPS and

camera sensors.

Figure 4. i.MX 8M Quad EVK block diagram

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For more information about the application processor, please refer to the data sheet and

reference manual on www.nxp.com.

Table 3 lists the features of i.MX 8M Quad EVK.

Table 3. Features of i.MX 8M Quad

Features Features (continued)

i.MX 8M Quad applications processor with five cores (4×Arm

®

Cortex

®

-A53 and 1× Cortex-M4)

M.2 connector for Wi-Fi/Bluetooth (PCIe, USB, UART, I2C

and I2S)

3 GB, 32-bit LPDDR4 with 1.6 GHz clock USB3.0 Type-A connector

eMMC 5.0, 16 GB HDMI2.0a Type-A connector

32 MB Octal SPI NOR flash 1 Gbit/s Ethernet

Micro SD card connector Mini-SAS MIPI-DSI connector

USB3.0 Type-C connector with PD support 2x mini-SAS MIPI-CSI connectors for Camera

USB to serial converter for debug

Infrared receiver LEDs for power indication and general-

purpose use

3.5 mm audio jack for amplified speakers JTAG 10-pin connector

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3.3 i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board interfaces

Figure 5 shows the front view of i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board with pointers to the

interfaces.

Figure 5. i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board interfaces - Front view

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Figure 6 shows the back view of i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board with pointers to the

interfaces.

Figure 6. i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board interfaces - Back view

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3.4 i.MX 8M Quad switch settings

Figure 7 shows the two switches on i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board. The Boot Device

Switch is used to boot the device from eMMC while the Boot Mode Switch is used to set

the boot mode.

Figure 7. Boot device switch and boot mode switch on i.MX 8M Quad evaluation board

Table 4 shows the settings of the boot mode switch.

Table 4. Boot mode switch settings

D1 D2 Boot mode

0 1 Serial downloader

1 0 Internal boot

Table 5 shows the settings of the boot device switch to boot from eMMC.

Table 5. Switch settings to boot from eMMC

D1 D2 D3 D4

OFF OFF ON OFF

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4 88W8987-based wireless modules

4.1 88W8987 with i.MX 8M Quad

The 88W8987 is a highly integrated dual-band (2.4/5 GHz) Wi-Fi single-chip solution,

specifically designed to support the speed, reliability, and quality requirements of

Very High Throughput (VHT) products. The System-on-Chip (SoC) provides both

simultaneous and independent operation of IEEE 802.11ac (Wave 2), 1x1 with data rates

up to MCS9 (433 Mbit/s). The 88W8987 provides the Wi-Fi feature to connect with the

AP or STA. The device requires a powerful host processor that supports both the low-

level Wi-Fi driver and the high-level Wi-Fi application software. SDIO 3.0 is the host

interface used to connect the Wi-Fi technology to the host processor.

Figure 8. 88W8987 block diagram

4.1.1 AzureWave AW-CM358MA module

The AW-CM358MA module supports a SDIO device interface that conforms to the

industry SDIO Full-Speed card specification and allows a host controller using the SDIO

bus protocol to access the Wireless SoC device.

The AW-CM358MA is a Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 5 combo stamp module with the M.2

adaptor board that features:

• SDIO 3.0 standard

• On-chip memory used for CIS

• 4-bit SDIO and 1-bit SDIO transfer modes

• A special interrupt register for information exchange

4.1.1.1 Recommended antenna part

MAG.LAYERS: MSA-4008-25GC1-A2

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4.1.1.2 Supported RF standards

Table 6. AW-CM358MA supported RF standards

Part number Wi-Fi Bluetooth

AW-CM358MA 1x1 Wi-Fi 5 (2.4/5GHz) 5.0

4.1.1.3 Wi-Fi features

Table 7. AW-CM358MA supported Wi-Fi features

Feature Description

Wi-Fi standard IEEE802.11 a/b/g/n/ac

Frequency range 2.4 GHz ISM Bands 2.412-2.472 GHz

5.15-5.25 GHz (FCC UNII-low band) for US/Canada and Europe

5.25-5.35 GHz (FCC UNII-middle band) for US/Canada and Europe

5.47-5.725 GHz for Europe

5.725-5.825 GHz (FCC UNII-high band) for US/Canada

Modulation 802.11a/g/n/ac: OFDM

802.11b: CCK(11, 5.5Mbps), DQPSK(2Mbps), BPSK(1Mbps)

Number of channels 802.11b:

USA, Canada and Taiwan – 1 ~ 11

Most European Countries – 1 ~ 13

802.11g:

USA and Canada – 1 ~ 11

Most European Countries – 1 ~ 13

802.11n:

USA and Canada – 1 ~ 11

Most European Countries – 1 ~ 13

802.11a:

USA – 36, 40, 44, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 100, 104, 108, 112, 116, 120, 124, 128, 132, 136,

140, 149, 153, 157, 161, 165

Data rate WLAN:

802.11b : 1, 2, 5.5, 11Mbps

802.11a/g : 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, 54Mbps

802.11ac/n : Maximum data rates up to 86.7 Mbps(20MHz

channel),200 Mbps (40 MHz channel), 433 Mbps (80 MHz channel)

Security WPA/WPA2 and WEP 64-bit and 128-bit encryption

WPA3 SAE encryption supported

Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)/Counter Mode CBC-MAC

Protocol (CCMP)

Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) /Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP)

Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)/Cipher-Based Message Authentication Code

(CMAC)

WLAN Authentication and Privacy Infrastructure (WAPI)

QoS 802.11e Quality of Service supported for multimedia applications

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4.1.1.4 Supported Bluetooth features

Table 8. AW-CM358MA supported Bluetooth features

Bluetooth Feature Description

Bluetooth classic general features Bluetooth Class 1.5 and Class 2 support

Scatternet support

Maximum of seven simultaneous ACL connections

Automatic Packet Type Selection

Bluetooth - 2.1 to 5.0 Specification Support

Bluetooth packet type supported ACL (DM1, DH1, DM3, DH3, DM5, DH5, 2-DH1, 2-DH3, 2-DH5, 3-DH1, 3-DH3, 3-

DH5)

SCO (HV1, HV3)

eSCO (EV3, EV4, EV5, 2EV3, 3EV3, 2EV5, 3EV5)

Bluetooth profiles supported Bluetooth A2DP Source/Sink

Bluetooth AVRCP Controller

Bluetooth HFP Dev/Gateway

Bluetooth OPP Server/Client

Bluetooth HID

Bluetooth specification 2.1 Support Erroneous Data Reporting

Encryption Pause and Resume

Extended Inquiry Response

Link Supervision Timeout Changed Event

Non-Automatically-Flushable Packet Boundary Flag

Secure Simple Pairing

Sniff Sub Rating

Security Mode 4

Bluetooth specification 3.0 support Enhanced Power Control

HCI Read Encryption Key Size Command

Bluetooth specification 4.0 support Low Energy Link Layer

Bluetooth LE generic features 16 Bluetooth LE connections (master role)

Bluetooth LE – 1Mbps Support

Bluetooth LE profile support Bluetooth LE GATT

Bluetooth LE HID

Bluetooth LE 4.0 support Low Energy Physical Layer

Low Energy Link Layer

Enhancements to HCI for Low Energy

Low Energy Direct Test Mode

Bluetooth LE 4.1 support Low duty Cycle Directed Advertising

Bluetooth LE Dual Mode Topology

Bluetooth LE Privacy v1.1

Bluetooth LE Link Layer Topology

Bluetooth LE 4.2 support Bluetooth LE Secure Connection

Bluetooth LE Link Layer Privacy v1.2

Bluetooth LE Data Length Extension

Link Layer Extended Scanner Filter Policies

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4.1.1.5 AW-CM358MA module view

Figure 9. AzureWave AW-CM358MA module

4.1.1.6 i.MX 8M Quad rework for SDIO support on M.2

This section shows how to enable the SDIO support on the M.2 connector. Rework the

following registers on the i.MX 8M Quad EVK.

Note: The hardware rework instructions enable the SDIO support from an SD card

connector to an M.2 connector. A software change is also required to make the feature

fully functional. Please refer to Section 5.6.3 "Enable SDIO on M.2 for AW-CM358MA

module" to enable the SDIO on M.2 using DTB file. Please note that the SDIO on the

MicroSD card slot will be disabled after the rework.

• Silkscreen of PCBA SCH-38820 / PCBA SCH-29615

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• Remove the following 0Ω 0402 resistors: R1603, R1617, R1618, R1619, R1620 and

R1621 (micro SD card J1601)

Figure 10. MicroSD Card J1601 registers

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• Install the following 0Ω 0402 resistors: R1429, R1430, R1431, R1432, R1433, R1434,

R1435 and R1436 (M.2 J1401)

Figure 11. M.2 J1401 registers

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4.1.1.7 AW-CM358MA module setup with iMX 8M Quad

Figure 12. Azurewave AW-CM358MA module plugged into i.MX 8M Quad bottom side M.2 connector

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