TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Box Contents
- Warnings
- Preparing Nebra Outdoor Hotspot
- Antenna placements
- Configuring Nebra Outdoor Hotspot
- Onboarding Video
Box Contents
Your Nebra Outdoor Helium Hotspot comes with the following items:
- 3 dBi N-Type Glass Fiber Antenna
- Sealing string
- L Brackets for mounting
- Z Bracket
- Spare Plugs fo case
- Nuts and Washers for U Bracket
- U Brackets
- General Cable Glands
- Wi-Fi Antenna
Please note: You will need a Power Over Ethernet power source (802.3af/802.3at PoE switch or PoE injector) in order to power the outdoor hotspot. Alternatively, you can use a 12 Volt / 1.5 Amp power supply which can be purchased separately on our website.
Warnings
Please remember to follow these important warnings when using your Nebra Outdoor Hotspot:
Never power on the Outdoor hotspot without the grey antenna for LoRa® connected as this may damage the unit.
The Outdoor unit's case is designed to be used outdoors, in all weather conditions, however, it is always recommended to protect it from the elements whenever possible, especially in harsh environments. Additionally, the outdoor case is not suitable for submerged usage.
Before installing outside, make sure you have tightened all connectors and the case itself very well to avoid any unintended water ingress.
The unit should operate without issue even in direct sunlight - however, heat cycling can reduce the service life of the electronics. So where possible it is always recommended to provide some shade for the hotspot case itself.
It is highly recommended to provide surge protection both on the antenna connection (to avoid damage to the concentrator module) and on the Ethernet connection (to avoid any onwards damage to your networking equipment in the event of a lightning strike or similar. Please read our surge protectors guide for more information.
Before placing your hotspot outside, you need to make sure that it is fully waterproof. You can find more info about this down below.
Note: If you want to place your outdoor miner inside, that is entirely fine and will work without issue, however, you may want to consider our indoor hotspot miner instead.
Preparing Nebra Outdoor Hotspot
Step 1: First, carefully screw in the included LoRaWAN antenna (the large, cylindrical antenna, usually grey), to the port at the top of the hotspot.
You may also have a smaller WiFi antenna (white), that screws into the connection at the bottom of the hotspot, beside the ethernet gland.
Step 2: Next find a suitable location for your hotspot to be positioned, to provide the best coverage we recommend placing it on a rooftop, or mast as high as possible.
Please take all appropriate precautions if working at height, or ask a trained professional to install the hotspot if you are unsure.
Step 3: You will need to consider how to power the hotspot. By default, it is configured for Power over Ethernet (PoE - IEEE 802.3af or IEEE 802.3at), using a switch or PoE injector.
You can find more information about PoE here
To power the hotspot using a DC supply, you need to open the case to adjust the power jumper to positions 2-3. (The image shows the power jumper configured for PoE)
Step 4: Use an ethernet cable connected to your PoE switch or PoE injector, and connect it to the hotspot using an ethernet cable with the supplied gland, to ensure a watertight (IP68) seal.
It takes a minute or so to power on, and for the first 10 minutes, the hotspot is discoverable via Bluetooth.
note: even if you have powered the hotspot using PoE, but there is no network connection, WiFI will still work as usual.
If you have connected it to a wired Ethernet connection, the process may take slightly longer as it’ll also perform firmware updates as soon as it gets a connection to the internet.
Step 5: Register your hotspot (see below) and wait for your hotspot to become available.
Antenna placements
The antenna for LoRa® is connected to the pre-installed antenna connector on top of the hotspot in the centre. The Wi-Fi antenna is attached to the pre-installed antenna connector at the bottom of the hotspot.
The LTE antennas are not included with the Outdoor hotspot and need to be purchased separately. They are delivered with the Quectel LTE modem when you order from us. The antenna connectors should be placed at the top of the hotspot on the left and right sides.
All antenna connectors are N-type female.
Configuring Nebra Outdoor Hotspot
To configure your Hotspot, you will require the Helium Network application installed on a Mobile Phone, and for you to have gone through the account setup process to continue.
Prerequisites
- Internet-connected Nebra hotspot.
- Helium application with an account.
Step 1: Open the Helium application and login, then press + Add a Hotspot.
Step 2: Next click Set up Hotspot, from here you will want to select Nebra Indoor Hotspot.
Step 3: Place your hotspot in an appropriate location, please refer Ideal Hotspot Placement
Step 4: Accept diagnostics permission. This will allow Nebra Ltd to identify issues with your Hotspot in a secure way
Step 5: Power Up the Nebra hotspot, and please note that never power on the Indoor/Outdoor hotspot without its antenna connected as this may damage the unit.
Step 6: Turn on the mobile phone Bluetooth and Push the button on the back of the unit once to enable pairing
Step 7: Select your hotspot in the app, you can check if it is the correct one by matching the last 6 characters shown in the application with the last 6 characters of the mac address printed on the sticker on the bottom of the hotspot.
Step 8: The app will show the available Wi-Fi networks within range of your Hotspot.
Step 9: Once you provide the WiFi details, it will take a few minutes to complete the connection
If you are using Ethernet, tap Use Ethernet Instead and skip to Step 10.
If using Wi-Fi, tap on the name of your Wi-Fi network on the app which will bring you to the following screen.
Step 10: Next you need to submit antenna height and power details.
Step 11: Provide location permission: The helium application use phone location to assert the location of the device.
Step 12: Finally, you can confirm the location of your hotspot. Click continue and you should be presented with a map to the place where your hotspot is on the app. This requires $10 and it's already paid by Nebra LTD.
Step 13: The setup should now be complete, it'll submit the details of the Hotspot to the Helium network and then in approximately 15 minutes confirm it's added to the network.
You can move the device to another location, However, every time you move your hotspot to a new location you will need to pay the $10 location assert fee again.
Onboarding Video
You can also watch this video to learn how to onboard the hotspot. This is using the Nebra Indoor Hotspot on Android, but the process is very similar for the Outdoor Hotspot and using iOS devices: