Soracom LTE-M Button

Troubleshooting & FAQs

The following troubleshooting steps may help you identify and resolve some common issues with the Soracom LTE-M Button.

Troubleshooting

Nothing happens when I click my button

The Soracom LTE-M Button's LED will normally blink to provide feedback about its operation. If the LED does not blink when you click the button, it may be for one of the following reasons:

• If your button has firmware version 2220 and its operation mode is configured as Timer, the button will only count the number of clicks without blinking the LED. You can follow the Configuration instructions to change the button to a different operation mode to confirm that it still works.

• If nothing happens when pressing the button no matter the configured operation mode, it may be that the batteries have completely discharged. Normally when the battery voltage becomes too low, the LED will blink red indicating that the batteries should be changed soon. However, if the batteries are not changed, the button will use up the remaining charge and the red LED will stop as well. Replace the batteries with a new set and try again.

My button isn't connecting

The Soracom LTE-M Button's LED will blink while it attempts to connect to a network:

• When setting up a Soracom LTE-M Button for the first time, or after pressing the reset button, the LED will blink orange to indicate that the button is performing a network scan in order to find a suitable LTE-M network to use. This process may take up to 5 minutes to complete.
• If the button was previously able to connect to a network, the LED will blink green to indicate that the button is attempting to reconnect to the last network. This process normally takes 15-20 seconds, but may take up to 3 minutes under some circumstances.

Once the button has connected and successfully sends a message, the LED will display a 2-second green blink.

If the LED instead displays a 2-second red blink, it means the button was unable to connect to a network due to a weak signal or because an LTE-M network is not available.

Check the Supported Carriers page to see if plan01s - LDV LTE-M coverage is available in your country. Note that in some countries, LTE-M networks may not have been deployed in all areas.

• If LTE-M coverage is not available where you are located, unfortunately the button will not be able to connect to a network.
• If LTE-M coverage is available in your area, the button may have trouble finding a strong enough signal. Try the troubleshooting steps in the next section below.

My button takes a long time to connect

Once the Soracom LTE-M Button has completed a network scan and found a suitable network, the process of triggering a message (such as by clicking the button), connecting to the network, and sending the message should usually take no more than 15-20 seconds. Once the message has been successfully sent, the LED will display a 2-second green blink.

If your button is able to successfully send message, but takes significantly longer to connect to a network:

• Try testing the button in a different area. Environment obstructions such as concrete walls or reflective surfaces, even if temporary, may affect the cellular network signal strength and slow down the network connection process.
• Make sure the built-in antenna is not obstructed. The Soracom LTE-M Button's built-in antenna is located opposite its built-in button, underneath the Soracom LTE-M Button logo. Check that this side is not covered up, and is positioned away from surfaces or other devices that might interfere with wireless signals.
• The cellular network previously used by the Soracom LTE-M Button may no longer be available, such as when moving from one area to another, or moving to another country. You can initiate a new network scan by pressing the reset button located inside the button.

My button connects but there's no data

The Soracom LTE-M Button is programmed to send message data to Unified Endpoint. Those messages are then handled according to the Soracom Beam, Soracom Funk, or Soracom Harvest Data that you configure.

If you are not receiving any data:

• Check that you have created a Soracom LTE-M Butotn group, and that your button has been added to the group.
• Check that you have enabled a Soracom service for handling messages from the button.
• If using Soracom Beam or Soracom Funk, Soracom may have trouble forwarding button messages to your endpoint due to incorrect authentication. You can follow the Soracom Harvest Data example to quickly verify whether the data arrives at Soracom but fails to be forwarded, or does not arrive at all.
• In some cases, your endpoint may require data to be forwarded in a specific format. The Soracom LTE-M Button sends its data using a binary format, which is then decoded and converted to JSON. Check that your endpoint is capable of accepting data in JSON format.

The data sent is not JSON format

When you create a Soracom LTE-M Button group, Soracom automatically enables and configures the Binary Parser option in order to decode and convert binary data sent from a button into JSON. In most cases, you should be able to receive button data in JSON format.

If the Binary Parser option is disabled or modified, data may no longer be able to decoded and converted.

Soracom will automatically check if the Soracom LTE-M Button group settings are configured correctly, and will display a warning if not. Follow the instructions for resetting a group, then try sending a message again.

FAQs

How long is the battery life?

Battery life depends on a wide variety of factors, so it is difficult to provide an estimate that is reasonably accurate across different scenarios. However, these major factors may help you understand what sort of battery life to expect:

• Advertised versus actual voltage - While all AA alkaline batteries are rated for 1.5V, there are usually some small differences between battery brands. Name brand batteries will usually provide a little extra charge in order to guarantee that 1.5V is actually available when the battery is used, while off brands may measure 1.5V when the battery is manufactured but with less charge by the time the battery is used.
• Type of battery - While Soracom recommends using alkaline batteries, it is technically possible to use other types of batteries that have a different chemistry, provided the battery voltage is still the required 1.5V. Compared to alkaline batteries where voltage drops at a relatively steady rate over time, other types of batteries may keep a more stable voltage for most of their charge, but then suddenly drop once the batteries are almost empty. While there may not be a significant difference in battery life between different types, keep in mind that using batteries other than alkaline may affect the timing of the low battery LED indicator due to the difference in voltage drop behavior.
• Frequency of messages - Batteries will lose their charge slowly over time due to a tiny amount of idle current that the Soracom LTE-M Button uses even when not active. If your application involves clicking the button dozens or even hundreds of times per day, the overall amount of battery life lost to passive drain is small compared to the battery life used to connect to a network and send messages, therefore you may be able to get a few thousand clicks before having to replace the batteries. On the other hand, if the button is clicked infrequently, a proportionally greater amount of charge is lost to passive drain, resulting in fewer clicks overall.
• Temperature - Regardless of battery type and frequency of messages, cold temperature environments will artificially reduce the effective voltage of batteries. If your Soracom LTE-M Button is installed in a location that is frequently exposed to cold temperatures, adding some form of insulation or moving it to an area with less exposure may help improve battery life.

Even with so many factors, a fresh set of batteries should be able to last for up to 2,000 clicks in most common scenarios and applications.

Can I cancel a click?

Yes, in certain operation modes:

• Event Mode - any message can be cancelled
• Timer Mode - only Status messages can be cancelled
• Event + Timer Mode or Event + Heartbeat Mode - Event messages, Event with Temperature messages, and Status messages can be cancelled

Once you have triggered one of the above messages (such as with a Single short click, Double short click, or Single long click), the LED will begin to blink green. During this time, if you click the button again, the button will cancel the message.

Can I temporarily disable my button?

Yes. Since the Soracom LTE-M Button uses a built-in Soracom Air IoT SIM, you can change the status of the SIM from Active to Inactive. Doing so will disable the SIM in your button from being able to connect to a network. As a result, when the button is clicked, it will not be allowed to connect to any cellular network, and the message will not be sent to the cloud. Deactivating your SIM ensures that your button will not incur any data usage fees.

For instructions on how to change the status of your SIM, refer to the Soracom Air: Subscriber Status documentation.

When you're ready to enable your button again, simply change the status of the SIM from Inactive back to Active. There are no fees for changing a SIM status between Active and Inactive, so you can deactivate the SIM as often as needed.

What does the reset button do?

Underneath the rear cover inside the main unit, there is a small reset button. Clicking this button will tell the Soracom LTE-M Button to perform a new network scan. This may be helpful if the button is having trouble reconnecting to the previously used cellular network, such as when moving from one area or country to another.

To click the reset button, insert a thin, sturdy object such as a paperclip or a SIM ejector tool into the reset button and gently press until you feel a click, then release. The LED on the button will begin to blink orange, indicating that the button is now searching for available networks.

What is the extra SIM card slot for?

When setting up the Soracom LTE-M Button hardware, you might notice that there is a nano-SIM card slot located underneath the battery compartment.

Since the Soracom LTE-M Button includes a built-in embedded SIM (eSIM) that contains the plan01s - LDV subscription, there is no need to install any SIM card. Instead, this SIM card slot is reserved so that the cellular network coverage can be expanded in the future by inserting a different Soracom SIM, for situations where the plan01s - LDV subscription does not have coverage in a particular country.

When another Soracom SIM is installed in the SIM card slot, the button will use the SIM card to connect to a cellular network, rather than using the built-in eSIM.

Are firmware updates automatic?

Firmware updates are optional and will not be automatically download and installed on your Soracom LTE-M Button by default.

If you have a button with an older firmware and would like to update it to the latest firmware, or if you need assistance updating the firmware for a large number of buttons, contact Soracom Support. You will need to provide the ICCID(s) of your button(s).

What other Soracom services can I use?

The Soracom platform provides many powerful network and application services, such as customizing network authentication for additional security, creating a private cellular network connection, enabling remote device access, or provisioning devices with credentials. Since the Soracom LTE-M Button is designed to simply wake up, send a message, and go back to sleep, most of these additional services will not provide any practical functionality for the button.

The services that are most relevant to the Soracom LTE-M Button are:

• Groups - for managing settings across multiple buttons
• Binary Parser - for decoding and converting the button's binary data to JSON
• Soracom Orbit - for processing button data within Soracom and encoding binary messages to send back to the button
• and Soracom Beam, Soracom Funk, and Soracom Harvest Data - for forwarding button messages to your own server or to cloud services, or for saving button messages directly on Soracom

You can also utilize Soracom Flux to build more complex button applications. For example, you can create a Flux App that checks for a Single long click from the button and uses the Soracom API action to move a button from one group to another, or to perform different actions based on day or time.

Additional Resources & Support

For additional Soracom LTE-M Button product information, visit soracom.io/button.

For complete information on the Soracom User Console, SIM management tools and APIs, Soracom platform services, and additional capabilities, documentation is available on the Soracom Developers website.

If you have other questions or issues regarding the Soracom LTE-M Button, contact Soracom Support.