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https://github.com/espressif/esp-thread-br

Espressif Thread Border Router SDK
https://github.com/espressif/esp-thread-br

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Espressif Thread Border Router SDK

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README 

        
# ESP Thread Boarder Router SDK



ESP-THREAD-BR is the official [ESP Thread Border Router](https://openthread.io/guides/border-router/espressif-esp32) SDK. It supports all fundamental network features to build a Thread Border Router and integrates rich product level features for quick productization.



# Software Components



![esp_br_solution](docs/images/esp-thread-border-router-solution.png)



The SDK is built on top of [ESP-IDF](https://github.com/espressif/esp-idf) and [OpenThread](https://github.com/openthread/openthread). The OpenThread port and ESP Border Router implementation is provided as pre-built library in ESP-IDF.



It is recommended to use ESP-IDF [v5.3.1](https://github.com/espressif/esp-idf/tree/v5.3.1) with this SDK.



# Hardware Platforms



## Wi-Fi based Thread Border Router



The Wi-Fi based ESP Thread Border Router consists of two SoCs:



* An ESP32 series Wi-Fi SoC (ESP32, ESP32-C, ESP32-S, etc) loaded with ESP Thread Border Router and OpenThread Stack.

* An ESP32-H 802.15.4 SoC loaded with OpenThread RCP.



### ESP Thread Border Router Board



The ESP Thread border router board provides an integrated module of an ESP32-S3 SoC and an ESP32-H2 RCP.



![br_dev_kit](docs/images/esp-thread-border-router-board.png)



The two SoCs are connected with following interfaces:

* UART and SPI for serial communication

* RESET and BOOT pins for RCP Update

* 3-Wires PTA for RF coexistence



### Standalone Modules



The SDK also supports manually connecting an ESP32-H2 RCP to an ESP32 series Wi-Fi SoC.



For standalone modules, we recommend the [ot_br](https://github.com/espressif/esp-idf/tree/master/examples/openthread/ot_br) example in esp-idf as a quick start.



#### Connect an ESP32-H2 RCP to an ESP32 series Wi-Fi SoC using UART:

ESP32 pin           | ESP32-H2 pin

--------------------|-------------

  GND               |     G

  GPIO17 (UART RX)  |     TX

  GPIO18 (UART TX)  |     RX

  GPIO7             |     RST

  GPIO8             |     GPIO9 (BOOT)



#### Connect an ESP32-H2 RCP to an ESP32 series Wi-Fi SoC using SPI:

ESP32 pin           | ESP32-H2 pin

--------------------|-------------

  GND               |     G

  GPIO7             |     RST

  GPIO8  (SPI INTR) |     GPIO9 (BOOT)

  GPIO10 (SPI CS)   |     GPIO2

  GPIO11 (SPI MOSI) |     GPIO3

  GPIO12 (SPI CLK)  |     GPIO0

  GPIO13 (SPI MISO) |     GPIO1



Note that:

1. The GPIO17 and GPIO18 on ESP32-S3 have different driver current([refer to ESP32-S3 TRM, Chapter 6.12](https://www.espressif.com/sites/default/files/documentation/esp32-s3_technical_reference_manual_en.pdf)). If ESP32-S3 is used as the host, please change the UART RX/TX GPIOs to GPIO4 and GPIO5 which are recommended.



2. The configure `ESP_CONSOLE_USB_SERIAL_JTAG` is enabled by default, please connect the USB port of the ESP32 series Wi-Fi SoC to host.



## Ethernet based Thread Border Router



Similar to the previous Wi-Fi based Thread Border Router setup, but a device with Ethernet interface is required, such as [ESP32-Ethernet-Kit](https://docs.espressif.com/projects/esp-idf/en/latest/esp32/hw-reference/esp32/get-started-ethernet-kit.html).



# Provided Features



These features are currently provided by the SDK:



* **Bi-directional IPv6 Connectivity**: The devices on the backbone link (typically Wi-Fi) and the Thread network can reach each other.

* **Service Discovery Delegate**: The nodes on the Thread network can find the mDNS services on the backbone link.

* **Service Registration Server**: The nodes on the Thread network can register services to the border router for devices on the backbone link to discover.

* **Multicast Forwarding**: The devices joining the same multicast group on the backbone link and the Thread network can be reached with one single multicast.

* **NAT64**: The devices can access the IPv4 Internet via the border router.

* **RCP Update**: The built border router image will contain an updatable RCP image and can automatically update the RCP on version mismatch or RCP failure.

* **Web GUI**: The border router will enable a web server and provide some practical functions including Thread network discovery, network formation and status query. 

* **RF Coexistence**: The border router supports optional external coexistence, a feature that enhances the transmission performance when there are channel conflicts between the Wi-Fi and Thread networks.



# Resources



* Documentation for the latest version: https://docs.espressif.com/projects/esp-thread-br/. This documentation is built from the [docs directory](docs) of this repository.



* The [esp32.com forum](https://esp32.com/) is a place to ask questions and find community resources.



* [Check the Issues section on github](https://github.com/espressif/esp-thread-br/issues) if you find a bug or have a feature request. Please check existing Issues before opening a new one.



* If you're interested in contributing to ESP-THREAD-BR, please check the [Contributions Guide](https://docs.espressif.com/projects/esp-idf/en/latest/contribute/index.html).