Glossary
- 18650
- Cylindrical cell format (18 mm × 65 mm) for Li-ion batteries, standard for solar repeaters
- Advertisement Interval
- Time interval, in hours, during which a repeater transmits its announcements
- Airtime
- Actual transmission time of a packet over the radio channel
- Airtime Factor
- MeshCore parameters for controlling the transmission pauses between transmissions
- Amateur Radio License
- Regulatory approval for amateur radio service—not required for MeshCore at 868 MHz
- Antenna
- Component for transmitting and receiving radio signals—crucial for range
- Antenna Coverage Tool
- Feature in the MeshCore app (version 1.25.0 and later) for visualizing wireless range
- Bandwidth
- Frequency range of a signal in kHz – affects data rate and range
- BLE
- Bluetooth Low Energy – an energy-efficient version of Bluetooth for connecting to a smartphone
- BLE Companion
- Companion with Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity to a smartphone
- Bluetooth
- Short-range wireless standard for connecting devices wirelessly
- BNetzA
- Federal Network Agency – Germany's regulatory authority for telecommunications and spectrum
- Bootloader
- A small piece of software that runs when the MCU starts up and enables the firmware to load
- CAD
- Hardware-based detection of LoRa activity on the radio channel before transmission
- Channel
- Communication channel in the MeshCore network for exchanging messages based on topics or regions
- Chirp Spread Spectrum
- A LoRa modulation method in which data is encoded as frequency-modulated chirp signals
- Coding rate
- Error correction parameter (CR 4/5 to 4/8) that controls the robustness of the transmission
- Companion
- Mobile device for active participation in the MeshCore network
- Cryptographic Signature
- Digital signature to verify the authenticity of messages or opt-out requests
- dBm
- Decibels-milliwatts – a logarithmic unit for transmit power (e.g., 22 dBm ≈ 158 mW)
- Deep Sleep
- Power-saving mode of a microcontroller with minimal power consumption
- DFU Fashion
- Device Firmware Update Mode – a special boot mode for flashing nRF-based devices
- Duty Cycle
- Maximum permitted transmission percentage per unit of time (in the EU: 1% or 10% per sub-band)
- E-Paper
- Electronic Paper Display – an energy-efficient display that shows content without using electricity
- EIRP
- Equivalent Isotropically Radiated Power – effective radiated power, including antenna gain
- End-to-end encryption
- Encryption in which only the sender and recipient can read the message's content
- ESP-NOW
- Espressif's proprietary peer-to-peer protocol using Wi-Fi hardware without an access point
- ESP32
- A widely used microcontroller family from Espressif with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
- ESP32-C3
- Energy-efficient ESP32 variant with a RISC-V core, Wi-Fi, and BLE
- ESP32-C6
- ESP32 variant with Thread/Zigbee support and Wi-Fi 6
- ESP32-S3
- High-performance ESP32 variant with dual-core processor, USB OTG, and optimized BLE
- Firmware
- Software that runs directly on the microcontroller of a LoRa device
- Flash
- Non-volatile memory for firmware and data on the microcontroller
- Flash
- The Process of Writing Firmware to a Microcontroller's Memory
- Flood Advert
- Periodic network-wide broadcast of a repeater to all reachable nodes
- Flooding
- A network propagation mechanism in which packets are forwarded to all reachable nodes
- Frequency band
- Frequency range for radio transmission (e.g., 433 MHz, 868 MHz, 915 MHz)
- General Allocation
- Regulatory approval for license-free use of certain frequency bands (e.g., 868 MHz in the EU)
- GNSS
- Global Navigation Satellite System – an umbrella term for satellite navigation systems (GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo)
- GPS
- Global Positioning System – U.S. satellite navigation system
- Hop
- A single step in the forwarding of a packet from one node to the next
- Injection-molded housing
- Industrially manufactured plastic housings, as opposed to 3D-printed housings
- IP65
- Protection class: dust-tight and protected against water jets from any direction
- IP67
- Protection class: dust-tight and protected against temporary submersion
- ISM Band
- Industrial, Scientific, and Medical – License-Exempt Radio Frequency Bands
- Li-ion
- Lithium-ion battery technology – a widely used battery type in MeshCore devices
- Line of Sight
- Unobstructed line of sight between the transmitter and receiver—crucial for LoRa range
- LNA
- Low Noise Amplifier – a low-noise preamplifier designed to improve reception
- LoRa
- Long Range – Wireless technology for energy-efficient data transmission over long distances
- LoRaWAN
- Long Range Wide Area Network – A network protocol based on LoRa with central gateways (not MeshCore)
- LR1110
- Semtech's combo chip with a LoRa transceiver and an integrated GNSS scanner
- mAh
- Milliampere-hours – a unit of battery capacity
- MCU
- Microcontroller Unit – Main Processor of a LoRa Device
- Mesh Network
- A decentralized network topology in which each node can forward data
- MeshCore
- Cross-Platform Mesh Network System for LoRa-Based Text Communication
- MeshCore App
- Official Companion App by Liam Cottle for Android and iOS
- MeshCore One
- Open-Source iOS Client for MeshCore by Avi0n
- meshcore-cli
- Command-line tool for controlling and querying MeshCore devices
- MeshCore-Evo
- Community fork of the MeshCore firmware focused on large networks and TX duty cycle management
- MeshOS
- Alternative MeshCore Companion App by Andy Kirby for Android
- Meshtastic
- Alternative LoRa Mesh Project – Not Compatible with MeshCore
- Modulation
- Method for superimposing data onto a carrier signal (for LoRa: CSS)
- MPPT
- Maximum Power Point Tracking – Charge Controller Technology for Maximum Solar Yield
- Multi-hop
- Forwarding a packet through multiple intermediate stations (up to 64 hops)
- Neighbor
- A directly reachable neighboring node of a repeater in a mesh network
- Neighborhood Map
- Map showing the signal connections between repeaters
- Network coverage
- Geographic area in which a MeshCore network is accessible
- Node
- General term for any participant (device) in a mesh network
- nRF52840
- Energy-efficient Bluetooth 5.0 microcontroller from Nordic Semiconductor, ideal for repeaters
- Off-grid
- Operation without an Internet connection, cellular service, or power supply
- OLED
- Organic Light Emitting Diode – compact display technology, often 0.96" or 1.3"
- Opt-out
- Option to disable your visibility in public tools (e.g., Analyzer)
- OTA
- Over-the-Air – wireless firmware update via radio (BLE or Wi-Fi)
- PA
- Power Amplifier – A power amplifier for increasing transmit power
- Packet Analyzer
- Web tool for real-time analysis and visualization of MeshCore packet traffic
- Peer-to-Peer
- Direct communication between two devices without a central infrastructure
- Preset
- Predefined parameter set for LoRa settings (e.g., "EU/UK Narrow")
- PSRAM
- Pseudo Static RAM – external memory that supplements the MCU's internal RAM
- Public Channel
- Standard channel in the MeshCore network through which all participants can communicate
- Range
- Maximum distance between two nodes, depending on transmission power, antenna, topography, and settings
- Region
- Geographic or logical area used to control packet distribution in MeshCore
- Region-Based Scoping
- MeshCore feature (starting with v1.10.0) for restricting packet distribution to specific areas
- Remote Management
- Remote Administration of a Repeater or Room Server via the MeshCore App
- Repeater
- An infrastructure node that forwards packets in the MeshCore network and extends its range
- Room Server
- BBS-style server for exchanging messages with a history in the MeshCore network
- RP2040
- Dual-Core ARM Cortex-M0+ Microcontroller from Raspberry Pi
- RSSI
- Received Signal Strength Indicator – A measure of the strength of a received signal in dBm
- RTC
- Real-Time Clock – A real-time clock module that provides the correct time even without a network connection
- RX delay
- Adjustable wait time after receiving a packet (recommended: 0.0s)
- SAW Filter
- Surface Acoustic Wave Filter – Bandpass filter for suppressing interference signals
- Scope
- A term used on Companions to refer to a region that limits message distribution
- SMA
- SubMiniature Version A – Common Antenna Connector for External Antennas on LoRa Devices
- Smart Routing
- Selective packet forwarding, as opposed to blindly forwarding all packets
- SNR
- Signal-to-Noise Ratio – Ratio of the useful signal to noise in dB
- Solar
- Photovoltaic-based power supply for self-sufficient repeater sites
- Spread factor
- LoRa parameter (SF7–SF12), which determines the trade-off between range and data rate
- SSID Patching
- Method for Converting a BLE/USB Companion into a Wi-Fi Access Point via Firmware Patching
- SX1262
- Semtech's LoRa transceiver chip—the most commonly used LoRa chip in MeshCore devices
- SX1276
- Older LoRa transceiver from Semtech (predecessor to the SX126x series)
- Telemetry
- Transmission of measurement data (battery voltage, temperature, GPS position) from a node
- TFT
- Thin-Film Transistor (TFT) – Color display technology, often used in MeshCore devices with screen sizes ranging from 1.3" to 2.8"
- Transmit Power
- Transmitter output power in dBm—a key factor in determining range
- TX Delay
- Adjustable wait time before sending a packet (recommended: 0.5s)
- U.FL
- Ultra-miniature coaxial connectors for internal antenna connections on circuit boards
- USB Serial Companion
- Companion with a USB cable connection to a computer or mobile device
- USB-C
- Universal USB connector for power supply, data transfer, and flashing
- Web Client
- Browser-based user interface for communicating with a USB Serial Companion
- Web Flasher
- Browser-based tool for flashing MeshCore firmware onto devices via USB
- Zero-Hop Advert
- Local announcement of a repeater that reaches only immediate neighbors