Grassroots Communication Infrastructure Deployment: Build a Radio Network from Microntrollers!

The goal of the workshop is to build a radio network linking three buildings at TBD.  Participants learn how to make cheap and simple Reticulum transport nodes that can be deployed anywhere.  Our telecommunication infrastructure will be using unlicensed LoRa frequencies and run on cheap chips called microcontrollers.

The key to environmentally and economically sustainable community networks is cheap and simple nodes.  Mesh protocols like Meshtastic and Meshcore already run on microcontrollers without a need for a laptop, single-board computer or mobile phone.  This became a possibility with Reticulum as well recently, due to firmware that can run the whole protocol stack on an MCU.

In this workshop we test these new firmware, with special focus on RTNode firmware for the Heltec V4 board.  The workshop builds on the Friday introductory workshop, so it assumes familiarity with the Reticulum Network Stack (RNS).  Participants can develop their nodes further at the RNS solar relay workshop the next day (Sunday).