Electronic – THM3060 RFID reader setup issues

raspberry pirfid

I got the following rfid reader from a colleague

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000035966273.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.4ac14adcZL3H9M&algo_pvid=af835e25-e532-4426-8714-cd80a9871169&algo_expid=af835e25-e532-4426-8714-cd80a9871169-0&btsid=0ab6d70515978825018782158e600d&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_

I have connected it to my raspberry pi 4 module b using the following pinout;

raspberry pin 2 (5V)– reader module pin VDD
raspberry pin 6 (GND)– reader module pin GND
raspberry pin 19 (MOSI) –reader module pin MOSI
raspberry pin 21 (MISO)– reader module pin MISO
raspberry pin 23 (CLK) –reader module pin SCLK
all other pins left unconnected

I have followed the setup steps described in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evRuZRxvPFI

My problem is that the reader is not reading data. I confirmed that the system does power up using an LED and (a resistor) in series connected to the VDD. The reader was pulling 0.46mA using a 3.3V supply, and 0.74mA using a 5V supply (measured using a multimeter).

When I fire up the raspberry and run the code, the reader does not seem to be reading any data from the rfid chips I have. I did confirm that the chips contain data using an other reader module.

I did go through the documentation but I havent found anything useful.

http://read.pudn.com/downloads567/ebook/2333609/THM3060_UM.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1y0qh-cUdnnL9wfk-ZVLEcNVTvyHoviiM6Qsg6VQggS1zu8OVPTPRnPrU

I tried connecting pins RSTN and STDBY to ground but it made no difference.
I have no contact with the seller unfortunately(wasnt the one who made the order), so i cant get any more information about the reader. Has anyone had any luck with these specific types of readers? How else could I trouble shoot the system? Continuity tests have confirmed that there are no damaged traces on the reader board itself.

How can I get it to read/write data?

Best Answer

Question

How to set up the THM3060 RFID reader?

The OP's RFID module wiring is show below.

Answer

Contents

Part A - Schematic

Part B - User Manual Reading Notes

Part C - Pi My Life Up Library Testing Notes

Part A - Schematic

Introduction

The AliExpress product sheet says the OP's RFID module is RC522 based, but the user guide only mentions THM3060, nothing about RC522. So I need to study carefully if the two chips are 100% compatible, and if standard RC555 wiring is used. Therefore I need to read the schematic very carefully, to find any incompatibility.

Part B - User Manual reading summary notes

The user manual is dated 2009. This might be a problem. I need to check if it is updated with current version of RC522.
his might be a problem. I need to check if it is updated with current version of RC522.
The features section says operation voltage is 3V to 5V, with a foot notes saying the optimum power supply is 3.3 ~3.6V. This might be another problem. If the OP uses 5V power, the modules PI logic signals might be 5V, and this might be a serious problem, because Rpi's SPI signals are definitely 3V3 logic. Even if Rpi 3V3 SPI can talk to the module's 5V SPI, there is a very small risk of Rpi's SPI circuit latching up, frying the SPI or complete SBC, or shortens Rpi's working life.

Part C - Pi My Life Up Library Testing Notes

Introduction

The OP says that he is following the Pi My Life Up tutorial. So I search my old files to find a similar test I did for his reference. It is not clear if he has already done the basic test of SPI loop. So I also include the loopback test, as shown below. The details is described in Ref 4.

Setting Up