Setting up a PN532 NFC module on a Raspberry Pi using I2C

Parts

• 1 x Raspberry Pi 3 Model B
• 1 x PN532 NFC/RFID module

Preparing the Pi

• Download a fresh version of raspbian
• Enable I2C interface on the Pi raspi config
• Enable SSH server echo 'This enables SSH on boot' | sudo tee /boot/ssh
• Install I2C utility binaries sudo apt install i2c-tools
• Configure the NFC module to use I2C by physically flipping a SMB header on the PCB

Wire up the PN532

Turn off the power to the Pi while you are wiring

• Raspberry Pi GPIO I2C map

This NFC module has multiple interfaces to connect with. For I2C I’m physically connecting the GPIO pins to the 4-pin interface on the NFC module PCB.

# NFC module pin -> Pi GPIO physical pin #
GND -> 6
VCC -> 4
SDA -> 3
SCL -> 5

Probe for I2C devices:

root@raspberrypi:~# i2cdetect -y 1
     0  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  a  b  c  d  e  f
00:          -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
10: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
20: -- -- -- -- 24 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
30: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
40: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
50: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
60: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 
70: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

In the above results, a device exists at address 0x24 which is the NFC module.

libnfc

Install NFC tools:

sudo apt install libnfc5 libnfc-bin libnfc-examples

I had a problem detecting the I2C device with nfc-list -v and nfc-scan-device -v and it was due to libnfc not scanning for I2C devices out of the box.

Let libnfc know the device address of the reader in /etc/nfc/libnfc.conf:

device.name = "PN532 over I2C"
device.connstring = "pn532_i2c:/dev/i2c-1"

List connected NFC readers:

pi@raspberrypi:~ $ nfc-scan-device -v
nfc-scan-device uses libnfc 1.7.1
1 NFC device(s) found:
- pn532_i2c:/dev/i2c-1:
    pn532_i2c:/dev/i2c-1
chip: PN532 v1.6
initator mode modulations: ISO/IEC 14443A (106 kbps), FeliCa (424 kbps, 212 kbps), ISO/IEC 14443-4B (106 kbps), Innovision Jewel (106 kbps), D.E.P. (424 kbps, 212 kbps, 106 kbps)
target mode modulations: ISO/IEC 14443A (106 kbps), FeliCa (424 kbps, 212 kbps), D.E.P. (424 kbps, 212 kbps, 106 kbps)

Read a card or tag by first starting nfc-poll then physically holding a NFC/RFID tag or card in front of the reader:

pi@raspberrypi:~ $ nfc-poll 
nfc-poll uses libnfc 1.7.1
NFC reader: pn532_i2c:/dev/i2c-1 opened
NFC device will poll during 30000 ms (20 pollings of 300 ms for 5 modulations)
ISO/IEC 14443A (106 kbps) target:
    ATQA (SENS_RES): 00  04  
       UID (NFCID1): 65  f7  0a  ab  
      SAK (SEL_RES): 08  
nfc_initiator_target_is_present: Target Released
Waiting for card removing...done.

Now I am free to use the device using libnfc.

Troubleshooting

i2cdetect can’t find the NFC device

Make sure the wiring is correct. Maybe SDA and SCL have been switched. Check the Pi wiring diagram.

libnfc can’t find the NFC device

If it is already appearing in i2cdetect, make sure you have properly set the I2C address in libnfc.conf

References

• http://www.byteparadigm.com/applications/introduction-to-i2c-and-spi-protocols/
• https://pinout.xyz/pinout/i2c
• https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/raspberry-pi-spi-and-i2c-tutorial
• https://www.element14.com/community/community/raspberry-pi/blog/2012/12/14/nfc-on-raspberrypi-with-pn532-py532lib-and-i2c
• https://www.scribd.com/document/374277518/PN532-Manual-V3-pdf