Matter: Template

This sample demonstrates a minimal implementation of the Matter (formerly Project Connected Home over IP, Project CHIP) application layer. This basic implementation enables the commissioning on the device, which allows it to join a Matter network.

Use this sample as a reference for developing your own application. See the Creating Matter accessory device page for an overview of steps that you need to complete.

Requirements

The sample supports the following development kits:

Hardware platforms

PCA

Board name

Build target

nRF52840 DK

PCA10056

nrf52840dk_nrf52840

nrf52840dk_nrf52840

nRF5340 DK

PCA10095

nrf5340dk_nrf5340

nrf5340dk_nrf5340_cpuapp

nRF21540 DK

PCA10112

nrf21540dk_nrf52840

nrf21540dk_nrf52840

For testing purposes, that is to commission the device and control it remotely through a Thread network, you also need a Matter controller device configured on PC or smartphone (which requires additional hardware depending on which setup you choose).

Note

Matter requires the GN tool. If you are updating from the nRF Connect SDK version earlier than v1.5.0, see the GN installation instructions.

Overview

The sample starts the Bluetooth® LE advertising automatically and prepares the Matter device for commissioning into a Matter-enabled Thread network. The sample uses an LED to show the state of the connection. You can press a button to start the factory reset when needed.

Remote testing in a network

Testing in a Matter-enabled Thread network requires a Matter controller that you can configure either on PC or mobile. By default, the Matter accessory device has Thread disabled. You must pair it with the Matter controller over Bluetooth LE to get configuration from the controller if you want to use the device within a Thread network. You can enable the controller after building and running the sample.

To pair the device, the controller must get the commissioning information from the Matter accessory device and provision the device into the network.

Commissioning in Matter

In Matter, the commissioning procedure takes place over Bluetooth LE between a Matter accessory device and the Matter controller, where the controller has the commissioner role. When the procedure has completed, the device is equipped with all information needed to securely operate in the Matter network.

During the last part of the commissioning procedure (the provisioning operation), the Matter controller sends the Thread network credentials to the Matter accessory device. As a result, the device can join the Thread network and communicate with other Thread devices in the network.

To start the commissioning procedure, the controller must get the commissioning information from the Matter accessory device. The data payload, which includes the device discriminator and setup PIN code, is encoded within a QR code, printed to the UART console.

Configuration

See Configuring your application for information about how to permanently or temporarily change the configuration.

FEM support

You can add support for the nRF21540 front-end module to this sample by using one of the following options, depending on your hardware:

  • Build the sample for one board that contains the nRF21540 FEM, such as nrf21540dk_nrf52840.

  • Manually create a devicetree overlay file that describes how FEM is connected to the nRF5 SoC in your device. See Set devicetree overlays for different ways of adding the overlay file.

  • Provide nRF21540 FEM capabilities by using a shield, for example the nRF21540 EK shield that is available in the nRF Connect SDK. In this case, build the project for a board connected to the shield you are using with an appropriate variable included in the build command. This variable instructs the build system to append the appropriate devicetree overlay file. For example, to build the sample from the command line for an nRF52833 DK with the nRF21540 EK attached, use the following command within the sample directory:

    west build -b nrf52833dk_nrf52833 -- -DSHIELD=nrf21540_ek

    This command builds the application firmware. See Programming nRF21540 EK for information about how to program when you are using a board with a network core, for example nRF5340 DK.

Each of these options adds the description of the nRF21540 FEM to the devicetree. See Radio front-end module (FEM) support for more information about FEM in the nRF Connect SDK.

To add support for other front-end modules, add the respective devicetree file entries to the board devicetree file or the devicetree overlay file.

User interface

LED 1:

Shows the overall state of the device and its connectivity. The following states are possible:

  • Short Flash On (50 ms on/950 ms off) - The device is in the unprovisioned (unpaired) state and is waiting for a commissioning application to connect.

  • Rapid Even Flashing (100 ms on/100 ms off) - The device is in the unprovisioned state and a commissioning application is connected through Bluetooth LE.

  • Short Flash Off (950 ms on/50 ms off) - The device is fully provisioned, but does not yet have full Thread network or service connectivity.

  • Solid On - The device is fully provisioned and has full Thread network and service connectivity.

Button 1:

If pressed for 6 seconds, it initiates the factory reset of the device. Releasing the button within the 6-second window cancels the factory reset procedure.

SEGGER J-Link USB port:

Used for getting logs from the device or for communicating with it through the command-line interface.

Building and running

This sample can be found under samples/matter/template in the nRF Connect SDK folder structure.

See Building and programming an application for information about how to build and program the application.

Testing

When you have built the sample and programmed it to your development kit, it automatically starts the Bluetooth LE advertising and the LED1 starts flashing (Short Flash On). At this point, you can press Button 1 for 6 seconds to initiate the factory reset of the device.

Note

If you are new to Matter, commission the Matter device using the Android Mobile Controller when setting up Matter development environment.

Testing in a network

To test the sample in a Matter-enabled Thread network, complete the following steps:

  1. Connect the kit to the computer using a USB cable. The kit is assigned a COM port (Windows) or ttyACM device (Linux), which is visible in the Device Manager.

  2. Connect to the kit with a terminal emulator (for example, PuTTY). See How to connect with PuTTY for the required settings.

  3. Commission the device into a Thread network by following the guides linked on the Configuring Matter development environment page for the Matter controller you want to use. As part of this procedure, you will complete the following steps:

    • Configure Thread Border Router.

    • Build and install the Matter controller.

    • Commission the device.

    • Send Matter commands.

    At the end of this procedure, LED 1 of the Matter device programmed with the sample starts flashing in the Short Flash Off state. This indicates that the device is fully provisioned, but does not yet have full Thread network connectivity.

  4. Press Button 1 for 6 seconds to initiate the factory reset of the device.

The device reboots after all its settings are erased.

Dependencies

This sample uses the Matter library, which includes the nRF Connect SDK platform integration layer:

In addition, the sample uses the following nRF Connect SDK components:

The sample depends on the following Zephyr libraries: