HydraNFC Shield v2 Specifications (updated 22 June 2024)

HydraNFC Shield v2 is based on STMicroelectronics ST25R3916 NFC chipset which is today the most powerful and versatile NFC chipset available on the market.
HydraNFC Shield v2 is for anyone interested in Learning/Developping/Debugging/Hacking/Penetration Testing for basic or advanced NFC communications.
The firmware is open source and available on GitHub:
https://github.com/hydrabus/hydrafw_hydranfc_shield_v2
HydraNFC V2 Antenna HydraNFC Cables HydraNFC-Shield-v2-R1.5 HydraBus-v1.0-Rev1.5+Case

HydraNFC V2 Antenna HydraNFC Cables HydraNFC-Shield-v2-R1.5 HydraBus-v1.0-Rev1.5+Case
Kit available online https://hydrabus.com/product/hydrabus-v1-0-rev1-5-hydranfc-shield-v2-r1-5
Note: HydraNFC Shield V2 shall be plugged on top of HydraBus

Key Features of HydraNFC Shield V2 hardware (with HydraNFC v2 Antenna):

  • Operating modes:
    • Reader/writer
    • Card emulation (Type A and Type F Tags are supported natively, other tags can be supported with Special stream and Transparent modes)
    • Active and passive peer to peer
  • RF communication:
    • EMVCo™ 3.0 analog and digital compliant
    • NFC-A / ISO14443A up to 848 kbit/s
    • NFC-B / ISO14443B up to 848 kbit/s
    • NFC-F / FeliCa™ up to 424 kbit/s
    • NFC-V / ISO15693 up to 53 kb/s
    • NFC-A / ISO14443A and NFC-F / FeliCa™ card emulation
    • Active and passive peer to peer initiator and target modes, up to 424 kbit/s
    • Low level mode to implement MIFARE Classic® compliant or other custom protocols
  • Key features:
    • 1.6W output power at 5V with Differential Antenna and Variable capacitors for NFC Automatic antenna tuning (AAT)
      • Reader/writer mode range is more than 12cm for NFC-A (ISO14443A) Tags (8.5cm x 5.4cm)
      • Reader/writer mode range is more than 16cm for NFC-V (ISO15693) Tags(ST25 Tag 5cm x 5cm)
    • Dynamic power output (DPO) controls the field strength to stay within given limits
    • Active wave shaping (AWS) reduces over-and under-shoots
    • Noise suppression receiver (NSR) allows reception in noisy environment
    • Integrated EMVCo 3.0 compliant EMD handling
    • Automatic gain control and squelch feature to maximize SNR
    • Low power capacitive and inductive card detection
    • Low power NFC active and passive target modes
    • Adjustable ASK modulation depth, from 5 to 40%
    • Integrated regulators to boost system PSRR
    • AM/PM and I/Q demodulator with baseband channel summation or automatic channel selection
    • Possibility to drive two independent single ended antennas (default use differential antenna)
    • Measurement of antenna voltage amplitude and phase, RSSI, on-chip supply and regulated voltages
    • External communication interfaces
    • 512-byte FIFO
    • Serial peripheral interface (SPI) up to 10 Mbit/s (Tested with success on HydraBus v1 at 10.5Mbit/s)
  • Electrical characteristics:
    • Wide supply voltage and ambient temperature range (2.6 to 5.5 V from -40 °C to +105 °C, 2.4 to 5.5 V from -20 °C to +105 °C)
    • Wide peripheral communication supply range, from 1.65 to 5.5 V
    • Quartz oscillator operating with 27.12 MHz crystal with fast start-up
      • HydraNFC Shield v2 R1.4: Frequency Tolerance +/-30ppm max. (25+/-3℃) Operating Temperature Range -30℃ to +85℃
      • HydraNFC Shield v2 R1.5: Frequency Tolerance +/-20ppm max. (25+/-3℃)
        Operating Temperature Range -30℃ to +85℃

Caution HydraNFC Shield v2 is an Electrostatic Sensitive Devices Do Not Handle Except at a Static Free Workstation.

Key Features of HydraFW (for HydraBus v1/HydraNFC Shield v2 hardware) firmware using STMicroelectronics RFAL for ST25R3916:

This firmware is fully open source and based on HydraFW and is specific to HydraBus v1 with HydraNFC Shield v2 it use STMicroelectronics RFAL for ST25R3916

The STMicroelectronics RFAL simplifies the development of applications by encapsulating device and protocol details.

  • Complete middleware to build NFC enabled applications based on the ST25R3916 device
  • Supported modes:
    • Reader/Writer
    • P2P initiator (PCM and ACM)
    • P2P target (PCM and ACM)
    • Card emulation
  • Support of major NFC and proprietary technologies:
    • NFC-A (ISO14443A)
    • NFC-B (ISO14443B)
    • NFC-F (FeliCa™)
    • NFC-V (ISO15693)
    • P2P (ISO18092)
    • ST25TB, Kovio, B’, iClass, Calypso®
  • Supported protocols:
  • ISO-DEP (ISO data exchange protocol, ISO14443-4)
  • NFC-DEP (NFC data exchange protocol, ISO18092)
  • Easy portability across different platforms (MCUs/RTOSs/OSs)
  • Compliant with main RF/NFC standards:
    • NFC Forum
    • EMVCo™
    • ISO14443
    • ISO15693
    • ISO18092
    • MISRA C:2012 compliant
    • Free, user-friendly license terms

The firmware will support low level mode to implement other custom protocols in reader/writer mode (potentially also P2P), card emulation mode and even unique real-time sniffer mode (contributions are welcome see https://github.com/hydrabus/hydrafw_hydranfc_shield_v2/issues/19).
For more details on open source firmware see https://github.com/hydrabus/hydrafw_hydranfc_shield_v2

HydraNFC Shield V2 is sensitive to electrostatic discharge (ESD), ensure that you adhere to ESD precautions during usage. Follow these guidelines:

  • Work in an ESD-protected area with grounding measures.
  • Wear ESD-protective clothing, including wrist straps.
  • Use ESD-safe tools and handle boards carefully.
  • Ground yourself before touching components.
  • Store boards in antistatic packaging and avoid low-humidity environments.
  • Utilize ESD-safe work surfaces and cables.
  • Educate personnel on ESD awareness.
  • Regularly inspect and maintain ESD protection equipment.
  • Use ESD-protected power supplies to minimize risks.

For more details send an email to https://hydrabus.com/contact