Embedded Coding

TI LCDK

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Fri, 25 May 2012 16:28:00 +0000

The new TI LCDK development kit comes in two models for $195 each. Choose an OMAP-L138 with ARM9 and floating point DSP, or the pin compatible TI TMS320C6748 DSP.

Both boards are available from the TI eStore and on-line distributors. The OMAP-L138 is part number TMDXLCDK138 (TI eStore link), and the single core DSP version is part number TMDXLCDK6748 (TI eStore link). Two software development kits are available for the board, a Linux SDK and the BIOS C6 SDK that uses SysBIOS 6.3.33 and Starterware.

This board is an alternative to the hawkboard that also used the OMAP-L138 but had stability problems with DDR memory.

The board has a few interesting interfaces like the LCD port that uses Beagleboard XM connectors, a leopard imaging camera sensor input, and an on-board fingerprint sensor. Standard interfaces include 100Mbps Ethernet, USB 1.1 Host, USB 2.0 OTG, SATA, VGA, Audio, Video Composite IN, and an FTDI USB to serial interface.

Synthesizers

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 23 May 2012 19:19:00 +0000

Today's Google Doodle honors Robert Moog with a working Synthesizer. Here are a few more that you can buy, make, or run as an app.

You can purchase a modern Moog directly from moogmusic.com like the one in this video comparing the Doodle to the real thing.

Moog also has an iPhone App synth, the Animoog, on sale for $0.99 for the next few days. Unfortunately, my iPhone 3G is too old to run this (I'm stuck at iOS 4.21 which isn't compatible with Animoog).

An open hardware hackable digital synth is available from MeeBlip starting at only $39 for the basic board, up to a complete ready to assemble kit for $149.

Teenage engineering sells a musical experimental board called Oplab ($299) and an all-in-one portable synth with USB connectivity, the OP-1 ($849) shown in this video.

Something a little different is the x0xb0x from LadyAda, you can build one yourself from her manual or buy a complete kit or finished synth from WILLZYX and a few other online sources.

Free Renesas Kits

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 22 May 2012 18:18:00 +0000

Renesas is offering some free development boards and a 25% discount on other kits and tools from Avnet Memec. The free boards with avnet part number are shown below.

RX62N promotion board (YRPBRX62N)

RX-Stick for RX610 (R0K5RXTKTZ003BR)

RX210 Promotion Board (YRPBRX210)

RL78 Promotion Board (YRPBRL78G13)

V850ES/Jx3-L Low Power Demonstrator Kit (V850ES-JX3L-LPD)

To get them free from Avnet use the coupon code and checkout at the Avnet/Renesas promotion site.

Renesas Green Energy Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 01:16:00 +0000

Renesas is giving away hundreds of development kits to contestants in the RL78 Green Energy Challenge. Qualified applicants will receive the RL78G12 Renesas Demonstration Kit (RDK) including IAR Kickstart edition development tools. The contest runs from March 26 to August 31, 2012 with prizes of $17,500 US. Additional prizes will be given away on a weekly basis such as development tools, Wi-Fi modules, and embedded systems books.

Silicon Labs ARM-USB Development Kit Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:19:00 +0000

Silicon Labs is running a web drawing to give away the Precision32 SiM3U1xx-B-DK USB development kit. The $99US Kit features an ARM Cortex-M3 based SiM3u167 processor.

Processors in this family have a flexible I/O mapping capability called the Precision32 crossbar architecture for details see app note Precision32 Port I/O Crossbar Decoder (AN671.pdf). The peripheral pin mapping can be configured with the AppBuilder GUI utililty, a part of the free Precision32 Development Suite.

ARM Announces Ultra Low Power Cortex-M0+

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 09:18:00 +0000

Today ARM introduced the Cortex-M0+ as the "world's most energy-efficient processor" in a press release. Both Freescale and NXP have announced they will license the core in today's press releases that coincide with ARM's announcement.

Freescale is introducing the Kinetis L series as the first microcontroller to be built on the Cortex-M0+.
They list some new features of the ore including reducing the pipeline to two stages, single-cycle access to I/O, faster access to program memory, linear address space and a micro trace buffer. Freescale has functional silicon today according to the following YouTube video.

NXP's announcement talks about the success they have had with the predecessor Cortex-M0 core. They currently have the lowest power Cortex-M0 at 110uA/MHz, licensing the new Cortex-M0+ will enable them to continue to offer the lowest power ARM processors. The new license is part of NXP's strategy to offer the widest range of ARM solutions as you can see in this interview.

NXP Android Accessory Kit Includes Two ARM Development Boards

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 18:12:00 +0000

Embedded Artists and NXP have developed the Android Open Accessory Application Kit (AOAA). The kit implements a USB host interface and the Android accessory protocol used by the Android Open Accessory Development Kit (ADK) An added bonus to this $79 US development kit is an ARM Cortex-M0 board that is detachable from the main board and features the NXP LPC11C24 microcontroller The main board uses an ARM Cortex-M4 NXP LPC1769 that interfaces with the second ARM through a CAN interface.

Here is a video presentation from NXP about the kit.

To purchase the kit visit the embedded artists AOAA page, it can be purchased direct or through distributors including Digi-Key and Mouser. The embedded artists page also includes documentation and software downloads. In addition, there is a kit resource page at the LPCware NXP community.

Tiny Serial WiFi Module Includes ARM Cortex M3

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 16:44:00 +0000

The Inventek Systems 802.11 b/g/n Serial to WiFi module makes it easy to add Wi-Fi to your embedded design. It can be programmed from a host with a choice of serial interfaces using a simple AT command set.

These serial interfaces are provided by an STM32 ARM Cortex M3 processor as shown on the block diagram. No software development is required for the STM32, the AT command set interface is resident in firmware. This means your host microcontroller does not need a TCP/IP stack or RTOS. This simplifies software development for your application - you only need to write serial I/O code to send the AT commands and process data.

An embedded wireless evaluation board is available that make it easy to connect the module to your microcontroller board for development of your WiFi application. Both the evaluation board and the module are available from the Inventek Systems online store.

For more information on the module and evaluation board watch this video that includes a description of the functional block diagram above.

Tesla Coil Guitar Amplifier

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 17:11:00 +0000

High voltage is not just the name of a song and album from AC/DC. The latest Another Geek Moment Video from Digi-Key shows how to use a Tesla coil to see and hear "high voltage rock and roll" without an amp or speaker.

This doesn't look safe to build for most DIYers, but I see from videos on YouTube a few people have tried this before. It sounds a little harsh, with distortion a bit beyond a heavy metal sound, but the Digi-Key setup sounds better than most. I wonder if you could use a tube amplifier somewhere in the circuit for a smoother sound.... If it didn't sound better, at least it would look even more extreme with the lights off.

Google Honors Heinrich Hertz Discoverer of Radio Waves

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:37:00 +0000

Today's Google Doodle honors the Physicist Heinrich Rudolf Hertz who discovered what are now called radio waves in November 11, 1886. He name is well known because of a previous commemoration for this discovery. The Hertz is the SI unit of frequency (which is why the abbreviation is capitalized as Hz). Hertz made this discovery conducting experiments based on the work of James Clerk Maxwell.

Introduction to Radio Waves

Lec 27 MIT 8.02 Electricity and Magnetism, Spring 2002

Electromagnetic Spectrum Poster by UniHedron - click for links to online retailers

ATMega Development Board Supports GPS Video Overlay Module

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:20:00 +0000

Decade Engineering has released the BUD Smart Application Board that is designed to display GPS and user defined video overlay using the BOB-4 on screen display module. BUD can also be used as a general-purpose Atmel megaAVR development board. It has an ATmega640, uses a serial bootloader, and can use free AVR-GCC based development tools, so an external debugger and third-party tools aren't required. The processor has 64KB flash and 4KB EEPROM, additional EEPROM can be added to the board as an option. You can easily to download example software and schematics from Decade's website, registration is not required.

The videos below show the BOB-4 used for GPS overlay with an RC plane camera in Antarctica and for a Datsun 240Z track session. The BOB-4 can easily be used with other microcontroller development boards or a PC, it only requires 5VDC, serial data, and video I/O.

You can purchase BUD and BOB-4 from Decade Engineering's website. The BOB-4 module is also available from Solarbotics and Farnell. See the Decade Engineering site for additional dealers.

Free ChipKit Boards For DesignSpark Contest

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:10:00 +0000

The DesignSpark chipKIT Challenge is giving away 1000 chipKIT Max32 development Kits to registered participants.

The chipKIT Max32 is an arduiono-like platform from Diligent with a Microchip PIC32MX795F512 MIPS processor and 512K Flash. Cash prizes will be awarded for the most energy-efficient designs ranging from $5000 US for first prize to $200 for honorable mention. Community awards will also be given, $100 vouchers for electronics and magazine subscriptions. The deadline for entries is in March 2012.

Lattice Low-Cost PLD Breakout Board

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:28:00 +0000

The Lattice Semiconductor MachXO2-1200ZE Breakout Board Evaluation Kit includes a MachXO2 programmable logic device with 1280 look up tables, 108 I/O, and support for DDR, LVDS, and hardened I2C, SPI, and timer/counter. The board is only $29.99 and includes free access to Lattice Diamond design tools. The on-board FTDI USB allows easy connectivity and programming without additional debug hardware, power is also provided via USB. The large prototyping/header area surrounding the chip has standard 0.1 inch spacing.

Mouser Carrying Pandaboards

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:02:00 +0000

The PandaBoard is another powerful Texas Instruments Sitara ARM-based processor development platform like the BeagleBoard and BeagleBone. The video below shows it running Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich).

Now that Mouser is an authorized PandaBoard distributor, you can order all three boards at one place. PandaBoard is also featured in the Mouser Product Knowledge Center, which gives it a dedicated page with more detailed information than for most products. Currently, there are only about 2000 pages in the Product Knowledge Center and TI has over a hundred products listed including microcontrollers, sensors, evaluation modules and development boards.

CES 2012 Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 11:09:00 +0000

If you want to see what is happening at CES, there is an official youtube channel for the 2012 CES conference where you can see booth interviews and attendee videos. Here is a video from OLogic showing a robot they call A.M.P. for Automated Music Personality. OLogic is a design house for toys and consumer electronics, the A.M.P. isn't for sale yet but has been shown for a few years as a showcase of their engineering abilities.

Embedded Linux Conference 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:40:00 +0000

If you are an embedded Linux developer who maybe missed out on CES you might try the 2012 Embedded Linux Conference which runs from Feb. 15-17 just North of Silicon Valley in Redwood Shores, California. This is co-located with the Linaro Connect Q1.12 conference which runs from Feb. 6-10. Linaro Connect covers Linux on ARM development. Another co-located conference is the 2012 Android Builders Summit from Feb. 13-14. For a retrospective of Linux, see the Linux Foundataion video commemorating 20 years of Linux.

Photo by the Linux Foundation, available under a Creative Commons License.

Microsoft Small Basic

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:06:00 +0000

Microsoft Small Basic is a free compiler for beginners to computer programming. You can find it at the Beginner Developer Learning Center at MSDN. Microsoft wants to put the fun back into computer programming with Small Basic and includes a getting started guide, online lessons, online e-books chapters, and code sharing.

The syntax is not the same as the BASIC I learned as a kid on the TI 99/4a or the Commodore 64, but more of a take off on Microsoft languages like VB. For example, compare the classic "Hello World" in BASIC to Small Basic.

10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD"

In Microsoft Small Basic it's a bit different:

TextWindow.WriteLine("Hello World")

The longer function name doesn't look as fun to me, but they make it easier to remember with help as you type. I can't find any auto-complete, but that is probably just as well for beginners.

Microsoft makes it easy to migrate your Small Basic program to Visual Basic, there is a Graduate button built into the interface that will convert your program automatically.

I found Microsoft Small Basic when I was looking for a free compiler for a child to learn computer programming. I think it is a good choice, it should keep them interested because it is easy to use and they can get instant results with the run button, like you do in classic BASIC programming. They even have turtle graphics, which is always fun for kids. When they become more advanced programmers, they might be interested in the free sample chapter from Basic Computer Games Small Basic Edition.

Open and DIY Game Consoles

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Two Linux based systems are coming out that are aimed at consumers for general computing, education and gaming. The Rasberry Pi has been making a lot of headlines because of its low cost (< $35 US), and a recent games.com blog predicts it could cause a social gaming explosion. Another highly anticipated system is Pandora, which is not cheap at 375 EUR, but offers portability. If you can't wait a few months for these to be available, you can build your own console by connecting an Arduino to a GameDuino, or get build the entire console yourself with and XGameStation or Uzebox kit.

Audio Kits and Amplifier Boards

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 11:34:00 +0000

Parts Express has a great selection of DIY parts for audio projects as well as A/V cables and equipment. They have recently added a DIY kits section to the website. Most of the products are called kits but I would call most of them boards because come fully assembled and tested. They stock Velleman and Parts Express brands. You can find a lot of audio applications including AM/FM radio, MP3 player, and a few Class-D audio amplification boards. The amplifier boards use Tripath, Texas Instruments and Power Analog Microelectronics chips. For an example see the video below for the TK2050 Class-D Audio Amplifier Board. It is one of the higher end kits at $44 US, they start at $9.90 for the 2x2W@4 Ohm Class-D.

Other sources of Class-D Audio amplifier boards:

Class D Audio Inc. Below is a pic of another Texas Instruments Amp.

International Rectifier

Jameco Electronics always has a good selection of audio kits and kits in general. Here is an example of a guitar effects pedal built using the Perfboard Prototyping Kit.

xplorer2 File Manager

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 20:23:00 +0000

I have been using the xplorer2 file manager on Windows for a few years. I found it when I was looking for a dual-pane file manager that could also handle webdav folders. Below is a screenshot that showing dual pane mode running on the developer's computer. I also like to use the custom command feature with WinMerge to compare source code directories.

Special offer extended: January 5 xplorer2 is the BitsDuJour.com deal of the day on sale for $15 US.

Android ADK Development Boards

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 16:45:00 +0000

Developers using Google's Android Open Accessory Development Kit (ADK) now have more choices of hardware. Initially the ADK supported the Arduino Mega2560 ($65 assembed from Adafruit) with Oleg Mazurov's USB Host Shield ($25).

Here is the current list from the Android Developers ADK page.

Arduino Mega ADK - available from the Arduino Store and Radio Shack $84.99

DIY Drones PhoneDrone Board for Android $99

mbed has a few solutions...

Microchip - Two boards are available, the PIC32 DM320412 (not yet for sale actually), and the PIC24 DM240415 $79.

Modern Device's Freeduino USB Host Board $79

RT Corp - RT-ADK&RT-ADS $389.03 (31,500 Yen)

Seeed Studio Seeeduino ADK Main Board $79

Sparkfun IOIO for Android (beta support) $49

Parallax Stamp and Boe-Bot Kits on Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:21:00 +0000

If you are interested in the BASIC Stamp by Parallax, the acitvity kit shown below is on sale for $49 US at the online store (normally $79).

They also have a Boe-Bot kit on sale for $179 with Li-Ion Robot Power Pack and Charger (currently low stock on this item).

Another option for Parallax kits is your local Radio Shack. On a recent visit, the store closest to me had a few smaller Parallax BASIC Stamp kits, as well as an Arduino and some Velleman kits.

SparkFun Free Day 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 08:02:00 +0000

In a few weeks SparkFun Electronics will be having free day where random visitors to the website will receive a $100 gift certificate. The fun starts on January 11th, starting at 9AM Mountain Time.

Sparkfun is a great resource for your electronics needs. In addition to parts and kits, you can find a tutorials like this one on selecting an accelerometer breakout board, and some interesting competitions like the autonomous vehicle competition. I found a connection with a local school, teacher Steven Kennedy from Orchard Park High School is profiled in this SparkFun ad. If you click the previous link you can see the full resolution and you can see from the poster he even has his own youtube channel for student projects.

TI Fixed Point DSP Kit Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:43:00 +0000

Texas Instruments is offering a 16-bit fixed-point DSP development kit for $55 until the end of the year, the C5535 eZdsp USB Stick Development Kit, normally priced at $99. The processor is advertised as the industry's lowest-cost and lowest power DSP in its class. Included in the kit is a free software framework for USB audio class and HID.

Robotshop Taking Over The World's Robots

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Clarke) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 17:03:00 +0000

Robotshop is already the leading source for robots, now they want to control all of them with the MyRobots.com portal. The service is currently in beta, but free, so you might want to register now to try it out. The site lets you monitor and control your internet enabled robot with an open API. If your robot doesn't have an internet connection, the MyRobots Connect kit will let you access the serial port of with an XBee wireless transceiver.

Another part of MyRobots.com that is under development is the Robot App Store, where you can sell your robot enabled apps that can run on the robot or in the cloud.

Of course, if you don't yet have a robot, you can buy one already compatible with the site from Robotshop. Shown below is the Arduino compatible DFRobotShop Rover. They have a lot more than robots, including development boards, soldering equipment, 3D printers and test instruments.