ProjectProto

crossBuild ARM target binaries on ARM host

2012-01-14T10:20:00.005+08:00

... building STM32F10x (ARM Cortex-M3) sources on WM8505 (ARM9) host.

The Debian installation on my WM8505-based tablet already includes "build-essential" package (gcc, binutils, make, etc.) but, unfortunately, no "multilib" package available yet for debian armel =( . So I have to built my own bare-metal toolchain using croostool-ng. Using this config file, I was able to built this toolchain arm-none-eabi-4.6-armv5.tar.gz (just extract this archive to install). It took almost 20 hrs to finish on WM8505 ( at 300MHz with 128MB RAM ).

For testing the toolchain, I have chosen this STM32F103RB FreeRTOS demo (4 tasks example) sources since it requires "newlib" functions to build completely.

# export CROSS_COMPILE=/path/to/arm-none-eabi/bin/arm-none-eabi-
# make -s clean all
# make program

Also, STM32Loader also works properly on my host machine since it already has python-serial installed. Using "/dev/ttyWMT0" serial port* to transfer the binary using STM32's uart bootloader:

* USB-to-Serial adapters (e.g. FT232 and PL2303 based) will also work.

For serial-port monitor, I'm using "minicom" already installed on my Debian. Below is the expected result of the STM32 FreeRTOS demo:

Debian Wheezy on WM8505

2012-01-13T11:05:00.004+08:00

Installing Debian-Wheezy on microSD card is just simply extracting the two gzip archives into two separate partitions (see below).

$ sudo tar xzpvf wm8505-debian-wheezy-lxde.tar.gz -C /media/extpart/ ; sync
$ sudo tar xzpvf wm8505-kernel-3.0-fatpart.tar.gz -C /media/fatpart/ ; sync

At least 1GB card is needed for the installation, 2GB recommended. The first partition should be a FAT32 (or FAT16) where the "script" folder, containing the "scriptcmd" and "uImage" (linux kernel image) files, is located.The second partition should be an ext2 (or ext4) partition where the root file system will be extracted. Visit these sites for more references: projectgus.com, devio.us , cheap-hack.com.

username: root
password: root

* initial installation using debootstrap
* with minimal LXDE, dillo, build-essential, python, minicom, etc.
* wi-fi / ethernet working ; touchscreen NOT working

Quadruped

2011-07-23T10:39:00.003+08:00

My first prototype of a four-legged robot.
12 servo motors controlled by STM32F103RB (MiniSTM32 board).

It was previously a "tripod" =) . But then, later, another leg was added (3 servos per leg) for easy balancing even without using IMU sensors.

* PhilRobotics @ MOA July 17, 2011 (pics by vic)

WM8505 LCD driver

2011-04-03T21:06:00.002+08:00

Another low-level hack on my Android Apad ( ~~clone/fake Apad?~~ ).

This time it's now with the 800x480 GLCD driver. It's working, but I'm not sure if the initialization is complete (i.e. the hardware is, most probably, already initialized by the bootloader). I've just modified the sources from Wondermedia (look at "\common\wmt_logo\" folder). LCD routines here are not using the graphics engine (GE) of WM8505.

download Eclipse project here: ARM9_WM8505_LCD.zip

Read my previous post on how to set-up the tool-chain and how to load the program on WM8505.

expected output:

forum link: Re: Let's learn ARM using cheap 7" tablets

Hello World, WM8505!

2011-03-29T23:07:00.007+08:00

My first step in learning the ARM9 platform.

VIA / WonderMedia's WM8505 (ARM926EJ-S):

UART0 Connection:

Serial console connection details: Project Gus

Required Tools: all are free =)

GNU Toolchain for ARM Processors

Sourcery G++ Lite Edition

Eclipse IDE for C/C++ Developers

Helios SR2

Eclipse CDT (C/C++ Development Tooling)

CDT 7 for Eclipse Helios

GNU ARM Eclipse Plug-in

Plug-in_Installation

The goal is to run this simple code: (main.c)

int main()
{
   uart_init();
   while(1)
   {
      uart_puts("hello world, WM8505/ARM926!\r\n");
   }
   return 0;
}

It should output these strings on UART_0 port, just like this:

After setting up the tools, here are the next steps:
-Create new project on Eclipse

-Select target processor (WM8505 is a ARM926EJ-S processor)

-Select binary format for the flash image:

-linker setting:

- after building the project, open the generated *.map file to verify the linker output

*I don't know, yet, what's with this 0x03F80000 address.

This is the load address used by Wondermedia version of U-BOOT

- Complete Eclipse project files:
download here: ARM9_WM8505_UART0.zip

* most of the hardware initializations (e.g. clock settings) are already done by the bootloader,
so we don't have to worry about them for now.

Next question is, "how to load and run the code?
I've tested two ways of how to transfer the generated image to the RAM:
First is through tftp transfer, second is SD card load during boot-up.
Both method uses the bootloader, which is already present in the board (in the SPI flash).
My board got v1.1.4 of U-BOOT.

1. TFTP transfer to RAM.
- get a copy of this freeTFTPD32 server application.
- using the LAN adapter, connect board to host PC Ethernet
enter u-boot console, and type these commands:

tftp {load address} {image file}
go {load address}

* RAM load address can use other than 0x0

2. SD card scriptcmd
-guide: How to edit "scriptcmd"
-during boot-up, the u-boot will read the "scriptcmd" script in the "script" folder of the SD card.

fatload mmc 0 {load address} {image file}
go {load address}

*these commands can also be typed in the uboot console. ("mmcinit" must be sent first)

references:
Wondermedia GPL sources
WM8505 datasheets
forum link:
Let's learn ARM using cheap 7" tablets

MARG sensors + Bluetooth

2011-02-03T10:52:00.002+08:00

MARG (Magnetic, Angular Rate, and Gravity) sensor array used for AHRS (Attitude and Heading Reference Systems).

Android OpenGL 3D display on Samsung Spica (i5700).

Sparkfun 9DOF sensor stick SEN-10389, later replaced by SEN-10321.

Using ATmega328P, operated at 3.3V supply and 8MHz crystal. At this speed, reading sensors' measurements and computing "AHRSupdate" take about 31ms to complete. Default compiler setting is used on WinAVR. With 25Hz sampling rate, this leaves mega328p extra 9ms to do other tasks. Bluetooth SPP (serial) communication is buffered and interrupt driven, so no processing time is wasted in reading and sending data to the android phone.

References:
(1) Sebastian Madgwick's Alternative AHRS (MARG) algorithm - Quaternion implementation of Mayhony's DCM filter incorporating magnetic distortion compensation.
(2) Fabio Varesano's FreeIMU. Also using Madgwick's implementation of the DCM filter on Arduino platform.
(3) Rotation convertions by Martin Baker. Very good discussion on quaternions and other 3D representation like Euler angles and transformation matrix.
(4) OpenGL Transformation Matrix by Song Ho Ahn
(5) Similar discusion on diydrones.com started by Harinath

Android project examples:
Android Bluetooth
Bluetooth Chat
Android OpenGL Projects
OpenGL ES tutorial
Android Bluetooth Oscilloscope

Special thanks to the generous guy who gave me these toys, Thank you very much!

Inertial Measurement Unit + Bluetooth

2011-01-19T21:36:00.002+08:00

Arduino plus Android

* pitch and roll only
* Arduino code by fabio (www.varesano.net)

IMU Digital 6-DOF (ITG3200/ADXL345)
Arduino FIO

N6610 LCD 3D Demo Part II

2010-12-14T22:54:00.002+08:00

Instead of drawing only the edges of a polyhedron, this time we draw the faces and 'fill' it with corresponding colors. This demo now uses a dsPIC (16-bit and 40MIPS core) for "faster" and "smoother" graphics in the N6610/N6100 LCD (w/ pcf8833 controller). See "lcd6610.h" for the used pinouts.

There are several ways of "hidden surface removal". The easiest way, and most appropriate for drawing convex polyhedron is the use of Backface culling. "Backface" will determine whether a surface (e.g. triangular face) is need to be drawn or not.
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------/
Draw3D routine:

/***** Draw 3D object with given vertices, triangular faces and angles of rotation******/
void draw_3D(Vertex * V, Triangle * T, nVertices, nTriangles, R)
{
    // sin and cos values
    sinX = sin_table( R.x ) / 255.0;
    sinY = sin_table( R.y ) / 255.0;
    sinZ = sin_table( R.z ) / 255.0;

    cosX = cos_table( R.x ) / 255.0;
    cosY = cos_table( R.y ) / 255.0;
    cosZ = cos_table( R.z ) / 255.0;

    // calculate the new coordinates of points
        for (i=0; i< nVertices; i++)
        {
            tempX = V[i].x;
            tempY = V[i].y;
            tempZ = V[i].z;

            // store previous coordinates
            old_points[i] = new_points[i];

            // rotation on X axis
            py = tempY * cosX - tempZ * sinX;
            pz = tempY * sinX + tempZ * cosX;
            tempY =py; tempZ = pz;

            // rotation on Z axis
            px = tempX * cosZ - tempY * sinZ;
            py = tempX * sinZ + tempY * cosZ;
            tempX = px; tempY = py;

            // rotation on Y axis
            px = tempX * cosY - tempZ * sinY;
            pz = tempX * sinY + tempZ * cosY;

            // save the screen coordinates
            new_points[i].x = px * SCALE_FACTOR + OFFSETX;
            new_points[i].y = py * SCALE_FACTOR + OFFSETY;
        }
        // erase previous triangles
        for (i=0; i< nTriangles; i++)
        {
            if( !Backface( old_points[T[i].A], old_points[T[i].B], old_points[T[i].C] ) )
                fill_triangle(old_points[T[i].A], old_points[T[i].B], old_points[T[i].C], BG_COLOR);
        }
        // lcd plot new triangles
        for (i=0; i< nTriangles; i++)
        {
            if( !Backface( new_points[T[i].A], new_points[T[i].B], new_points[T[i].C] ) )
                fill_triangle(new_points[T[i].A], new_points[T[i].B], new_points[T[i].C], T[i].color);
        }
}

triangle color-fill routine:

void fill_triangle(Point A, Point B, Point C, color)
{ 
    // bubble sort points
    if(B.y< A.y){ P=A; A=B; B=P; }
    if(C.y< B.y){ P=B; B=C; C=P; }
    if(C.y< A.y){ P=A; A=C; C=P; }
    if(B.y< A.y){ P=A; A=B; B=P; }

    // compute dx's
    dx1=0, dx2=0, dx3=0;
    if (B.y-A.y > 0) dx1 = (float)(B.x-A.x)/(B.y-A.y);
    if (C.y-B.y > 0) dx2 = (float)(C.x-B.x)/(C.y-B.y);
    if (C.y-A.y > 0) dx3 = (float)(C.x-A.x)/(C.y-A.y);

    for(h = (i16) A.y; h < B.y; h++) {
        sx = A.x + ((h - A.y) * dx3);
        ex = A.x + ((h - A.y) * dx1);
        draw_hline(sx,ex,h,color);
    }
    for(h = (i16) B.y; h < C.y; h++) {
        sx = A.x + ((h - A.y) * dx3);
        ex = B.x + ((h - B.y) * dx2);
        draw_hline(sx,ex,h,color);
    }
}

(*another version of using dsPIC hardware multiplier/divider is included in the download)

detect whether a triangle is facing backward.

/***** BACKFACE CULLING  ******/
BOOL Backface(Point A, Point B, Point C)
{
    Point L1, L2; // lines/edges

    L1.x = A.x - B.x;
    L1.y = A.y - B.y;
    L2.x = C.x - B.x;
    L2.y = C.y - B.y;

    if( ((L1.x * L2.y)  - (L1.y * L2.x)) < 0 )
        return TRUE;
    return FALSE;
}

Complete MPLAB+C30 project (dsPIC33FJ16GS504):
n6610lcd_3D_demo_part2.zip

N6610 LCD 3D Demo

2010-12-08T22:52:00.003+08:00

Nokia 6610/6100 LCD 3D projections demo using Microchip's PIC18F25J11. PIC18F25J11 is clocked at 12MHz external oscillator with 4xPLL enabled. It's operated at 3.3V supply, same with the LCD (and so, direct connections and higher spi clock rates are possible).

The demo is all about simple 3D projection - no rendering, no raycasting, etc., just the plotting of edges/lines. It displays common polyhedrons like tetrahedron, hexahedron(cube), octahedron, square pyramid, and triangular prism.

"3Ddemo.c"

/***** Draw 3D object with given vertices, edges and angles of rotation******/
void draw_3D(Vertex * V, Edge * E, nVertices, nEdges, xRot, yRot, zRot)
{
 u8 i;
 float tempX,tempY,tempZ;    // temporary coordinates
 float sinX,sinY,sinZ,cosX,cosY,cosZ; // precomputed sin and cos values
 float px,py,pz;       // projected

 // sin and cos values
 sinX = sin_table( xRot ) / 255.0;
 sinY = sin_table( yRot ) / 255.0;
 sinZ = sin_table( zRot ) / 255.0;

 cosX = cos_table( xRot ) / 255.0;
 cosY = cos_table( yRot ) / 255.0;
 cosZ = cos_table( zRot ) / 255.0;

 // calculate the new coordinates of points
    for (i=0; i< nVertices; i++)
 {
  tempX = V[i].x;
  tempY = V[i].y;
  tempZ = V[i].z;

  // store previous coordinates
  old_points[i] = new_points[i];

  // rotation on X axis
  py = tempY * cosX - tempZ * sinX;
  pz = tempY * sinX + tempZ * cosX;
  tempY =py; tempZ = pz;

  // rotation on Z axis
  px = tempX * cosZ - tempY * sinZ;
  py = tempX * sinZ + tempY * cosZ;
  tempX = px; tempY = py;

  // rotation on Y axis
  px = tempX * cosY - tempZ * sinY;
  pz = tempX * sinY + tempZ * cosY;

  // save the screen coordinates
  new_points[i].x = (u8)px * SCALE_FACTOR + OFFSETX;
  new_points[i].y = (u8)py * SCALE_FACTOR + OFFSETY;
 }

 // lcd plot
 for (i=0; i< nEdges; i++)
 {
  // erase old edges
  drawline(
   old_points[E[i].start].x, old_points[E[i].start].y,
   old_points[E[i].end].x, old_points[E[i].end].y,
   BG_COLOR);
  // draw new edges
  drawline(
   new_points[E[i].start].x, new_points[E[i].start].y,
   new_points[E[i].end].x, new_points[E[i].end].y,
   LINE_COLOR);

 }

*based on original sources:
Nokia 6100 LCD with CCS C
3D Vector objects in C using the PIC micro

Microchip C18 project: n6610lcd_3D_demo.zip

Nokia LCDs - Proteus VSM Models

2010-11-18T22:44:00.004+08:00

Proteus VSM models for some Nokia LCDs

LCD controllers used:
PCF8833 - Nokia 6100/6610/6610i
S1D15G14 - Nokia 3530/3510i/3595
PCF8814 - Nokia 1100

Download: Nokia LCDs - Proteus VSM Models.zip
(MODELS + LIBRARY + some demos)
* just copy the files to their corresponding folder

//------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

//------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UPDATES:
11-21-10
    - N6610LCD model (&symbol) was updated based on the datasheet of PCF8833 alone,
        but the result was different from expected. =(
        again, this model still have lots of problems!
    - found a bug on the N3530LCD model (PASET & CASET commands affected),
        corrected model will be uploaded soon.
    - I apologize for I cannot upload the source codes (msvc++ 2008) for these projects.
    ( Proteus ISIS itself is NOT free. VSM SDK, I assume, is also not open-source).
        ask for code snippets here: "Creating Proteus Models" ,instead.

PIC18F USB LC Meter

2010-10-14T21:34:00.005+08:00

Inductance and Capacitance Meter using Microchip's PIC18F2550 connected to USB using HID class (Plug-n-Play).

* f1, f2. and f3 are the frequencies defined by the equations stated on Digital LC Meter.

diagram using internal Analog Comparator and Timer Peripherals of PIC18:

schematic with actual values:

*simulation on Proteus 7 is NOT working (particularly the LC oscillator part and internal pull-up on RB0)

download link (HEX and PC app): PIC18F2550_USB-HID_LC-Meter.zip
elab.ph forum link: PIC18F2550 USB LC Meter

# edit (10-20-10)

added "Calibration option" ( same PIC18F firmware )

reference capacitance range is 1.0nF +/- 5%
Fosc (20MHz crystal with PLL) frequency range is 48MHz +/- 200ppm

# edit (08-14-11)
V1.2 -> updated host-side application,
-> should now work both on 32-bit OS and 64-bit OS hosts.

Android Bluetooth Oscilloscope

2010-09-23T21:17:00.008+08:00

*This application is tested only with Samsung Galaxy GT-i5700 Spica (rooted Android 2.1 OS, i570EXXJD1 Baseband version).
The transmitter circuit uses Microchip's dsPIC33FJ16GS504 for the analog-to-digital conversion of the input signals on two channels. The processed data on the dsPIC are then transmitted to the phone (for waveform display) via the LMX9838 bluetooth SPP module.

specs/ranges:

time per division: {5us, 10us, 20us, 50us, 100us, 200us, 500us, 1ms, 2ms, 5ms, 10ms, 20ms, 50ms }
volt per division: {10mV, 20mV, 50mV, 100mV, 200mV, 500mV, 1V, 2V, GND}
analog input (depends on external pre-amplifier configuration): {-8V to +8V }

The source codes for the bluetooth communication is based on Bluetooth Chat example from http://developer.android.com. That example contains three java source files. And, I've completely copied the "DeviceListActivity.java", which is used for searching remote bluetooth devices. Then I've modified the "BluetoothChatService.java" to use only the RFCOMM Client functions, and used the well-known UUID "00001101-0000-1000-8000-00805F9B34FB" for the Bluetooth RFCOMM/SPP.

For the plotting of waveforms, I'm using SurfaceView object to draw on its canvas. This tutorial found on www.helloandroid.com helps me a lot for this task: "How to use canvas in your android".

The rest of the job mainly involves porting of my previous Python S60 script to JAVA language. It was too painful on my side, because I had to convert a single script file to multiple java + xml source files! Nonetheless, it was a good experience for me on learning the Android SDK (JAVA programming).

Project source codes for Android and dsPIC (with APK and HEX) :
AndroidBluetoothOscilloscope.zip

Electronicslab.ph forum link : Android Bluetooth Oscilloscope

Here are some interesting projects that are also based on the Bluetooth Chat example:
Bluetooth Controlled Model Car
SPRIME

Special thanks to:
Samdroid Forum for the customized/rooted firmwares for our Spica.
Tipidcp Spica users for sharing their tips and experiences with this android phone.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
#edit (10-15-2010)
Here's now my circuit. Nothing special on it, all are based on existing circuits.

*The dsPIC I have used is most probably NOT the best choice for this project because of the many left unused peripherals (extra pins). But, this is the only part readily available in my bin and it has the fastest ADC (2 x 2MSps) among the chips I have.
*If you prefer to change the input range via the op-amp preamp, the computation is located on the "adc.xmcd" file.
*You can use other SPP bluetooth modules aside from LMX. (accdg to manufacturer, it's already obsolete)

----------------------------------------------------------------------
#edit (9-14-2011)

It's almost a year now, and yet some people are still interested in this project (considered to be obsolete). So I've decided to place the source repository also on Google Code site. You can either Browse or use git to have your own local copy:

git clone https://code.google.com/p/android-bluetooth-oscilloscope/

See also the Changes, if you want also to learn on how to modify the code. I've started the first 'commit' with a simple "hello world" from the SDK project template. And then changes were made until the desired final oscilloscope application is achieved.

ZiLOG Z8F64xx Timer Calculator

2010-07-07T20:07:00.010+08:00

Sample code generator for ZiLOG's Z8F64xx Z8 Encore family of 8-bit Flash MCU's. Tested only with ZDSII v4.11 (C compiler-v3.60) on Z8F6423 running at 20MHz crystal. It's expected to work also with other parts, like Z8F6421 of e-Gizmo's IRC Slimboard. It generates sample codes of "timer interrupt" and "pulse width modulation(pwm)" for TIMER0, TIMER1, TIMER2, and TIMER3 peripherals. Please refer to the datasheet("part selection guide" table) of this family to see what timer peripherals are available on a particular part.

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note: I'm a newcomer to javascript. Please notify me of found "bugs" in these code makers.

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Bluetooth Controlled Mobot

2010-06-27T10:19:00.000+08:00

Bluetooth Controlled Mobot using Z8F0823 and LMX9838.

It's supposed to be my entry for a friendly competitions of "sumobots". But, I wasn't able to make it "autonomous" on time for the event. It only have four sensors on each corner to detect "black" lines, but no sensor for detecting an opponent. And so that I can still test the hardware, I just made it manually controllable by using my phone's bluetooth. The bluetooth module is the same circuit I used in my BT minibot . I also used the same python S60 script for my N6120c (Symbian phone) controller.

forum link: Filipino Version of Robot Wars

Mini-STM32 WAVE Audio Player

2010-06-01T23:49:00.001+08:00

Mini-STM32 SD/MMC WAV (RIFF-WAVE-LPCM format) Audio Player with Spectrum Display

Simple SD Audio Player with an 8-pin IC by ChaN

DSP (FFT) libraries for Cortex M3 by Ivan Mellen

CooCox CoOS real-time multi-task OS

minimal hardware modification:

demo video:

Project files: Mini-STM32 WAVE Audio Player.rar

forum link: Mini-STM32 board

PIC18F SD WAV Audio Player

2010-05-22T08:52:00.008+08:00

As inspired by Simple SD Audio Player by ChaN, this project uses Microchip's PIC18F2550 to read RIFF WAVE files, and display some file information on the N6610 LCD; And then it will play the audio itself through PIC's PWM with a simple RC filter on the output pin. The hardware actually comes from my previous project, and I just attached a ready-made audio amp (w/ speaker) for the demo.
Schematic:
Due to PIC's peripheral limitations, I only set the PWM frequency to 187.5kHz and not the 250kHz carrier frequency originally used by ChaN, because it's the maximum PWM frequency than can still get an 8-bit resolution of the duty cycles (=48MHz/256). It is also possible to use R-2R ladder in stead of (low-pass) filtering the PWM output since there still enough unused digital output pins for this approach.
On the software part, I wasn't able to make a good data buffering as good as what ChaN did. It's noticeable with WAVE files with higher bit-rates (=SampleRate*NumChannels*BitsPerSample). Nevertheless, it can still support up to 48kHz sampling rate, but with only Mono channel and 8-bits/sample resolution.

demo video:

Source code(PICC-18) with and without LCD: PIC18 SD WAV Audio Player

My on-going project: currently porting the code to STM32F103RB for additional features.

Some useful software (shareware) tools:
TextAloud - Text to Speech software
Switch Sound File Converter-multi format audio file converters

PIC SD BMP Reader II

2010-05-11T22:42:00.010+08:00

It is similar to my first PIC SD BMP Reader , and almost the same circuit except for the LCD. This time I now use a Nokia 6610 LCD. The LCD is capable of displaying 4096 colors, but for code simplicity I just operate it at 8-bit (256 colors) resolution.

Diagram:
This project is capable of reading bitmap file using common format (24-bit per pixel), with size (width and height) equal to or less than 132 pixels at both side.

demo video:

Source code + diagram: PIC18 SD BMP Reader 2.rar

similar project at Hack-a-day: How-to: Digital picture frame, 100% DIY
-it uses PIC24FJ64 in stead of pic18f2550

PIC18 SD BMP Reader

2010-05-08T23:42:00.009+08:00

This project uses Microchip's PIC18F2550 and Nokia 3310 LCD to read and display images from BMP files on the SD/MMC cards. Although the display itself is monochrome, it still supports 24-bpp (bits per pixel), 8-bpp, 4-bpp, and 1-bpp (monochrome) Bitmap files (*.BMP) with size of 84x48 pixels. It uses the Petit FAT File System Module by ChaN.

Diagram and simulation:
Actual circuit:

Demo video:

forum link: Petit FAT File System (w/ Proteus ISIS simulation)

Source code(PICC18) + simulation(ISIS) + others: PIC18 SD BMP Reader.rar

references for BMP file format:
Wiki BMP file format
atlc.sourceforge bmp format
MSDN Types of Bitmaps

Mini-STM32 Digital Picture Frame

2010-04-24T18:07:00.007+08:00

The original source code for this project is copied from Martin Thomas' Simple STM32 Digital Picture Frame

The application reads picture-files in standard Windows BMP-format from a SD-Card and shows them on a 2.8" color-LCD-module (320*240 px).

The application also uses the FAT File System Module by Chan, on which M. Thomas ported to work on STM32 SPI interface. Additional information about this project can be found on the link above.

Some of the minor modifications I made were:

I've modified the LCD driver so that it will work on my unit. My unit got the ILI9320 LCD controller.
I didn't utilize the USART interface (but this can be easily enabled in the code). In stead of sending the "information" through this interface , some of them are being displayed on the LCD itself (e.g. bitmap filenames).
I've enabled the two push-buttons on the board. The first one toggles between "Play" and "Pause"; and the other one is to "Restart" the "slide-show" from the beginning.

demo video:

Modified Source Code (Keil RVMDK + uVision 4): Digital Picture Frame.rar

FreeRTOS on Mini-STM32

2010-04-16T21:40:00.011+08:00

FreeRTOS Demo on Mini-STM32 kit (STM32F103RBT6 with 2.8" TFT LCD).

My initial attempt of porting the FreeRTOS Demo was considerably a success. But later on, I found out that the version used of STM32 standard peripheral library was already obsolete. And so I didn't anymore continue with that. In stead, I opt to use the latest Firmware version which is v3.2.0 (Mar-2010), and combine it with the latest FreeRTOS source code - v6.0.4.

It wasn't easy for me to start the Keil uVision project from scratch (almost). On the brighter side, I already got familiarized with STM32 code libraries because of this activity. It's mostly trial-and-error approach. But luckily I stepped into this guide of porting the FreeRTOS source: Running FreeRTOS on the Keil MCBSTM32 Board with the RVMDK Evaluation Tools

Here's the result. After few seconds of displaying the "Powered by FreeRTOS" message, the demo will now display the status of all tasks. If there's no error occurred, it will show "PASS" and the 'jitter' in the processing of timer interrupt (timertest.c). For the USART test (comtest.c), there's a "loopback" test of transmitted and received characters. Simply short the pins 2 and 3 (RX and TX) of CON1 in the Mini-STM32 board. Otherwise, it will show "ERROR IN COM TEST" message.

Source Code (Keil RVMDK + uVision 4): FreeRTOS on MINI-STM32.rar

Mini-Term

2010-04-09T15:34:00.005+08:00

I've recently bought a Mini-STM32 kit for the purpose of learning ARM-based MCUs. These development kits were from China and then locally distributed by DIY Hobbyist Corner at an affordable price.
After playing with the example codes, including the uCOS/uCGUI demo, I came up with this Mini UART (serial) Terminal application.

I just utilized the source/library for OS of the uCOS_DEMO since I still don't understand how it works. Luckily I got a copy of uCGUI manual and so I manage to make modifications on the existing sample GUIs (graphical user interface). And later, I'm also able to design my own GUIs.
The USART interface is not difficult to learn since it's almost similar to what other microcontrollers is using. Therefor, it's also easy "porting" the USART code (using standard C language) from my previous MCUs to this STM32 MCU.

The application uses the touch-screen capability of the kit for the keypad interface. However, because of the small LCD area, it's impractical to design the keypad as a full featured "qwerty" keyboard. What I did was just provide alternate characters for most of the existing keys.

"Caps" key pressed and USART baudrate chage:
"QWERTY" key toggled and MainForm minimized(showing desktop background):
Alternate keys/symbols and movable dialog:

It's also possible to use a "gender changer" (DB9 female to DB9 Male) on CON1 of the kit to make it resembles as a common PC serial port.
A problem may also raises because of the possibility that the touch-screen response will vary with different units. So, I added an optional "touch-screen calibrate" at start-up. This option can be found on "miniterm.h" header (the "calibration" code is also copied from one of the demo/example codes).

Source Code (using Keil RVMDK + uVision) download: mini-Term.rar

forum link: Mini STM32 with 2.8 LCD and touchscreen

MSI Wind 12 Internal HSDPA (3.5G) Modem Mod

2010-02-22T22:37:00.004+08:00

Ever since Wind12 series was introduced in the market, I always see in most of the reviews for these products announcing that these units have SIM card slot found underneath the battery pack. Yes I'm also aware that the 3G modules are only optional, but when I checked my Wind U230 I noticed that the SIM slot actually has no SIM connector inside. Nevertheless, it is true that there's an extra PCIe-mini card slot (intended for 3G modem module) found beside the harddisk. This is a great candidate for circuit modding on which I've already made one. =)

I've dissected my Smart Bro (Huawei E1553) modem for the sake of this mod. Anyway, these USB dongles are relatively cheap nowadays. AFAIK, pcie-mini card-type modems cost 3-4 times more compared to usb-types. Before doing the actual mod, I was still not sure whether this will work on 3.3V supply instead of the common 5V of USB ports. Since I cannot find its electrical specs, I just test it on actual. And, fortunately, it works!

I'm using pins 36 and 38 of PCIE mini card connector for the USB functionality of this port. And for the USB supply, I tapped 3.3V and GND on capacitor C236.This 3.3V supply for the pcie-mini card is automatically turned off during system standby.

There's also a disable pin function for the host to disable the pcie-mini card. It is W_DISABLE# on pin 20. It is held low during boot up of the unit. Also during boot-up, the BIOS will check if there's a load on the pcie-mini's 3V3 output. If it doesn't see any load on the 3V3 bus, the unit will cut-off the 3.3V supply all throughout. Therefor, pressing Fn+F10 keys combination without "load" on the 3V3 will not cause this pin to go to logic high. For now, I'm not utilizing this pin since my "enable circuit" is not yet working. The enable circuit is basically using a p-channel mosfet, which is the same with the bluetooth mod. However, the mosfet I currently have doesn't operate well with only -3.3V Vgs (i.e. doesn't turn on properly). BTW, the enable logic for this pin 20 is opposite of what the previous mod have. Meaning, low (0V) on pin 20 corresponds to "module disabled", and high (3.3V) is "enabled".

I was also got bothered of whether the internal antenna of the modem may not be able to get a good signal strength since Wind12 chassis has metal backbones and the plastic cover itself has conductive coatings. But, there was a U210-lite user who ask me to solder his usb hsdpa modem inside his unit. And I'm quite satisfied with the result even if we didn't wire and reposition the antenna of his modem.
I managed to get coaxial wires (hoping that these wires are similar to what WiFi adapters and actual 3G modems are using). Unfortunately, after finishing the mod and testing the modem, from the usual RSSI of -85dBm (before placing the modem inside the unit) it drops to -90dBm(sometimes -95dBm to -100dBm with SUN network) =( . I'm already anticipating this result. The important is that I can still surf the net (and other online stuffs) without the unexpected disconnection.

Actually, I'm not sure if the second one is really another antenna of this modem but assumed it is since it's not connected directly to GND. We even tested hsdpa modem without this and still works surprisingly.

I've placed the two antennas in between the touch pad and the right speaker, and put some spaced in between the two. I've also repositioned the modem in such a way that SIM card can easily be accessed by just removing the upgrade panel of this unit.

Finally, the complete internal hsdpa modem mod (somewhat "messy").

Fn+F10 combination is now working (the symbol appears on the bottom right of the screen). The LED indicator, which is shared with WiFi, turns yellow. It turns to blue for WiFi and light-blue when both are enabled. (note: my hsdpa modem is always enabled in my present mod)

----------------------
03/01/10 update:
Now I have the extra time to revisit this mod. It seems that it's better (in term of signal reception) for the second antenna(?) to be soldered directly to usb modem instead of using coax wire. Below is my latest adjustment. It looks "presentable" now compared to the previous circuit.

I also tried using different mosfet (IRLML5103 SOT23 package) for the enable/disable function. Although I can now toggle the whole circuit by Fn+F10 keys, it's not a full success yet since my U230 encounters frequent usb disconnection of this modem. I'm not sure of the exact reason of this problem, so I just put back the previous hardware (i.e. Vcc supply) configuration.

MSI Wind 12 Bluetooth Mod

2010-02-06T10:54:00.003+08:00

It's been more than a year since I made my own BT modding on U100. I made that a month later after I bought my first wind netbook. Then recently (a week ago), I bought a new ~~netbook~~ notebook - MSI Wind u230. It's one of the Wind12 series and its specs (i.e. processor and graphics) are far way better than the early wind netbooks.
However, the locally available Wind12 notebooks in the country also don't have the built-in bluetooth module. The good news is, according to the msi forum, the bluetooth module for the U100 will also work on U210. So, without hesitation (since I've already verified the other features of my unit), I opened my less-than-a-week old U230 and found out that there's also readily available connector for the bluetooth.

For this modding I chose a slim-type USB bluetooth dongle (worth Php220), so that it will be easy to disassemble and also easy to fit inside my U230.

Checking first the voltage supply for the bluetooth module.
(showing 5V across pin1/red and pin2/orange)

The electrical connection is the same as for the U100 BT mod, except for the connector's wire colors (not the typical BBROYGBVGW arrangement).

The finished 'product':
(I use the same part number of MosFET for the 'enable switch'. It's IRFR5505 P-channel MosFET.)

Initial testing:

Putting some insulation (kapton tape)first before placing inside the unit:

Finally, SCM already detects the new hardware by pressing Fn+F9.
The bluetooth LED indicator is now also working.

And that's the do-it-yourself bluetooth module for MSI U230, costing only less than 300 pesos... =)
Hopefully I could also mod a usb hsdpa modem to fit inside the vacant mini-pcie slot of my U230.

Z8 on-chip Temperature Sensor

2010-01-13T13:04:00.024+08:00

It is basically based on technical note (TN004201-0905) by ZiLOG: Technique for Measuring System Temperature Using the On-chip Temperature Sensor of the Z8 Encore! XP®. I just copied the routine for measuring the temperature. The main difference is, in stead of sending the result through the UART of Z8F042A (i.e. using Hyperterminal), I used Nokia 5110 LCD to display the temperature reading. N5110 LCD has the same LCD controller with that of N3310 LCD (so, N3310 LCD can also be used with this project).

The equation used for temperature reading is:

integrated on-chip temperature sensor (ITS) temperature:
T = (25/128)*ADC – 77
where,
T is the temperature in C
ADC represents the 10-bit compensated ADC register value

I was also able to implement a different approach in computing the temperature of the on-chip sensor using the sample code from this application note AN019102-0708 also by ZiLOG: Reading Temperature Using the F082A Series MCUs. Unfortunately, I don't know why the result is different from the previous approach. And I don't have the time (and an accurate thermometer) to test which one is correct (although both of them are not accurate enough compared to of using external temperature sensor). Also, in the datasheet of F082A series, there's a parameter called TSCAL (Temperature Sensor Calibration Data) which I never noticed in the sample codes of the two. I also tried doing my own code starting from 'scratch' (using the datasheet as the only reference), but I always failed. The hardest part is on the compensating of the ADC results.

Download:
source code (w/ HEX) and schematic: Z8042A temperature sensor.rar

edited (Jan 16, 2009):
uses this equation from the datasheet in stead of the previous one:

V = 0.01 * T + 0.65 (where T is the temperature in C; V is the sensor output in Volts)

forum link: digital thermometer using 8-pin Z8F042A

Nokia LCD Interfacing

2010-01-13T12:37:00.019+08:00

Due to their wide availability in the local markets, old Nokia LCDs are the best alternatives for those expensive GLCDs. They can be bought cheaply at many cellphone parts shops (N3310 lcds usually cost only around Php100 each). Interfacing them with microcontrollers can easily be done using serial communication (e.g. SPI protocol).

Nokia 3530/3510i LCD
98x67 pixels , 4096 colors

Nokia 6610/6100 LCD
132x132 pixels, 4096 colors
(good backlights,
but the connector is difficult to use)

Nokia 3310/5110 LCD
84x48 pixels, monochrome
(very common and relatively cheap)

some links for N3310/N5110 LCDs:
Using Nokia 3310 LCD as Display for PIC Projects
Nokia 3310 LCD LPH7779
Nokia 3310 LCD Image Encoder
DIY scope using Z8F0823 and N3310 LCD

System Clock Frequency:		Hz
Select Timer Peripheral:
Desired Interrupt Rate:		Hz

System Clock Frequency:		Hz
Select Timer Peripheral:
Desired PWM Frequency:		Hz
Initial PWM Duty Cycle:		%