This blog will also be used to inform you about the Sceptre, the open source & hardware ARM7-based 32-bit fast prototyping platform as published in Elektor. In the Pages box on the right of this article you will find a link to a special Sceptre page. All information about updates will be posted there; it is sort of the project’s home page.
The Sceptre is my baby and (for the moment) I do all the development for it. Currently I am working on an extension I/O board on which you can plug a Sceptre so that it can talk to the rest of the world. At the same time my goal is to make this board as universal as possible so that it can also be used with other microcontrollers. Except for its name, InterSceptre, and some component print this I/O board will not be Sceptre specific.
The InterSceptre is due for the June issue of Elektor and I am almost done with the circuit diagram. The board will feature lots of communication interfaces: 2x RS-232, 2x RS-485 (so RS-422 is possible too), MIDI in/out, DMX-512 (OK, that’s just RS-485 with a different connector), a WIZnet module for Internet connection, SPI, PS/2 and I2C. USB is available on the Sceptre itself, but a dedicated USB connector for ISP/serial comms will be on the InterSceptre. I also added a JTAG connector and a 4-way multiplexed DAC (the LPC2148 used on the Sceptre has a 10-bit DAC). To stay flexible the board will have a 25-pin DB connector to give access to the ADC inputs and PWM outputs, and some other GPIO.
All of this can of course (unfortunately) not be used at the same time, but I am confident that it will be useful anyway for many applications.
The universal side of the board is also emphasized by its power supply and it will work with 5V and 3V3 systems. The Sceptre is a 3V3 system but 5V tolerant and I will soon show you how you can use it with a 5V I2C controller.
Contrary to the Sceptre, the InterSceptre will only use easy to solder (change/replace/remove) through-hole parts so mounting it will be possible for anyone capable of holding a soldering iron.
That’s all for now folks, I have a PCB to draw.
Showing posts with label LPC2148. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LPC2148. Show all posts
Friday, March 19, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
LPCXpresso design contest
Last week I received two LPCXpresso boards designed by Embedded Artists for evaluation. An LPCXpresso board is a small but longish 35 by 140 mm board split in two parts. One part has an ARM Cortex (M0 or M3) processor from NXP (LPC1114 or LPC1343) on it, together with a 12 MHz crystal and a small prototyping area. The other part of the board is the LPC-Link, which is a real JTAG programmer/debugger. This part is a sort of detachable JTAG pod and if you cut the connections between the two rows of JTAG connector pads you can connect it to other compatible hardware, your own ARM board for instance.
Why is this interesting? Well, first of all because of the price, since Embedded Artists sells it for only 20 euros. This means that you can get yourself a JTAG debugger for a very good price.
Then there are the development tools (Windows only, but should also work on virtual platforms with USB support on other operating systems). The boards are supported by a free enhanced Eclipse-based IDE developed by Code Red. This software lets you compile programs of unlimited size, but program and debug only up to 128 KB. The NXP web site has a list of compatible processors which is unfortunately missing the LPC2148, but according to NXP it should work with unlisted controllers too, as long as you respect the 128 KB limit. I have yet see this as the IDE does not allow picking an incompatible controller and an LPC2142 is not an LPC2148.
LPCXpresso LPC1114 together with an mbed module and the mbed pin-out card. Everything on the left of the pin-out card is the LPC-link JTAG pod.
Note that the LPCXpresso is pin compatible with an mbed board. That may seem strange as an mbed module only has 40 pins whereas an LPCXpresso has 54, but pin 1 to 20 and pin 28 to 47 of the LPCXpresso module have (where possible) the same functionality as the mbed pins. One problem though, the mbed processors (LPC1768 and LPC2368) are not supported by the LPCXpresso IDE. I have been told though that a Cortex-M0 mbed is coming soon.
Also interesting is that NXP has launched a design contest. Anyone entering a valid design concept before the 8th of March 2010 will receive a free LPCXpresso development kit and then has about one month to actually build it and show that it works. Check out all the details here.
Why is this interesting? Well, first of all because of the price, since Embedded Artists sells it for only 20 euros. This means that you can get yourself a JTAG debugger for a very good price.
Then there are the development tools (Windows only, but should also work on virtual platforms with USB support on other operating systems). The boards are supported by a free enhanced Eclipse-based IDE developed by Code Red. This software lets you compile programs of unlimited size, but program and debug only up to 128 KB. The NXP web site has a list of compatible processors which is unfortunately missing the LPC2148, but according to NXP it should work with unlisted controllers too, as long as you respect the 128 KB limit. I have yet see this as the IDE does not allow picking an incompatible controller and an LPC2142 is not an LPC2148.
LPCXpresso LPC1114 together with an mbed module and the mbed pin-out card. Everything on the left of the pin-out card is the LPC-link JTAG pod.
Note that the LPCXpresso is pin compatible with an mbed board. That may seem strange as an mbed module only has 40 pins whereas an LPCXpresso has 54, but pin 1 to 20 and pin 28 to 47 of the LPCXpresso module have (where possible) the same functionality as the mbed pins. One problem though, the mbed processors (LPC1768 and LPC2368) are not supported by the LPCXpresso IDE. I have been told though that a Cortex-M0 mbed is coming soon.
Also interesting is that NXP has launched a design contest. Anyone entering a valid design concept before the 8th of March 2010 will receive a free LPCXpresso development kit and then has about one month to actually build it and show that it works. Check out all the details here.
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