For the umpteenth time in my career, I am debugging a prototype board that has exactly zero test points. I didn’t design this board, but have inherited it from a frantic colleague who is behind schedule and is having trouble communicating with an onboard SPI device. The first step in this troubleshooting endeavor is to … Continue reading Where oh Where are My Test Points!
Category: Prototyping
The first ARMv8-M MCU with TrustZone Support
We’ve been hearing for several years now that Arm Cortex-M processors would soon be getting a security upgrade by supporting TrustZone in the M23/M33 microcontrollers. The wait is finally over! Microchip has publicly released the first TrustZone compatible microcontrollers based on the low-power M23 core, the SAM L11. In this post, we will walk through … Continue reading The first ARMv8-M MCU with TrustZone Support
Tools – Connecting to the IoT with the Electric Imp
Developing embedded software for the internet can be a nightmare. Ethernet chips and peripheral are very complex and require an extraordinary amount of effort and time to configure and setup properly. Driver and example code is usually provided by chip manufacturers but how secure and trustworthy is their code? Simple customizations to the stack can … Continue reading Tools – Connecting to the IoT with the Electric Imp
CEC – Rapid Prototyping Embedded Systems using MicroPython
Course Overview: Embedded system developers are facing challenges that often require a look outside of the box for tools and methodologies that can help quickly prove an idea or concept very rapidly. One of the tools that developers often overlook is the Python programming language. This course will examine how Python can be used for … Continue reading CEC – Rapid Prototyping Embedded Systems using MicroPython
Tips and Tricks – Build an Embedded Workbench for less than $1000
An embedded systems developer looking to build a workbench could spend tens of thousands of dollars on test equipment, development boards and miscellaneous tools. Unfortunately, most equipment just sits on the bench collecting dust and is rarely if ever used. Let’s examine the core tools that every developer needs to build an embedded workbench on … Continue reading Tips and Tricks – Build an Embedded Workbench for less than $1000
Tips and Tricks – 7 Tips for creating and using portable types
Writing software that is reusable, portable and will stand the test of time is critical to embedded software developers. Below are 7 tips for creating and using portable types in C. Tip #1 – Use stdint.h The use of built-in data types can result in portability issues between different compilers. The C standard does not specify … Continue reading Tips and Tricks – 7 Tips for creating and using portable types
Tools – The April Board
The April board is a break-out for the Imp Developer module. The April module provides the ability to power the Imp module using a standard USB-Mini cable, an optional battery connector, or through a standard .100 header. The April board also has an on-board 3.3V regulator that can with stand an input up to 17 … Continue reading Tools – The April Board
Tips and Tricks – MicroPython
The C programming language has been the dominant language when developing software for a microcontroller. The language is well suited for the low-level hardware control that is necessary when developing an embedded system. There have been other programming languages such as C++ and Java that have found their niche within the industry but even when … Continue reading Tips and Tricks – MicroPython
Tools – Isolated USB to UART
Connecting an embedded systems UART to a PC through a USB to UART converter is something that every embedded software developer is familiar with. Many developers don’t leave home without a FTDI232R board from Sparkfun (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12731). The only problem with this great little tool though is that it doesn’t provide any protection to the PC … Continue reading Tools – Isolated USB to UART
Turn a Low Cost Dev Kit into a Programmer in 3 Easy Steps
One of my favorite ARM development tools is my IAR I-Jet debugger. It provides quite a bit of debugging capability not to mention the extra goodies for measuring processor current draw. The only problem is that at $299, an engineer really doesn’t want to purchase a second one for a backup. So in the unfortunate … Continue reading Turn a Low Cost Dev Kit into a Programmer in 3 Easy Steps