ECE 445 Resources Brady Salz January 27, 2015

Outline  Microcontrollers vs. DSPs vs. Embedded Processors –Brands and Series –Development Tools  Sensors –More than one way to solve a problem  Software –E-CAD for PCB Design  Lab Equipment  Tools

The Main Point…  We have a LOT of stuff –Way more than we could fit into a presentation  Talk to your TA, If we don’t have exactly what you’re looking for, we probably have something very similar  There’s no one “right” way to do something

Computing Options AdvantagesDisadvantagesExamples Microcontroller Very low power “All-in-one” Integrated peripherals Cheap Limited RAM and Flash 8 or 16 bit processor Limited performance Microchip PIC TI MSP430 Atmel AVR DSP Specialized ISA MAC instructions Buffers designed for streams of data Not well suited for general problems Microchip dsPIC TI C5000 / C6000 TI OMAP Embedded Processor Moderate power Full scale performance Can run Linux or Windows Complex, usually involving multiple support chips Difficult toolchains High-end ARM variants Intel Quark (on Galileo) Intel Atom

Development Tools  Dev Boards –MSP430 LaunchPad, Arduino dev, PSoC devkit  Software IDE –Energia + CCS for MSP430 (and DSPs) –MPLAB for PICs –PSoC Designer for Cypress PSoC

Microcontroller Selection  MYTH: “I need an Atmel AVR to do this” or “I need an FPGA (or DSP) to do this”  TRUTH: All microcontroller brands are very similar and offer a rich feature set  TRUTH: Although a problem may be more suited to an FPGA or DSP, that doesn’t mean you CAN’T do it on a microcontroller

Microcontroller Selection  Don’t pick your part based on what “some guy said online” –Or because “your friend used this one”  Research what is available and make an informed decision  No preference or background? –Consider which series your TA is most familiar with

Sensors  Don’t reinvent the wheel, unless that’s the title of your project –Don’t spend a lot of time trying to design a sensor that exists if that isn’t the main point of your project  Lots of commonly available sensors can be found in the lab and are frequently used in projects Flexure Sensor Rotary Encoder Ambient Light Sensor Thermopile Ultrasonic Distance Sensor

Example: Distance  Questions –What range? –Through what medium? –What accuracy? –What repetition rate?  Options –Ultrasonic Time-of-flight –Laser Time-of-flight –Interferometry –Parallax

E-CAD Software  Schematic entry and PCB design  We have licenses for EAGLE and Cadence  In-class EAGLE Tutorial soon  OSS like KiCAD or gEDA available too

Lab Equipment  Digital Multi-meters  Oscilloscopes  Power Supplies  LCR Meters  Logic Analyzers  Network Analyzers

Lab Equipment  If you are not 100% sure of how to make a particular measurement or use a piece of equipment => RTFM –Good manuals for pretty much all the equipment in the lab can be found searching the manufacturer website  “There are no stupid questions” when it comes to lab equipment, don’t be afraid to ask for a refresher on how a particular piece of equipment works  All else fails? Ask your TA

Lab Equipment  Respect the lab equipment –Lab equipment is extremely expensive –Some lab equipment can easily be broken and require expensive repairs –Read warning labels, know equipment capabilities and limitations –Bad measurement? Is it the equipment or your test setup or project? Pay Attention to Warnings

Tools  It is highly recommended that you purchase some basic tools for yourself and keep them in your lab kit or backpack –Solder + flux –Wire cutters –Needle-nosed pliers –Screwdriver set  Tools are available for reasonable prices at the ECE shop, local hardware stores, and online