Essential Coding Techniques for Hardware Engineers
We begin by translating our hardware components into logical elements. Data paths to and from the ARM microcontroller will also be defined. We will use a J-link PRO for debugging and programming. An alternate debugging portal consisting of one of the ARM microcontroller's USARTs. An FTDI TTL-232R-3V3 conversion cable will also be realized.
The ARM microcontroller's second USART will be used to interface to a smart LCD touch display. ToDay, we will generate code to enable the USART and establish a logical bidirectional communications channel to the touch display.
Our IoT design contains a pair of EEPROMs in its nonvolatile memory subsystem. One of the EEPROMs is a specialized IC that contains a factory-programmed, globally unique 48-bit node address. The other EEPROM is a standard 256Kbit device. Both EEPROMs require an SPI communications portal. ToDay's tasks include coding a suitable SPI communications path, reading and writing the 256Kbit EEPROM, and retrieving the globally unique 48-bit node address from the specialty EEPROM.
The WIZ850io module offloads the internet access and wired Ethernet tasks from our ARM microcontroller. An ioLibrary (internet offload library) is provided by the WIZ850io manufacturer. Our mission toDay is to adapt the WIZnet ioLibrary and WIZ850io module for use with our ARM microcontroller.
The goal is to contact an email server and send an informational email to a remote device at the appropriate moment. To accomplish this, we will need to code an SMTP application that our WIZ850io and ARM microcontroller can successfully execute.
Fred Eady is the owner of EDTP Electronics Inc. and is the principal engineer at the Georgia branch of Ongoing Systems LLC. EDTP Electronics was established in 1988. In the meantime, Fred has written thousands of magazine articles. He has written for all of the major electronic magazines, including Radio Electronics, Electronics Now, Nuts and Volts, Servo, MicroComputer Journal, and Circuit Cellar. Fred has even done a few short feature articles for Design News. To date, he has authored four books and contributed to a fifth. He currently works as a PIC microcontroller consultant and is a Microchip Authorized Design Partner. Fred’s expertise also extends into the ARM community where he is a hardware and firmware design consultant. His customers include aerospace companies, machine shops, specialty startup companies, medical machine manufacturers, coin-operated device businesses, and various other research and development companies. He has a very close working relationship with Microchip Technology, the manufacturer of PIC microcontrollers, and has taught multiple Ethernet and WiFi classes at Microchip's annual Masters Conference.