PAGE 1 DEVELOPMENT BOARD USER MANUAL EasyPIC v8 EasyPIC v8 Manual
It’s time to rethink the way you approach rapid prototyping PAGE 2 Let us introduce you to the latest generation of Mikroe development boards – E a s y P I C v 8 Time saving embedded tools EasyPIC v8 Manual
Table of contents Introduction 5 Development board overview 6 Power supply unit 8 Detailed description 8 Voltage reference 9 Programming voltage 9 PSU connectors 10 Power/debug, USB-C connector 10 Power 12VDC, external power supply 10 Battery power supply 11 Power redundancy and uninterrupted power supply (UPS) 12 Powering up the development board 12 Dual power supply CODEGRIP – programmer/debugger module 12 14 Device setup 15 PGC/PGD switches 15 DBG selection 15 Conne
PAGE 4 EasyPIC v8 Manual
The EasyPIC v8 is a development board designed for the rapid EasyPIC v8 offers two display options, allowing even the basic 8-bit PIC development of embedded applications, based on 8-bit PIC MCU devices to utilize them and display graphical or textual content. microcontrollers (MCUs).
Development board overview PAGE 6 OVERVIEW The EasyPIC v8 development board features a clean and intuitive layout, allowing the user to instantly understand how to set it up and how to easily tune it according to needs. The development board is divided into several sections, arranged so that all the related interactive components such as switches, buttons, indicators, and connectors, are logically positioned and grouped together.
system (OS). The USB-C connector is also used to power the development board, simplifying the cable management. The I/O section occupies the lower part of the development board and contains available MCU pins routed to 2x5 pin headers for easy access. There are configurable pull-up or pull-down resistors and buttons for applying logic states to MCU pins. LED indicators provide visual feedback of logic states for each pin.
Power supply unit The power supply unit (PSU) (1) provides clean and regulated power, necessary for proper operation of the development board. The host MCU, along with the rest of the peripherals, demands regulated and noise-free power supply. Therefore, the PSU is carefully designed to regulate, filter, and distribute the power to all parts of the development board.
Figure 1: Power supply unit view The next PSU stage uses two MIC28511, synchronous step-down (buck) regulators, capable of providing up to 3A at their output. The MIC28511 IC utilizes the HyperSpeed Control® and HyperLight Load® architectures, providing an ultra-fast transient response and high efficiency for light loads. Each of the two buck regulators is used to supply power to the corresponding power supply rail (3.3V and 5V), throughout the entire development board and connected peripherals.
PSU connectors As explained, the advanced design of the PSU allows several types of power sources to be used, offering unprecedented flexibility: when powered by a Li-Po/Li-ION battery, it offers an ultimate degree of autonomy. For situations where the power is an issue, it can be powered by an external 12VDC power supply, connected over the 5.5mm barrel connector. Power is not an issue even if it is powered over the USB cable.
Battery power supply When powered by a single-cell Li-Po/Li-Ion battery, the development board offers an option to be operated remotely. Combined with the fact that the board can be remotely programmed and debugged over the WiFi network, the EasyPIC v8 development board allows complete autonomy, allowing it to be used in some very specific situations: hazardous environments, agricultural applications, etc.
Power redundancy and uninterrupted power supply (UPS) The PSU module supports power supply redundancy: it will automatically switch to the most appropriate power source if one of the connected power sources fails or becomes disconnected. The power supply redundancy also allows for an uninterrupted operation (e.g. UPS functionality, the battery will still provide power if the USB cable is removed, without resetting the MCU during the transition period).
Figure 4: Battery power supply connection 1 2 3
P A G E 14 CODEGRIP 1 CODEGRIP programmer / debugger module Envisioned as the unified development platform for all the 8-bit PIC MCUs in DIP package, the EasyPIC v8 development board is equipped with the onboard CODEGRIP programming/debugging module, to support programming/debugging feature. The CODEGRIP module can be interfaced with the host computer over the USB-C connector. Besides the USB cable, the CODEGRIP module (1) can be accessed over the WiFi network.
DATA (BLUE) Indicates that there is a data transfer ongoing between the MCU and the CODEGRIP module The onboard CODEGRIP module requires no additional drivers, as it utilizes a HID driver model, which is natively supported by the computer OS. This makes its installation very easy and straightforward in the case when the USB cable is used. As soon as the USB cable is connected to the host PC, the CODEGRIP module is enumerated and the development board is ready to be used.
Connectivity One of the key features of the EasyPIC v8 development board is its connectivity. It features a diversity of connecting options making the board very versatile, adaptable to any situation, and very easy to work with. P A G E 16 O ENCT N EIVIT C T YI V I T Y CO CN N The EasyPIC v8 development board supports all 8-bit PIC MCUs in DIP package type.
Easily create an IoT Weather Station with the EasyPIC v8 development board.
Figure 6: Main board with MCU socket section view MCU sockets As previously mentioned, the EasyPIC v8 development board supports all 8-bit PIC MCUs in DIP package type. There are eight different sockets, ranging from DIP8 (8-pin DIP socket), up to DIP40 (40-pin DIP socket). All DIP sockets are grouped in the lower left area of the board (1). Only a single DIP socket should be populated at a time since their lines are shared. Each DIP socket allows an MCU with the specific pin-count to be used.
Crystal oscillator VCAP and VCC Most of PIC MCU devices can use an external quartz-crystal oscillator. There are two sockets for installing the crystal oscillator, depending on which MCU socket will be used: For some of the PIC MCU devices, the manufacturer (Microchip) suggests using additional bypass capacitors for improved stability. These MCUs use internal voltage regulators since their cores operate at different (lower) voltages than their peripherals.
INPUT/OUTPUT section I/O pins of any MCU are internally grouped as PORTs. The same grouping concept is kept throughout the development board as well, offering a clean and organized user interface. P A G E 20 CONNECTIVITY There are five PORTs (1) on the EasyPIC v8 development board, labeled from PORTA to PORTE. Depending on the pin-count of the MCU, not all PORTs will be used. However, the development board supports the highest pin-count MCUs in DIP package type (40 pins).
SW6.6 - SW6.10 (PORT LEDS): UP position: Enables LEDs for a specific PORT, associated with the particular DIP switch position DOWN position: Disables LEDs for a specific PORT, associated with the particular DIP switch position CONNECTIVITY Figure 8: I/O PORTs view 1 2 5 6 3 4 7 Besides LEDs, there are also 2x5 pin headers (7) in the PORT sections. All the pins which belong to a specific PORT are routed to the 2x5 pin header located in that PORT section, along with the GND and the power rails.
1x20 graphical display connector The EasyPIC v8 development board is equipped with the 1x20 graphical display connector [1], offering support for GLCDs with the resolution of 128x64 pixels, driven by the KS108 or compatible display controller. If you want to upgrade your GLCD application with TFT display, EasyTFT board (5) is a perfect choice. It features connector compatible with 1x20 graphical display connector (1) on EasyPIC v8 development board, and a touch panel connector.
1 3 2 5 6 7 4 8 P A G E 23 CONNECTIVITY Figure 9: 1x20 pin board connector view EasyPIC v8 Manual
4 1 2 3 Figure 10: 1x16 display header view
1x16 character display connector Character-based Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) (1) is a cheap and popular way of representing application results, short messages, or some other type of information to users. The EasyPIC v8 development board natively supports 2x16 character LCD module, connected in 4-bit mode. It offers a dedicated 1x16 pin header (2) that can host a compatible LCD module.
1 mikroBUS sockets ™ The superior connectivity features of the EasyPIC v8 development board are rounded up with five standardized mikroBUS™ host connectors (1). It is a considerable upgrade for the board, as it allows interfacing with the vast amount of Click boards™. Figure 12: Main board with mikroBUS™ socket close up view P A G E 26 mikroBUS™ is the add-on board standard that offers maximum expandability with the smallest number of pins. More information at www.mikroe.
THE LARGEST AND FASTEST-GROWING BASE OF ADD-ON BOARDS IN THE WORLD! Click boards™ are standardized add-on boards that carry a variety of different electronic devices. They are designed to perfectly fit the mikroBUS™ socket. Engineered to deliver the best performances for the used components, they save developers of testing and troubleshooting often associated with the prototyping phase. They enhance rapid development and accelerate time to market.
Communication Communication connectors allow the development board to be connected with many different devices that use high-layer communication protocols such as USB, CAN, etc. Also, there is a USB-UART converter, which enables simplified communication with the personal computer over the emulated serial interface. Each of these connectors will be described in more detail, in the following sections of the manual.
The development board offers a single DIP switch located in the CAN COMM. section, which is used to specify whether the RB2 and RB3 pins should be used as GPIOs or they should be connected to the CAN transceiver circuit as CAN TX and CAN RX lines.
USB ON DEVICE When a PIC MCU does not support USB interface or USB connection is not required by application itself, the USB pins should be disconnected from the USB-C connector and accompanying circuitry. Therefore, the development board offers two DIP switches located in the USB ON DEVICE section (one per group of MCU sockets), allowing to specify whether these pins should be used for other purposes (i.e.
RA2 (DIP14, DIP20) (6) RA2 (up): allows the RA2 pin to be used for other purposes VBUS (down): connects the RA2 pin to the 3.3V power rail RC3 (DIP28, DIP40) (7) RC3 (up): allows the RC3 pin to be used for other purposes VBUS (down): connects the RC3 pin to the 3.3V power rail Additional GNDs The EasyPIC v8 development board contains exposed GND (8) pins which can be used to connect measurement or testing equipment.
What makes you want to be an embedded developer? Is it the recognition of your skills, invention, or the development process? Whatever the reason is, we want to let you know that we are here for you every step of the way. You can enjoy the process focused, yet relaxed – everything else is taken care of. Enjoy premium.
What’s Next? You have now completed the journey through each and every feature of the EasyPIC v8 development board. You have become familiar with its modules, organization, and the programmer/ debugger. Now you are ready to start using your new board. We suggest following steps which are highly recommended to begin with.
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