Author Topic: Where to start - MCU mod (Read 6451 times)

warlordxxx · « **on:** December 31, 2013, 01:51:05 PM »

I have it in my head to (at some point) make an MCU mod - Now i've never programmed a microprocessor before and have held off getting things like the arduino for fear of buying things that i won't be able to use in a practical sense. So going off the basis that i'm a total noob when it comes to microprocessors where would be a good point to start - Arduino? Picaxe?

I don't mind spending out the cash but would rather not buy something that i'm not going to use in mod making terms just to learn what i need and then have no use for what i've bought if that makes sense - Dave and Craig i know you gents have done microprocessor mods so any tips would be very welcome

Thank you

Visus · « **Reply #1 on:** December 31, 2013, 02:53:48 PM »

WE can build it together if you dont mind waits on samples, some take 6 months and as forum fashion its 100% free as well mod if you have the patience..

Great post to push me into it cause its a really cool mod///

warlordxxx · « **Reply #2 on:** December 31, 2013, 02:59:49 PM »

What do you have in mind Visus ?

Visus · « **Reply #3 on:** December 31, 2013, 04:02:57 PM »

I researched most of the mcu mod parts list and have bookmarked companies

Im there.. I have a multimeter, a wiggins, and can read a schematic pretty well for wiring a highrise or powering the El' ,
but electronic data sheets still have me dizzy lol..

Woot HNY!

The hardest part will be printing own boards everything else is pretty easy, other than knowing if my meter is calibrated proper enough to dial the code. Hoping to almost copy-paste, learn, from Break and Craigs post about coding it...

CraigHB · « **Reply #4 on:** December 31, 2013, 05:43:31 PM »

Arduino is going to be the easiest, though not necessarily the best. The Atmel MCUs the platform is typically built around are good parts. Arduino is mainly a software platform that supports a C programming environment and an easy to use interface. Though, there is an amount of hardware dependence involved.

Arduino carries a lot of interface hardware along with it that can be size prohibitive for an e-cig mod. To resolve that, you can ditch the supporting hardware and design your own PCBs using an Atmel MCU with the Arduino bootloader pre-installed. In that case it's probably going to be as compact as anything else, though the MCU program memory requirements are higher to support all the stuff that Arduino carries along with it.

The Arduino IDE (integrated development environment) is all open source so you can download and use it for free. You don't need a programmer/debugger for the Arduino boards, but if you want to ditch the supporting hardware, you will need one to install the bootloader on to a blank chip. I believe you can get bare MCUs with the bootloader already installed which saves you the need for a programmer/debugger. The basic Atmel programmer/debugger is around $50 I think.

Another option for an inexpensive MCU platform is from Microchip. In that case you have the option of programming in C or assembly. C is pretty much industry standard, but assembly has its advantages and some disadvantages as well.

A programmer/debugger is required for the Microchip MCUs and they're also about $50. Microchip offers a free IDE called MPLab that's pretty good, at least I think so.

The main difference from Arduino is the interface and programming environment is not as seamless. Also, the Microchip parts use either a JTAG or ICSP interface to program the MCU where the Arduino uses standard USB. The advantage with the Microchip stuff is you only load what you need for your program to run so there's less overhead and lower program memory requirements.

There's tons and tons of different MCU architectures out there. Those two are the more popular ones for hobbyists since they have the lowest costs involved.

warlordxxx · « **Reply #5 on:** December 31, 2013, 05:54:43 PM »

Thanks for the advice Craig I think i'll be heading along the Arduino line as I have some other microprocessor projects (not vape related) in mind for it and the accesories chips and boards seems to be slightly better (in terms of amount and availability) for the Arduino

Visus · « **Reply #6 on:** December 31, 2013, 06:25:30 PM »

The word free is most positive Craig.

I had no idea what samples or parts to order so I was waiting to get all my p's and q's perplexing in a better housing environment but to pass up a build I shall not.
I think I will use arduino as well I have been procrastinating on learning it as well as learning linux better.. I had a led project for an arduino build a while back but put it to the side.

I can build an enclosure at the library on a 3d printer so I need to make this happen

...

Fasttech sells arduino boards and such so they may help costs a bit.

CraigHB · « **Reply #7 on:** December 31, 2013, 07:21:11 PM »

Arduino is a good a way to go. At one point Microchip had the hobbyists cornered, but Arduino is pretty much the ticket now.

BTW, you can use Atmel's IDE and programmer/debugger in similar manner to the Microchip stuff. The Atmel IDE is free too. You have the option to go either way with those Atmel MCUs.

The only real advantage with Arduino is it gives you an easy USB interface and eliminates the need for a programmer/debugger, but using ICSP or JTAG instead is really not a big deal and it saves the need for a bootloader. It really comes down to bootloader or programmer/debugger.