Minimalism AVR development board

Lacking of proper development board always poses huge resistance for me to jump onto a new MCU. Even with the most prototyping friendly DIP packages, wiring a programming header onto the breadboard is both troublesome and unreliable. Things become worse when the MCU is an AVR. There is absolutely no way to mount a 2x3 0.1in pitch … Continue reading Minimalism AVR development board →

HOWTO: Use STM32 SPI half duplex mode

I've got my hands onto some STM32F030F4P6 ARM-Cortex M0 processors. Though touted as "32 cents 32-bit micro", it is not that inexpensive from DigiKey in one-off quantity ($1.45). However it is still cheaper than ATmegas and offers 3 times the performance. The chip comes in 20-pin TSSOP package. Limited pins require much more thoughts when assigning pin … Continue reading HOWTO: Use STM32 SPI half duplex mode →

HOWTO: Write a display driver for SEGGER emWin

One lucky day you wake up to find your dream of creating sophisticated graphics user interface for MCU projects comes true, because STMicroelectronics has released a free version of SEGGER emWin for STM32 line of ARM controllers. But your excitement is quickly balanced by the frustration that your favourite LCD panel is not supported. That … Continue reading HOWTO: Write a display driver for SEGGER emWin →

Opensource STM32 development

In an upcoming project I need a micro controller that operates: 1x 16-bit DAC (SPI); 1x 24-bit ADC (SPI); 1x 8-bit parallel LCD; 1x rotary encoder; 1x PWM fan; 1x fan tachometer; 1x temperature sensor (DS18B20); 2x analog switches; 1x uplink UART; 4x push buttons, and some voltage monitoring for various power rails. To my estimation … Continue reading Opensource STM32 development →

Tutorial: 3.3V hacking for Arduino Nano

Hey I'm writing my first tutorial 🙂 During my recent OLED testing I wrote the software using Arduino Pro Mini 3.3 - the only Arduino board with 3.3V I/O (Lilipad may be the other one but not breadboard friendly). Originally I was using the SPI interface and everything works fine. But when I'm trying to test … Continue reading Tutorial: 3.3V hacking for Arduino Nano →