Boost your power with MCP1642B and PIC18F57Q43

Experience the power of a voltage booster

Boost 2 Click with Curiosity Nano with PIC18F57Q43

Published Feb 13, 2024

Click board™

Boost 2 Click

Dev. board

Curiosity Nano with PIC18F57Q43

Compiler

NECTO Studio

MCU

PIC18F57Q43

Unlock maximum performance with our low-voltage synchronous boost regulator

Hardware Overview

How does it work?

Boost 2 Click is based on the MCP1642B, a 1 MHz low-voltage start-up synchronous boost regulator from Microchip. This IC is targeted towards boosting the voltage from NiCd, NiMH, and Li-Po/Li-Ion batteries, and as such, it has a great efficiency factor that allows for prolonged battery life. The MCP1642B uses the fixed switching frequency of 1MHz and has overcurrent and overtemperature protection to ensure safe operation. The voltage step-up process starts with the input voltage as low as 0.9V. Once the regulation is established, the input voltage can drop to even 0.5V, keeping the required regulated voltage at the output. The device should be powered with at least 1.8V at the input terminal for optimal efficiency. Output current depends on the input voltage - when powered with 3.3V at the

input, Boost 2 Click will be able to deliver about 800mA to the connected load. The device has no under-voltage protection limit, so it will boost the voltage when the input voltage reaches 0.9V. As with most step-up regulators, the input voltage should always be less than the voltage at the output to maintain the proper regulation. The MCP1642B step-up regulator actively damps the oscillations typically found at the switch node of a boost converter. This removes the high-frequency radiated noise, ensuring low-noise operation. The device also features the power good status pin, which is constructed as the open-drain output pulled HIGH by the onboard 10K resistor. This allows easy interfacing with the MCU. When the regulated output reaches 90% of its regulation, this pin will be pulled low, indicating

the power-good status. This pin is routed to the mikroBUS™ INT pin. Besides the power good status pin, the EN pin used to enable the device is routed to the mikroBUS™ CS pin. When pulled LOW, this pin will engage the true disconnect of the output load option, resulting in low quintessential currents suitable for battery-operated devices. This pin is also pulled HIGH by the onboard resistor. This Click board™ can operate with either 3.3V or 5V logic voltage levels selected via the LOGIC SEL jumper. This way, both 3.3V and 5V capable MCUs can use the communication lines properly. However, the Click board™ comes equipped with a library containing easy-to-use functions and an example code that can be used, as a reference, for further development.

Features overview

Development board

PIC18F57Q43 Curiosity Nano evaluation kit is a cutting-edge hardware platform designed to evaluate microcontrollers within the PIC18-Q43 family. Central to its design is the inclusion of the powerful PIC18F57Q43 microcontroller (MCU), offering advanced functionalities and robust performance. Key features of this evaluation kit include a yellow user LED and a responsive

mechanical user switch, providing seamless interaction and testing. The provision for a 32.768kHz crystal footprint ensures precision timing capabilities. With an onboard debugger boasting a green power and status LED, programming and debugging become intuitive and efficient. Further enhancing its utility is the Virtual serial port (CDC) and a debug GPIO channel (DGI

GPIO), offering extensive connectivity options. Powered via USB, this kit boasts an adjustable target voltage feature facilitated by the MIC5353 LDO regulator, ensuring stable operation with an output voltage ranging from 1.8V to 5.1V, with a maximum output current of 500mA, subject to ambient temperature and voltage constraints.

PIC18F57Q43 Curiosity Nano double side image

Microcontroller Overview

MCU Card / MCU

Architecture

PIC

MCU Memory (KB)

128

Silicon Vendor

Microchip

Pin count

RAM (Bytes)

8196

You complete me!

Accessories

Curiosity Nano Base for Click boards is a versatile hardware extension platform created to streamline the integration between Curiosity Nano kits and extension boards, tailored explicitly for the mikroBUS™-standardized Click boards and Xplained Pro extension boards. This innovative base board (shield) offers seamless connectivity and expansion possibilities, simplifying experimentation and development. Key features include USB power compatibility from the Curiosity Nano kit, alongside an alternative external power input option for enhanced flexibility. The onboard Li-Ion/LiPo charger and management circuit ensure smooth operation for battery-powered applications, simplifying usage and management. Moreover, the base incorporates a fixed 3.3V PSU dedicated to target and mikroBUS™ power rails, alongside a fixed 5.0V boost converter catering to 5V power rails of mikroBUS™ sockets, providing stable power delivery for various connected devices.

Used MCU Pins

mikroBUS™ mapper

RST

Chip Enable

PD4

SCK

MISO

MOSI

Power Supply

3.3V

Ground

GND

PWM

Power-Good Indicator

PA6

INT

SCL

SDA

Power Supply

Ground

GND

Take a closer look

Click board™ Schematic

Step by step

Project assembly

Curiosity Nano Base for Click boards front image hardware assembly

Start by selecting your development board and Click board™. Begin with the Curiosity Nano with PIC18F57Q43 as your development board.

Charger 27 Click front image hardware assembly

PIC18F47Q10 Curiosity Nano front image hardware assembly

Charger 27 Click complete accessories setup image hardware assembly

Board mapper by product8 hardware assembly

PIC18F57Q43 Curiosity MCU Step hardware assembly

Necto No Display image step 8 hardware assembly

Debug Image Necto Step hardware assembly

Track your results in real time

Application Output

1. Application Output - In Debug mode, the 'Application Output' window enables real-time data monitoring, offering direct insight into execution results. Ensure proper data display by configuring the environment correctly using the provided tutorial.

2. UART Terminal - Use the UART Terminal to monitor data transmission via a USB to UART converter, allowing direct communication between the Click board™ and your development system. Configure the baud rate and other serial settings according to your project's requirements to ensure proper functionality. For step-by-step setup instructions, refer to the provided tutorial.

3. Plot Output - The Plot feature offers a powerful way to visualize real-time sensor data, enabling trend analysis, debugging, and comparison of multiple data points. To set it up correctly, follow the provided tutorial, which includes a step-by-step example of using the Plot feature to display Click board™ readings. To use the Plot feature in your code, use the function: plot(*insert_graph_name*, variable_name);. This is a general format, and it is up to the user to replace 'insert_graph_name' with the actual graph name and 'variable_name' with the parameter to be displayed.

Software Support

Library Description

This library contains API for Boost 2 Click driver.

Key functions:

boost2_set_en_pin - Set enable pin
boost2_get_pg_pin - Get PG pin state

Open Source

Code example

The complete application code and a ready-to-use project are available through the NECTO Studio Package Manager for direct installation in the NECTO Studio. The application code can also be found on the MIKROE GitHub account.

/*!
 * \file 
 * \brief Boost 2 Click example
 * 
 * # Description
 * This application features very high efficiency, low noise and anti-ringing voltage output.
 *
 * The demo application is composed of two sections :
 * 
 * ## Application Init 
 * Initializes Click driver.
 * 
 * ## Application Task  
 * Demonstrates the use of the Click drivers function. It
shows how to enable or disable Click operation, and how to check if supplied
voltage is good.
 * 
 * \author MikroE Team
 *
 */
// ------------------------------------------------------------------- INCLUDES

#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "boost2.h"

// ------------------------------------------------------------------ VARIABLES

static boost2_t boost2;
static log_t logger;

// ------------------------------------------------------ APPLICATION FUNCTIONS

void application_init ( void )
{
    log_cfg_t log_cfg;
    boost2_cfg_t cfg;

    /** 
     * Logger initialization.
     * Default baud rate: 115200
     * Default log level: LOG_LEVEL_DEBUG
     * @note If USB_UART_RX and USB_UART_TX 
     * are defined as HAL_PIN_NC, you will 
     * need to define them manually for log to work. 
     * See @b LOG_MAP_USB_UART macro definition for detailed explanation.
     */
    LOG_MAP_USB_UART( log_cfg );
    log_init( &logger, &log_cfg );
    log_info(&logger, "---- Application Init ----");

    //  Click initialization.

    boost2_cfg_setup( &cfg );
    BOOST2_MAP_MIKROBUS( cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
    boost2_init( &boost2, &cfg );
}

void application_task ( void )
{
    log_printf( &logger, "Enabling Click operation... \r\n" );
    boost2_set_en_pin( &boost2, 1 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    
    log_printf( &logger, "Checking output voltage... \r\n" );
    Delay_ms ( 500 );
    if ( boost2_get_pg_pin( &boost2 ))
    {
        log_printf( &logger, "Output voltage good. \r\n" );
    }
    else
    {
        log_printf( &logger, "Output voltage incorrect. \r\n" );
    }
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    
    log_printf( &logger, "Disabling Click operation... \r\n" );
    boost2_set_en_pin( &boost2, 0 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
}

int main ( void ) 
{
    /* Do not remove this line or clock might not be set correctly. */
    #ifdef PREINIT_SUPPORTED
    preinit();
    #endif
    
    application_init( );
    
    for ( ; ; ) 
    {
        application_task( );
    }

    return 0;
}


// ------------------------------------------------------------------------ END