Take control of your data like never before using FT232 and PIC24FV32KA302
Plug, play, and communicate with ease
Published Nov 02, 2023
Click board™
USB UART Click
Dev. board
EasyPIC v8 for PIC24/dsPIC33
Compiler
NECTO Studio
MCU
PIC24FV32KA302
With our user-friendly USB to UART solution, connecting and communicating with your devices has never been simpler - just plug it in, play with the data, and enjoy seamless communication
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Hardware Overview
How does it work?
USB UART Click is based on the FT232RL, a USB to serial UART bridge from FTDI Chip. The entire USB protocol is handled on the IC; thus, no USB-specific firmware programming is required. FTDI provides royalty-free Virtual Com Port (VCP) and Direct (D2XX) drivers for all the major OSes used on personal computers. FT232RL also contains an integrated 1024-bit internal EEPROM for storing USB VID, PID, serial number, product description strings, and CBUS I/O configuration. After installing the OS drivers, the device is ready to be used. Plugging into the PC over the mini-USB connector will create a virtual COM port. The Baud Rate Generator provides a 16x clock input to the UART Controller from the 48MHz reference clock. This determines the baud rate of the UART, which is programmable from 183 baud to 3 Mbaud.
Also, non-standard baud rates are supported. The FTDI driver automatically calculates the baud rate, so it is enough to forward the desired baud rate to the driver, usually done by selecting the baud rate via the GUI interface of the PC terminal application. USB UART Click uses a standard 2-Wire UART interface to communicate with the host MCU, with commonly used UART RX and TX pins. In addition, you can use the UART flow control pins RTS and CTS. LEDs RX and TX are here for visual presentation of data flow. This device also features configurable CBUS pins, which can be used for several useful functions, such as configurable clock out for driving the microcontroller, data LED drive, USB Sleep, PWR status, and more. By default, CBUS3 and CBUS4 pins are configured as Power Enable (PWR) and Sleep options (SLP). CBUS3
output pin will be set to a LOW logic state during the USB suspend mode. It can power down external circuitry or be used for similar purposes. CBUS4 output pin will be set to a LOW logic state after the USB has configured the device, then HIGH during the USB suspend mode. This can also be used for powering down/power saving by turning unneeded external circuitry. This Click board™ can operate with either 3.3V or 5V logic voltage levels selected via the I/O LEVEL SEL jumper. This way, both 3.3V and 5V capable MCUs can use the communication lines properly. Also, this 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
EasyPIC v8 for PIC24/dsPIC33 is a development board specially designed for the needs of rapid development of embedded applications. It supports a wide range of 16-bit PIC24/dsPIC33 microcontrollers from Microchip and has a broad set of unique functions, such as the first-ever embedded debugger/programmer. The development board is well organized and designed so that the end-user has all the necessary elements, such as switches, buttons, indicators, connectors, and others, in one place. Thanks to innovative manufacturing technology, EasyPIC v8 for PIC24/dsPIC33 provides a fluid and immersive working experience, allowing access anywhere and under any circumstances. Each part of the EasyPIC
v8 for PIC24/dsPIC33 development board contains the components necessary for the most efficient operation of the same board. In addition to the advanced integrated CODEGRIP programmer/debugger module, which offers many valuable programming/debugging options and seamless integration with the Mikroe software environment, the board also includes a clean and regulated power supply module for the development board. It can use a wide range of external power sources, including a battery, an external 12V power supply, and a power source via the USB Type-C (USB-C) connector. Communication options such as USB HOST/DEVICE, USB-UART, CAN, and LIN are also
included, including the well-established mikroBUS™ standard, two display options (graphical and character-based LCD), and several different DIP sockets. These sockets cover a wide range of 16-bit PIC24/dsPIC33 MCUs, from the smallest PIC24/dsPIC33 MCUs with only 14 up to 28 pins. EasyPIC v8 for PIC24/dsPIC33 is an integral part of the Mikroe ecosystem for rapid development. Natively supported by Mikroe software tools, it covers many aspects of prototyping and development thanks to a considerable number of different Click boards™ (over a thousand boards), the number of which is growing every day.
Microcontroller Overview
MCU Card / MCU
Architecture
dsPIC
MCU Memory (KB)
32
Silicon Vendor
Microchip
Pin count
28
RAM (Bytes)
2048
Used MCU Pins
mikroBUS™ mapper
Take a closer look
Click board™ Schematic
Step by step
Project assembly
Start by selecting your development board and Click board™. Begin with the EasyPIC v8 for PIC24/dsPIC33 as your development board.
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 USB UART Click driver.
Key functions:
usbuart_pwr_ctrl- This function sets the click turns click on.usbuart_set_cts- This function sets CTS pin.usbuart_send_command- This function is used for sending commands.
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 main.c
* @brief USB UART Click Example.
*
*# Description
* This example reads and processes data from USB UART clicks.
*
* The demo application is composed of two sections :
*
* ## Application Init
* Initializes driver and power module.
*
* ## Application Task
* Reads data and echos it back to device and logs it to board.
*
* @author Stefan Ilic
*
*/
#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "usbuart.h"
#include "string.h"
#define PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE 100
static usbuart_t usbuart;
static log_t logger;
static char app_buf[ PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE ] = { 0 };
static int32_t app_buf_len = 0;
void application_init ( void ) {
log_cfg_t log_cfg; /**< Logger config object. */
usbuart_cfg_t usbuart_cfg; /**< Click config object. */
/**
* 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 " );
Delay_ms( 100 );
// Click initialization.
usbuart_cfg_setup( &usbuart_cfg );
USBUART_MAP_MIKROBUS( usbuart_cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
err_t init_flag = usbuart_init( &usbuart, &usbuart_cfg );
if ( UART_ERROR == init_flag ) {
log_error( &logger, " Application Init Error. " );
log_info( &logger, " Please, run program again... " );
for ( ; ; );
}
app_buf_len = 0;
usbuart_pwr_ctrl( &usbuart, USBUART_POWER_ON );
usbuart_set_cts( &usbuart, USBUART_CTS_NO_ACTIVE );
usbuart_set_mode( &usbuart, USBUART_MODE_NORMAL );
log_info( &logger, " Application Task " );
}
void application_task ( void ) {
app_buf_len = usbuart_generic_read( &usbuart, app_buf, PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE );
if ( app_buf_len > 0 ) {
log_printf( &logger, "%s", app_buf );
memset( app_buf, 0, PROCESS_BUFFER_SIZE );
}
}
void main ( void ) {
application_init( );
for ( ; ; ) {
application_task( );
}
}
// ------------------------------------------------------------------------ END
