Library management in Eagle
So after a bit of furious work in Eagle laying out the SplashTag I decided I wanted to tidy up some of the libraries we had been working with. Carl had added an unrelated device to our library to make use of its PCB footprint, but considering that was all we wanted I thought we should remove the unneeded schematic part from the library. Now as with most things in Eagle, its possible, but not always immediately obvious. So this is how to if you're struggling too.
- Start Eagle, and open the library with the part you wish to remove.
- Open any "device" (Button next to the print icon on the toolbar) from the library for editing.
- Now go to the Library menu and hit the remove option and type in the name of the device you actually wish to delete.
- Hit ok, and yes if you're sure. Now the device has been deleted, leaving the Package and Symbol
- To remove the Schematic Symbol as well, open up any Symbol and again go to the Library menu. Hit the remove option and type the Symbol name in.
- That's it!
The subtlety here is actually opening a part from the library first. If you try using the remove option without opening a part from the library Eagle will throw you a "not found" error.
SplashTag – Jtag Debugger for ARM and DSP
We have just sent off another batch of gerber files this time it's for a new product, SplashTag. With our up coming product range we thought it would be helpful of us to offer a Jtag for those of you wanting to write your own code for the board and not use our ethernet bootloader. SplashTag is a programmer & debugging device that will work with Coocox, TI's Code Composer, Rowley CrossWorks and more. It's based on the XDS100v2 so should also mean it's compatible with TI's free Code Composer license I blogged about previously. We deviated slightly from the standard XDS100v2 and broke out the spare Uart on the FT2232HL giving you a USB serial port, which always comes in handy when debugging.
The SplashTag uses a standard 20pin ARM jtag connector. To make it as flexible as possible we will also sell a couple of adapters allowing the SplashTag to connect to TI's DSPs via their 14pin jtag connection or to an ARM based microprocessor using a 10way JTag header.
Code Composer Studio – Surprisingly Free
Part of making a product is selecting the right Microcontroller to do the job. There is a lot to consider, price, availability, features and the cost of the toolchain. Some compilers, IDEs & Jtags can cost thousands.
We have chosen the LM3S6100 (Didn't have enough RAM) LM3S6432 for the SplashLight. TI (Texas Instruments) offer Code Composer Studio an eclipse based IDE which supports their entire range of microcontrollers. A quick look at the product page shows you can get a 30 day evaluation version but otherwise you will need to spend $495 per seat. Well that is unless you have a XDS100 based jtag which almost all TI's LM3S dev kits come with! You simply activate the "Free Limited License" it's only limit is that it will only work with XDS100 jtags, so no code or time limit. I guess they don't like to shout about it so bigger businesses will just pay the per seat fee's. But for Makers, Enthusiasts or people with no money it's great! TI's wiki page for the XDS100 lists all the suppliers for standalone XDS100 jtags, circuits to make your own or just pick up the cheapest TI LM3S dev kit you can find.
SplashLight – Android Control Demo Video
Another quick demo video of the SplashLight development board, this time I show off the boards ability to switch "devices" on/off over your home network via an android phone.
Check out the project page for more information on the SplashLight board. Thanks for watching!
SplashLight RGB Control Video
A quick demo video of the SplashLight development board controlling some RGB Ikea Dioders over the network. The PC application is written in C#, the SplashLight Controller is automatically located on the network and control messages are sent using UDP.
It's my first YouTube video! I'm not a fan of my own voice so almost didn't post it, Please be kind! 
In the next video I'll show the relays being controlled with the android app.
SplashPixel – The Boards Are Here!
Our SplashPixel boards arrived on Thursday from our good friends at Seeed, and look exactly like our Sketchup model! Being Alpha PCBs they have one or 2 small issues to work out. Currently I am working on a frame buffer for the SplashLight to control a chain of SplashPixels. Expect a post about that soon!
SplashPixel – 16x RGB LED Tile
While I'm working on the SplashLight, Robs been cracking on with our next product. This time we have a name decided up front, were calling it the SplashPixel. The SplashPixel has 16 RGB LEDs, each is capable of 30mA and is driven using a TI TLC5947 on a SPI bus. Unlike other matrix LED panel designs all 16 LEDs are independently controllable and can be on at the same time, giving you a higher possible brightness.
We have designed the SplashPixel with easy expansion in mind. Our goals are to make it quick to set-up multiple SplashPixels and reduce the wiring needed to do it. Using edge connectors you can attach a number of them together to form a larger surface. Each board has its own switch mode power supply, this means we can supply a network of SplashPixels with a higher voltage and lower current.
The boards are on order from our friends in China, it's going to be a fun Christmas!
Where do you get a MAC Address!
Every device connected to Ethernet has to have a globally unique address, including our network connected SplashLight, it's called a MAC address. A standard MAC address is 6 bytes, the first 3 bytes are the OUI (Organizationally Unique Identifier). The IEEE, who control OUI assignment, let you register your own OUI for $1750. The final 3 bytes of the MAC can be anything you want, giving you 16 million addresses. Alternatively they also sell IABs (Individual Address Block) for $600, these are addresses are intended for people who can't afford an OUI or don't need that many addresses. IEEE give you 4096 address from an OUI they own. So you have control over the last 12bits.
So do you have to spend a lot of money? well no there's another way. Microchip sell an SPI/I2C eeprom with a unique MAC address pre-programmed in to it already. The 25AA02E48 costs only 0.30p from Farnell. For the small batches we plan to produce this is best option and it means there's an eeprom on board for us to save our non-volatile data to.
Hello My Name Is SplashLight
After much indecision about what to call our : Network connected home automation device that lets you control 'things' from your iPhone/Android/PC and select RGB colour patterns. We have finally picked a name!! Cue loud music, fanfare and fireworks ...
It's name is SplashLight, so what do you think? like it? hate it?
Expect lots more updates about our SplashLight board very soon! At this very moment I have it running a set of ikea dioder RGB led strips in my office and it's looks amazing!
JTAG issues with Stellaris Cortex M3 LM3S
Whilst working on the software for our, yet to be named network light controller, I managed to stop the Jtag from being able to connect to our LM3S6100 ARM microprocessor. All code composer would do when I pressed debug was to show me a very unhelpful dialog saying the "Frequency is out of range".
I knew the board was okay as I had previously re-flashed it many times. Working backwards, my last change was code to control GPIO Port F. Referring to the schematic, Port F shares a pin with the TRST Line (PB7). So it seems I had accidentally overridden the TRST line and made it a GPIO, stopping the jtag from gaining control of the device, opps!
Click "Continue reading" for the fix..
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- Library management in Eagle
- SplashTag – Jtag Debugger for ARM and DSP
- Code Composer Studio – Surprisingly Free
- SplashLight – Android Control Demo Video
- SplashLight RGB Control Video
