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Archive for June, 2013

Temperature and Humidity Sensor Module for the Netduino GO!

Tuesday, June 25th, 2013

A while ago (forgive the pun), Arron Chapman and I started to collaborate on building a temperature and humidity sensor based upon the DHT22 sensor. One of the original posts discussing the module can be found here in the Netduino forums. From the very start we agreed that both the hardware and software would be open source. This post will discuss the basic hardware requirements and the software required to create a Temperature and Humidity Module for the Netduino GO!.

This post has a software bias given the relatively simple nature of the hardware being developed. Here is a flavour of what was achieved:

The design work for this module is the combined effort of Arron Chapman of Variable Labs and myself.

DHT22 Temperature and Humidity Sensor

The DHT22 is a four pin package capable of measuring temperature (+/- 0.5C) and humidity (+/- 5%). The package uses a single wire interface for communication and can be powered by 3.3-5V. The single wire protocol used is not compatible with Dallas single wire protocol.

The four pins should be connected as follows:

PinConnection
1VDD (3.3-5V)
2Data/Signal
3Ground
4Ground

Pin 2 (Data/Signal) should be connected to the microcontroller with a pull-up resistor to VDD.

The microcontroller sends a start signal to the sensor which then responds with the data representing the temperature and humidity. The data is terminated with a check sum. The sensor can only be read at most once every 2 seconds. The trace for a full start, transmit and end signal looks like this:

CondensedTrace

The communication starts with the microcontroller sending the start signal. The microcontroller pulls the signal line low for at least 1-10ms. This ensures that the sensor can detect the microcontrollers signal. The microcontroller then pulls up the signal line and then waits for 20-40us for the sensor to respond.

Zooming in on the start packet we would see something like:

StartSignal

As you can see, in this case the signal line was pulled low by the microcontroller for about 6.25mS.

The sensor then pulls the signal line low for 80us followed by pulling up the signal line for a further 80us. At this point the sensor is ready to start to transmit the temperature and humidity data.

The data is transmitted by varying the length of time the signal pin is held high. Transmission of a single bit starts by pulling the signal line low. A 0 bit is indicated by the sensor pulling the signal line high for 26-28us. pulling the signal high for 70us indicates a 1.

The temperature and humidity data is transmitted in a 40-bit packet. The first 16 bits hold the humidity information, the next 16 bits hold the temperature information and the final 8 bits contains the checksum. The following shows the full data packet from the sensor:

DHT22FullDataPacket

Both the temperature and the humidity are represented as an integer. The actual value is obtained by converting the binary number to decimal and then dividing by 10. If the high bit of the temperature reading is 1 then the value represents a negative temperature.

The final 8 bits of the data packet contain the checksum. The checksum is the result of adding the four bytes of the temperature and humidity data.

Schematic

Aside from the components required to make a basic module, the board really only required two parts, a single pull-up resistor and the DHT22 Temperature and Humidity sensor itself.

DHT22Schematic

The components to the left of the diagram should be familiar if you have read the previous posts on making a module. The only additional parts can be seen to the right of the schematic.

Breadboard and PCB Prototypes

The original work for this module was completed on breadboard with an additional LM35 temperature sensor at the side of the DHT22. This second sensor was used as a reference to confirm the readings being generated by the DHT22. The simplicity of the design meant that moving to a PCB prototype was relatively simple and the iTeadStudio prototyping service made this affordable. A few weeks after ordering the prototype modules arrived:

TemperatureSensorBarePC

One of the tests I do on any PCBs I have made is a connectivity test. I do this when the board is unpopulated and simply walk through the list of connections and verify that there are no problems. I also take the software I have written during prototyping on the breadboard and check that the pins on the STM8S are connected to the correct points on the PCB. It was during this test that I found that a connection had been missed off of the original schematic, namely the connection from the GO! connector and the GPIO pin which is used to signal that data is ready for the GO! to consume. A quick fix once the board had been populated.

TemperatureModulePCBPopulated

Notice the yellow wire – this goes to show the value of prototyping even for the smallest and seemingly simplest of projects.

Software

The one wire protocol means that the microcontroller will be both a master and a slave device as will the DHT22. We also have to allow for the fact that we also have the leave a 2 second gap between readings. The ideal way to implement this is to use a finite state machine. The cycle of events is as follows:

  1. Send the start signal and wait for 1-10ms
  2. Enter read mode and collect data
  3. Pause for at least 2 seconds

The state machine relies upon the timers to change the state based upon the minimum values for the time periods set by the sensor.

For the start signal, the signal line is set low and the timer started.

When the timer interrupt is triggered, the timer is turned off and reset. The signal pin is then switched from being an output pin to input with interrupts enabled. The timer is then restarted with a time period slightly larger than that required to ready all 40 bits of data from the sensor.

In the final stage, the interrupts are turned off, the data is processed and the system put to sleep (from a reading point of view) for more than 2 seconds.

In read mode, the system merely waits for interrupts to be generated by the sensor changing the state of the signal line. When an interrupt occurs, the time stamp (from the currently running timer) is read and recorded. The duration of the signal can then be calculated later (in stage three, pause mode) and the bit stream reconstructed from the timings.

Functionality

From a high level, the temperature and humidity module should provide the ability to read the current temperature and humidity (given the restrictions on the sensors delay of 2 seconds between readings). In addition, it would be desirable to allow the system to generate alarms for readings which are out of range.

As with all Netduino GO! modules, this functionality is split between the module and the module driver running on the Netduino GO!. The code on the module takes care of all the communication with the sensor. It takes this information and then responds to requests from the module driver on the Netdunio GO!.

STM8S Module

The software on the STM8S started life as the basic STM8S module software which has been used in previous posts.

The first modification needed is to add the state machine. The STM8S periodically reads the values from the sensor and store them for later retrieval by the Netduino GO! The regular nature of this update means that there is always a “current” reading available to the Netduiino GO! So the first thing we need is to setup a timer:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Setup Timer 2 to pause for 3.2 seconds following power up.
//
void SetupTimer2()
{
    TIM2_PSCR = 0x0a;       //  Prescaler = 1024
    TIM2_ARRH = 0xc3;       //  High byte of 50,000.
    TIM2_ARRL = 0x50;       //  Low byte of 50,000.
    TIM2_IER_UIE = 1;       //  Enable the update interrupts.
    TIM2_CR1_CEN = 1;
}

This initialisation code means that a reading is not available immediately. To go with this we will also need a variable to store the current mode along with some definitions:

//
//  Define the various modes for the state machine.
//
#define MODE_PAUSE                  0
#define MODE_SENDING_START_SIGNAL   1
#define MODE_READING_DATA           2
//
//  Current sensing mode.
//
int _mode = MODE_PAUSE;

Now for the critical part of the operation, we need to change to the correct state when the timer is triggered:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Timer 2 Overflow handler.
//
//  Note:   Normally we want the ISR to operate as quickly as possible but in
//          this case "as quickly as possible" just needs to be quick enough
//          for this sensor.  This means we have milliseconds for this ISR.
//
#pragma vector = TIM2_OVR_UIF_vector
__interrupt void TIM2_UPD_OVF_IRQHandler(void)
{
    TIM2_CR1_CEN = 0;
    switch (_mode)
    {
        case MODE_PAUSE:
            //
            //  Any pause has now completed, we need to start the
            //  read process.
            //
            PIN_DHT22_DATA = 0;
            TIM2_ARRH = 0xc3;       //  High byte of 50,000.
            TIM2_ARRL = 0x50;       //  Low byte of 50,000.
            TIM2_PSCR = 1;          //  Prescalar = 2 => count = 100,000 = 6.25mS
            TIM2_EGR_UG = 1;        //  Force counter update.
            _mode = MODE_SENDING_START_SIGNAL;
            break;
        case MODE_SENDING_START_SIGNAL:
            //
            //  At this point the start signal period has elapsed and we
            //  want to start to read data from the sensor.
            //
            PIN_DHT22_DATA = 1;
            PIN_DHT22_DIRECTION = 0;//  DHT22 pin is input.
            PIN_DHT22_MODE = 0;     //  DHT22 pin is floating input.
            EXTI_CR1_PDIS = 1;      //  Interrupt on rising edge.
            //
            //  We will get another interrupt after 5ms.  This should be
            //  enough time for the sensor to have generated the data and
            //  for us to process it.
            //
            TIM2_ARRH = 0x13;       //  High byte of 5,000.
            TIM2_ARRL = 0x88;       //  Low byte of 5,000.
            TIM2_PSCR = 4;          //  Prescalar = 4 => count = 5,000 (5 mS)
            TIM2_EGR_UG = 1;        //  Force counter update.
            _currentTiming = 0;
            _mode = MODE_READING_DATA;
            break;
        case MODE_READING_DATA:
            //
            //  At this point we should have read all of the data.  We
            //  now need to calculate the values and wait for 2 seconds
            //  before reading the next value.
            //
            PIN_DHT22_DATA = 1;     //  Set the output high after the data has been read.
            PIN_DHT22_DIRECTION = 1;//  DHT22 data pin is output.
            //
            //  We cannot read the sensor again for at least 2 seconds (32,800 with a prescalar
            //  of 11 should result in a ~4 seconds delay).
            //
            TIM2_ARRH = 0x80;
            TIM2_ARRL = 0x20;
            TIM2_PSCR = 0x0b;
            TIM2_EGR_UG = 1;        //  Force counter update.
            if (_currentTiming == 42)
            {
                DecodeData();
                if (_alarmsEnabled != 0)
                {
                    CheckAlarms();
                }
            }
            else
            {
                OutputStatusCode(SC_TOO_LITTLE_DATA);
            }
            _mode = MODE_PAUSE;
            break;
    }
    TIM2_CR1_CEN = 1;               //  Re-enable Timer 2.
    TIM2_SR1_UIF = 0;               //  Reset the interrupt otherwise it will fire again straight away.
}

Much of the code in the Interrupt Service Routine (ISR) above is concerned with recording the current state and resetting the timer ready to move into the next state. A key point to notice here is the change of use for the GPIO pin connected to the sensor.

When the ISR is entered and we are in pause mode (case MODE_PAUSE), we reset the timer and drop the signal line connected to the DHT22 (PIN_DHT22_DATA = 0). We then enter the next mode, MODE_SENDING_START_SIGNAL.

The next time the ISR is entered we should have just completed the time needed to keep the signal line low and for the sensor to be ready to send the data on the signal line. So we pull the signal line high and then change the direction of the GPIO line and the line becomes an input line which generates and interrupt. We then record the fact that we have changed to the next mode (MODE_READING_DATA), reset the timers and start to wait again.

In the final state, we should have received a full data packet from the sensor so we decode and process the data and then enter the pause mode once more. At this point the whole cycle repeats.

The state machine is now complete and we now need to start to look at recording the data. A little early experimentation showed that the sensor would generate 42 pulses. It was decided that the best way to record the pulses was to simply record the time at which they occurred. These timings could later be used to workout the pulse duration and hence if we had a 0 or 1. As we only needed the pulse duration then the actual time of the pulse was not needed, simply a reliable way of recording the duration. Timer 2 came to our aid. This timer was already running as it was required to control the state machine. We could simply record the value in this timer whenever an interrupt occurred. So starting with some definitions to support the storage of the data:

//
//  How many readings will we take?
//
#define MAX_READINGS                50
//
//  Somewhere to put the data.
//
int _sensorTimings[MAX_READINGS];
//
//  Which reading are we expecting next?
//
int _currentTiming = 0;
int _reading;

Next we need to capture the value in the timer when an interrupt occurred:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Process the interrupt generated by the DHT22.
//
#pragma vector = 8
__interrupt void EXTI_PORTD_IRQHandler(void)
{
    unsigned char high = TIM2_CNTRH;
    unsigned char low = TIM2_CNTRL;
    if (_currentTiming < MAX_READINGS)
    {
        _reading = (high << 8);
        _reading += low;
        _sensorTimings[_currentTiming++] = _reading;
    }
}

Now we have captured the data we need to decode the timings to obtain the temperature, humidity and the checksum. This method is called from the Timer 2 ISR above.

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Decode the temperature and humidity data.
//
void DecodeData()
{
    unsigned short multiplier;
    //
    //  Extract the humidity.
    //
    unsigned short humidity = 0;
    multiplier = 32768;
    for (int index = 2; index < 18; index++)
    {
        if ((_sensorTimings[index] - _sensorTimings[index - 1]) > LOGIC_BOUNDARY)
        {
            humidity += multiplier;
        }
        multiplier >>= 1;
    }
    //
    //  Extract the temperature.
    //
    unsigned short temperature = 0;
    multiplier = 32768;
    for (int index = 18; index < 34; index++)
    {
        if ((_sensorTimings[index] - _sensorTimings[index - 1]) > LOGIC_BOUNDARY)
        {
            temperature += multiplier;
        }
        multiplier >>= 1;
    }
    //
    //  Extract the checksum.
    //
    unsigned short checksum = 0;
    multiplier = 128;
    for (int index = 34; index < 42; index++)
    {
        if ((_sensorTimings[index] - _sensorTimings[index - 1]) > LOGIC_BOUNDARY)
        {
            checksum += multiplier;
        }
        multiplier >>= 1;
    }
    //
    //  If the checksum is OK then overwrite the data.
    //
    unsigned short calcChecksum = 0;
    calcChecksum += humidity & 0xff;
    calcChecksum += ((humidity >> 8) & 0xff);
    calcChecksum += temperature & 0xff;
    calcChecksum += ((temperature >> 8) & 0xff);
    if ((calcChecksum & 0xff) == checksum)
    {
        _lastTemperature = temperature;
        _lastHumidity = humidity;
        _lastChecksum = checksum;
        OutputStatusCode(SC_OK);
        OutputDebugData(humidity, temperature, checksum);
    }
    else
    {
        OutputStatusCode(SC_CHECKSUM_ERROR);
    }
}

The LOGIC_BOUNDARY definition is simply the number of clock pulses which separates the 0 and the 1. A little empirical research gave this value as 100 clock pulses. This is not exactly as defined in the data sheet but it does give a reasonable working value.

As with all GoBus 1.0 modules, the definition of the data within the data packets (with the exception of the first byte) is left to the implementation. For this module the packets will be formatted as follows:

  • 0x80 – Mandatory first byte
  • ACK or NACK
  • Type of data in the packet (for an ACK packet)
  • Data (for ACK)

The type of data in the packet allows the system to respond to requests for information and also raise alarms.

Responding to the requests for readings is simply a case of copying the last set of readings from the global variable and putting them into the packet. The module then raises an interrupt (via NotifyGOBoard()) to indicate to the Netduino GO! that there is some data ready for processing:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Copy the sensor readings into the _txBuffer.
//
void CopySensorReadingsToTxBuffer()
{
    _txBuffer[3] = ((_lastHumidity >> 8) & 0xff);
    _txBuffer[4] = (_lastHumidity & 0xff);
    _txBuffer[5] = ((_lastTemperature >> 8) & 0xff);
    _txBuffer[6] = (_lastTemperature & 0xff);
    _txBuffer[7] = _lastChecksum;
}

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Notify the GO! main board that there is some data ready for collection.
//
void GetReadings()
{
    _txBuffer[0] = 0x80;
    _txBuffer[1] = DHT22_ACK;
    _txBuffer[2] = DHT22_GET_READINGS;
    CopySensorReadingsToTxBuffer();
    NotifyGOBoard();
}

One desirable feature mentioned earlier was the ability to set alarms and have the module signal to the Netduino GO! that an alarm has been raised. The alarm system allows the user to set an alarm for the following events:

  • Low temperature
  • High temperature
  • Low humidity
  • High humidity

Setting an alarm is a simple operation as it only requires that the module records the alarms which have been set and the values associated with the alarm:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Set the alarm thresholds for the temperature and humidity.
//
//  Note that the alarm uses "special" out of range values to indicate that a
//  specified limit is not required.
//
void SetAlarms()
{
    //
    //  Start by turning everything off.
    //
    _alarmsEnabled = 0;
    _lowerTemperatureAlarm = SENSOR_MIN_TEMPERATURE;
    _upperTemperatureAlarm = SENSOR_MAX_TEMPERATURE;
    _lowerHumidityAlarm = SENSOR_MIN_HUMIDITY;
    _upperHumidityAlarm = SENSOR_MAX_HUMIDITY;
    //
    //  Now work out what we are looking at.
    //
    if (_rxBuffer[2] & ALARM_LOW_TEMPERATURE)
    {
       _lowerTemperatureAlarm = (_rxBuffer[3] * 256) + _rxBuffer[4];
       if (_lowerTemperatureAlarm < SENSOR_MIN_TEMPERATURE)
       {
           _alarmsEnabled = 0;
           RaiseNAK();
           return;
       }
       _alarmsEnabled |= ALARM_LOW_TEMPERATURE;
    }
    if (_rxBuffer[2] & ALARM_HIGH_TEMPERATURE)
    {
        _upperTemperatureAlarm = (_rxBuffer[5] * 256) + _rxBuffer[6];
       if (_upperTemperatureAlarm > SENSOR_MAX_TEMPERATURE)
       {
           _alarmsEnabled = 0;
           RaiseNAK();
           return;
       }
        _alarmsEnabled |= ALARM_HIGH_TEMPERATURE;
    }
    if (_rxBuffer[2] & ALARM_LOW_HUMIDITY)
    {
       _lowerHumidityAlarm = (_rxBuffer[7] * 256) + _rxBuffer[8];
       if (_lowerHumidityAlarm < SENSOR_MIN_HUMIDITY)
       {
           _alarmsEnabled = 0;
           RaiseNAK();
           return;
       }
       _alarmsEnabled |= ALARM_LOW_HUMIDITY;
    }
    if (_rxBuffer[2] & ALARM_HIGH_HUMIDITY)
    {
        _upperHumidityAlarm = (_rxBuffer[9] * 256) + _rxBuffer[10];
       if (_upperHumidityAlarm > SENSOR_MAX_HUMIDITY)
       {
           _alarmsEnabled = 0;
           RaiseNAK();
           return;
       }
        _alarmsEnabled |= ALARM_HIGH_HUMIDITY;
    }
    //
    //  Tell the Go board which alarms have been enabled (as an acknowledgement).
    //
    _txBuffer[0] = 0x80;
    _txBuffer[1] = DHT22_ACK;
    _txBuffer[2] = DHT22_SET_ALARMS;
    _txBuffer[3] = _alarmsEnabled;
    NotifyGOBoard();
}

The actual process of raising the alarm is performed in the Timer 2 ISR when we have decoded the data. Remember this code:

DecodeData();
if (_alarmsEnabled != 0)
{
    CheckAlarms();
}

When checking the alarms the application will compare the values for all of the alarms and then raise a single interrupt back to the Netduino GO! if one or more alarms need to be raised. The data packet sent back to the Netduino GO! also contains the current sensor readings. This means that the Netduino GO! does not have to request the sensor data to find out which alarm has been raised.

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Check to see if the temperature/humidity is outside of any ranges and raise
//  an alarm if needed.
//
void CheckAlarms()
{
    unsigned char alarm = 0;
    if ((_alarmsEnabled & ALARM_LOW_TEMPERATURE) && (_lastTemperature < _lowerTemperatureAlarm))
    {
        alarm |= ALARM_LOW_TEMPERATURE;
    }
    if ((_alarmsEnabled & ALARM_HIGH_TEMPERATURE) && (_lastTemperature > _upperTemperatureAlarm))
    {
        alarm |= ALARM_HIGH_TEMPERATURE;
    }
    if ((_alarmsEnabled & ALARM_LOW_HUMIDITY) && (_lastHumidity < _lowerHumidityAlarm))
    {
        alarm |= ALARM_LOW_HUMIDITY;
    }
    if ((_alarmsEnabled & ALARM_HIGH_HUMIDITY) && (_lastHumidity > _upperHumidityAlarm))
    {
        alarm |= ALARM_HIGH_HUMIDITY;
    }
    if (alarm != 0)
    {
        _txBuffer[0] = 0x80;
        _txBuffer[1] = DHT22_ACK;
        _txBuffer[2] = DHT22_ALARM;
        CopySensorReadingsToTxBuffer();
        _txBuffer[8] = alarm;
        NotifyGOBoard();
    }
}

At this point the majority of the STM8S code is complete.

Netduino GO!

As with the STM8S code, the Netduino GO! driver is based upon the code developed previously and used as the basis for the Output Expander module. Much of this should be familiar and so we will only be considering the methods and supporting structures which implement specific features in this module. The class diagram for our module driver looks like this:

DHT22ModuleNETMFClassDiagram

As you can see the module driver is not overly complex as it provides a few methods and supports a single interrupt.

The STM8S module returns temperature data on two occasions, the first is the explicit request by the Netduino GO! for the current readings, the second is when an alarm is raised. It therefore makes sense to abstract this code into a method:

/// <summary>
/// Extract the temperature and humidity data from the data which has been
/// generated by the STM8S.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="temperature">Temperature extracted from the buffer.</param>
/// <param name="humidity">Humidity extracted from the buffer.</param>
private void ExtractSensorReadings(out float temperature, out float humidity)
{
    //
    //  Verify the checksum before extracting the data.
    //
    int sum = 0;
    for (int index = 4; index < 8; index++)
    {
        sum += _readFrameBuffer[index];
    }
    if ((sum & 0xff) == _readFrameBuffer[8])
    {
        //
        //  Checksum good so extract the temperature and humidity data.
        //
        humidity = ((float) ((_readFrameBuffer[4] * 256) + _readFrameBuffer[5])) / 10;
        int sign = 1;
        byte highByte = _readFrameBuffer[6];
        if ((highByte & 0x80) == 0x80)
        {
            sign = -1;
            highByte &= (byte) 0x7f;
        }
        temperature = sign * ((float) ((highByte * 256) + _readFrameBuffer[7])) / 10;
    }
    else
    {
        throw new Exception("ExtractSensorData: Checksum error, discarding data.");
    }
}

The code which gets the current readings is relatively trivial:

/// <summary>
/// This method calls the AddOne method on the GO! module and then waits for the
/// module to indicate that there is a response ready.  The response is then read
/// from the module and the resulting value is returned to the caller.
/// </summary>
public void GetReadings()
{
    _writeFrameBuffer[0] = GO_BUS10_COMMAND_RESPONSE;
    _writeFrameBuffer[1] = (int) Action.GetReadings;
    WriteDataToModule();
    if (!WaitForResponse())
    {
        throw new Exception("GetReadings: Cannot communicate with the DHT22 module");
    }
}

Setting an alarm is also trivial, although the method is longer, with much of the work involving extracting the bytes of data and storing them in the transmit buffer:

/// <summary>
/// Set the alarms for the low/high temperature/humidity alarms.
/// </summary>
/// <remarks>
/// To turn an alarm off set the value to float.MinValue.
/// 
/// The alarms are triggered when the temperature/humidity goes below the low threshold
/// or above the high threshold.
/// </remarks>
/// <param name="lowTemperature">Low temperature alarm value.</param>
/// <param name="highTemperature">High temperature alarm value.</param>
/// <param name="lowHumidity">Low humidity alarm value.</param>
/// <param name="highHumidity">High humidity alarm value.</param>
public void SetAlarms(float lowTemperature, float highTemperature, float lowHumidity, float highHumidity)
{
    Alarms alarms = 0;

    if (lowTemperature != float.MinValue)
    {
        if ((lowTemperature < MIN_TEMPERATURE) || (lowTemperature > MAX_TEMPERATURE))
        {
            throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException("SetAlarms: lowTemperature out of range.");
        }
        short lt = (short) (lowTemperature * 10);
        _writeFrameBuffer[3] = (byte) ((lt & 0xff00) >> 8);
        _writeFrameBuffer[4] = (byte) (lt & 0xff);
        alarms |= Alarms.LowTemperature;
    }
    if (highTemperature != float.MinValue)
    {
        if ((highTemperature > MAX_TEMPERATURE) || (highTemperature < MIN_TEMPERATURE))
        {
            throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException("SetAlarms: highTemperature out of range.");
        }
        short ht = (short) (highTemperature * 10);
        _writeFrameBuffer[5] = (byte) ((ht & 0xff00) >> 8);
        _writeFrameBuffer[6] = (byte) (ht & 0xff);
        alarms |= Alarms.HighTemperature;
    }
    if (lowHumidity != float.MinValue)
    {
        if ((lowHumidity < MIN_HUMIDITY) || (lowHumidity > MAX_HUMIDITY))
        {
            throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException("SetAlarms: lowHumidity out of range");
        }
        short lh = (short) (lowHumidity * 10);
        _writeFrameBuffer[7] = (byte) ((lh & 0xff00) >> 8);
        _writeFrameBuffer[8] = (byte) (lh & 0xff);
        alarms |= Alarms.LowHumidity;
    }
    if (highHumidity != float.MinValue)
    {
        if ((highHumidity < MIN_HUMIDITY) || (highHumidity > MAX_HUMIDITY))
        {
            throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException("SetAlarms: highHumidity out of range");
        }
        short hh = (short) (highHumidity * 10);
        _writeFrameBuffer[9] = (byte) ((hh & 0xff00) >> 8);
        _writeFrameBuffer[10] = (byte) (hh & 0xff);
        alarms |= Alarms.HighHumidity;
    }
    _writeFrameBuffer[0] = GO_BUS10_COMMAND_RESPONSE;
    _writeFrameBuffer[1] = (int) Action.SetAlarms;
    _writeFrameBuffer[2] = (byte) alarms;
    WriteDataToModule();
    if (!WaitForResponse())
    {
        throw new Exception("SetAlarms: Cannot communicate with the DHT22 module");
    }
}

The really interesting work involves the receipt of data from the module. This is triggered by the interrupt being raised on the GPIO pin of the Netduino GO! connector.

/// <summary>
/// Handle the IRQ events generated by the GO! module.
/// </summary>
/// <remarks>
/// The module raises an interrupt when a command has been processed or when there
/// is data ready for the module.  The first task for this method is to retrieve 
/// the buffer from the module and then work out what action should be taken.  The
/// module will have placed any relevant data into the write buffer prior to raising 
/// the interrupt.
/// </remarks>
private void _irqPort_OnInterrupt(uint data1, uint data2, DateTime time)
{
    _writeFrameBuffer[0] = GO_BUS10_COMMAND_RESPONSE;
    _writeFrameBuffer[1] = (int) Action.GetBuffer;
    WriteDataToModule();
    if ((_readFrameBuffer[1] == GO_BUS10_COMMAND_RESPONSE) && (_readFrameBuffer[2] == DHT22_ACK) && ReadBufferCRCCheckOK())
    {
        float t, h;

        switch ((Action) _readFrameBuffer[3])
        {
            case Action.GetReadings:
                ExtractSensorReadings(out t, out h);
                Temperature = t;
                Humidity = h;
                _irqPortInterruptEvent.Set();
                break;
            case Action.SetAlarms:
                _irqPortInterruptEvent.Set();
                break;
            case Action.Alarm:
                if ((SensorAlarm != null) && (AlarmInterruptsEnabled == AlarmState.InterruptsEnabled))
                {
                    ExtractSensorReadings(out t, out h);
                    SensorAlarm(this, new AlarmEventArgs(t, h, (Alarms) _readFrameBuffer[9]));
                }
                break;
            default:
                throw new ArgumentException("Interrupt: Unknown action " + _readFrameBuffer[3].ToString());
                break;
        }
    }
}

This event allows the main program to set an alarm and then leave the module to work out when it needs to communicate with the Netduino GO!. This is achieved by the application setting the delegate SensorAlarm

Testing

At this point we have the hardware and software complete. All that is needed now is to put the two together:

TemperatureModuleConnectedToGOAndSevenSegment

A quick test application (I promise, this will be last piece of the code in this article):

private static DHT22 module;

/// <summary>
/// Main program loop.
/// </summary>
public static void Main()
{
    SevenSegmentDisplay display = new SevenSegmentDisplay();
    display.SetBrightness(0.5F);
    display.SetValue("----");
    module = new DHT22();
    module.AlarmInterruptsEnabled = DHT22.AlarmState.InterruptsDisabled;
    module.SensorAlarm += new DHT22.SensorAlarmHandler(module_SensorAlarm);
    module.SetAlarms(35.0f, float.MinValue, float.MinValue, 10.0f);
    module.AlarmInterruptsEnabled = DHT22.AlarmState.InterruptsEnabled;
    Thread.Sleep(5000);
    int counter = 0;
    while (true)
    {
        try
        {
            module.GetReadings();
            Debug.Print("Reading: " + counter.ToString() + ", temperature: " + module.Temperature.ToString("f2") + "C, Humidity: " + module.Humidity.ToString("f2") + "%");
            string text = "Read  Temp  Hum " + (counter.ToString() + "    ").Substring(0, 5) + (module.Temperature.ToString("f1") + "C     ").Substring(0, 6) + (module.Humidity.ToString("f1") + "%     ").Substring(0, 5);
            display.SetValue(module.Temperature, 1);
            Thread.Sleep(2000);
            display.SetValue(module.Humidity, 1);
            Thread.Sleep(2000);
        }
        catch (Exception ex)
        {
            Debug.Print(ex.Message);
            display.SetValue("EEEE");
        }
        counter++;
        if (counter > 9999)
        {
            counter = 0;
        }
    }
}

/// <summary>
/// Catch the interrupt generated when one of the temperature/humidity (or both)
/// exceed the alarm values.
/// </summary>
private static void module_SensorAlarm(object sender, DHT22.AlarmEventArgs args)
{
    string message = "";
    if ((args.AlarmsRaised & DHT22.Alarms.HighHumidity) != 0)
    {
        message += "High humidity,";
    }
    if ((args.AlarmsRaised & DHT22.Alarms.HighTemperature) != 0)
    {
        message += "High Temperature,";
    }
    if ((args.AlarmsRaised & DHT22.Alarms.LowHumidity) != 0)
    {
        message += "Low Humidity, ";
    }
    if ((args.AlarmsRaised & DHT22.Alarms.LowTemperature) != 0)
    {
        message += "Low Temperature,";
    }
    message += " alarm raised: temperature = " + args.Temperature.ToString() + ", humidity = " + args.Humidity.ToString();
    Debug.Print(message);
}

The image above shows the DHT22 module connected to the Netduino GO!. A Komodex Labs Seven Segment Display is used to display the temperature and humidity.

And here is a video showing the module working. The system shows the temperature for a short while (16.8C) followed by the humidity (46.7%).

We were lucky last year as we had a particularly cold winter (lucky for testing). This allowed the module to be test outdoors in a reasonably cold environment. The sensor and the Netduino GO! performed as expected down to -10C when compared to an off the shelf digital thermometer and humidity unit. I would have waited for the temperature to drop further by my desire to prove the module has limits and I discovered that standing around outside with a coffee waiting for the module to read lower and lower temperatures had an interest threshold of about 10 minutes.

Conclusion

This module shows the power of combining microcontrollers to provide a combined system. The Netduino GO! would have found it difficult to have achieved the work completed by the STM8S. Similarly, the Netduino GO! provides the application developer with the simplicity and power of NETMF, something the STM8S could not achieve.

This module has yet to move from prototype into production. Maybe it will someday, just not today.

Transmitting Data Using the STM8S SPI Master Mode

Sunday, June 23rd, 2013

So far in The Way of the Register series we have only looked at SPI from a slave device point of view as we have been working towards creating a Netduino GO! module. For every slave device there must be a master, here we will look at configuring the STM8S to operate in SPI master mode.

The project will look at controlling a TLC5940 in order to emulate the work described in the post TLC5940 16 Channel PWM Driver. We could simply bit-bang the data out to the chip but instead we will use the SPI interface to achieve this.

The project breaks down into the following steps:

  1. Generate the grey scale clock and blank signals
  2. Bit-Bang data out over GPIO pins to create an operational circuit
  3. Convert the data transmission to SPI

See the quoted post for a description of how this chip works and for an explanation of the terminology used.

Generating the Grey Scale Clock and Blank Signals

The TLC5940 generated 4,096 grey scale values by using a PWM counter. Once the counter reaches 4096 pulses it stops until it is told to restart. The Blank pulse acts as a restart signal. This project will be controlling LEDs and so will want to continuously keep the counter running. If we did not keep the counter in the TLC5940 running then the LEDs would light for a short while and then simply turn off and remain off.

The greyscale clock is generated by using the Configurable Clock Output (CCO) pin on the STM8S. This pin simply outputs the clock pulses used to drive the STM8S. Reviewing the data sheet we find that the maximum value for the grey scale clock is 30MHz. Using out standard clock initialisation generates a clock with a frequency of 16MHz (approximately). This is well within the tolerances of the TLC5940. To output this we need to make a simple modification to our standard code, name change the line:

CLK_CCOR = 0;   //  Turn off CCO.

to:

CLK_CCOR = 1;   //  Turn on CCO.

The starting point for our application becomes:

#if defined DISCOVERY
    #include <iostm8S105c6.h>
#elif defined PROTOMODULE
    #include <iostm8s103k3.h>
#else
    #include <iostm8s103f3.h>
#endif
#include <intrinsics.h>

//
//  Setup the system clock to run at 16MHz using the internal oscillator.
//
void InitialiseSystemClock()
{
    CLK_ICKR = 0;                       //  Reset the Internal Clock Register.
    CLK_ICKR_HSIEN = 1;                 //  Enable the HSI.
    CLK_ECKR = 0;                       //  Disable the external clock.
    while (CLK_ICKR_HSIRDY == 0);       //  Wait for the HSI to be ready for use.
    CLK_CKDIVR = 0;                     //  Ensure the clocks are running at full speed.
    CLK_PCKENR1 = 0xff;                 //  Enable all peripheral clocks.
    CLK_PCKENR2 = 0xff;                 //  Ditto.
    CLK_CCOR = 1;                       //  Turn on CCO.
    CLK_HSITRIMR = 0;                   //  Turn off any HSIU trimming.
    CLK_SWIMCCR = 0;                    //  Set SWIM to run at clock / 2.
    CLK_SWR = 0xe1;                     //  Use HSI as the clock source.
    CLK_SWCR = 0;                       //  Reset the clock switch control register.
    CLK_SWCR_SWEN = 1;                  //  Enable switching.
    while (CLK_SWCR_SWBSY != 0);        //  Pause while the clock switch is busy.
}

//
//  Main program loop.
//
void main()
{
    //
    //  Initialise the system.
    //
    __disable_interrupt();
    InitialiseSystemClock();
    __enable_interrupt();
    while (1)
    {
        __wait_for_interrupt();
    }
}

Wiring up the STM8S and connecting the scope to PC4 (CCO output pin) gives the following trace on the scope:

CCO On Scope

CCO On Scope

The trace on the scope has a minimum value of around 680mV and a maximum of 2.48V. In an ideal world this signal should range from 0 to 3.3V (based upon a 3.3V supply). Adding an inverter from a 74HC04 and feeding the signal through one of the gates gives the following trace:

Invertor output on the scope

Inverter output on the scope

This is starting to look a lot better. The next task is to create the Blank signal. There are several ways of doing this. The most automatic way of doing this is to generate a very short PWM pulse using one of the timers in the STM8S. One drawback of this method is that it is more difficult to generate a Blank pulse on demand. Instead we will use the interrupt method described in the same article. Whilst not automatic it is still a trivial task to complete. We simply modify the code from the method to load the counters with 4,096. The code for the GPIO port, timer and interrupt becomes:

//
//  Timer 2 Overflow handler.
//
#pragma vector = TIM2_OVR_UIF_vector
__interrupt void TIM2_UPD_OVF_IRQHandler(void)
{
    PD_ODR_ODR4 = 1;
    PD_ODR_ODR4 = 0;
    TIM2_SR1_UIF = 0;       //  Reset the interrupt otherwise it will fire again straight away.
}

//
//  Setup Timer 2 to generate an interrupt every 4096 clock ticks.
//
void SetupTimer2()
{
    TIM2_PSCR = 0x00;       //  Prescaler = 1.
    TIM2_ARRH = 0x10;       //  High byte of 4096.
    TIM2_ARRL = 0x00;       //  Low byte of 4096.
    TIM2_IER_UIE = 1;       //  Turn on the interrupts.
    TIM2_CR1_CEN = 1;       //  Finally enable the timer.
}

//
//  Setup the output ports used to control the TLC5940.
//
void SetupOutputPorts()
{
    PD_ODR = 0;             //  All pins are turned off.
    PD_DDR_DDR4 = 1;        //  Port D, pin 4 is used for the Blank signal.
    PD_CR1_C14 = 1;         //  Port D, pin 4 is Push-Pull
    PD_CR2_C24 = 1;         //  Port D, Pin 4 is generating a pulse under 2 MHz.
}

Hooking up the scope to PD4 gives the following trace:

Blanking pulses

Blanking pulses

The single pulses are being generated at a frequency of approximately 3.9kHz. A little mental arithmetic dividing the 16MHz clock by 4,096 comes out to about 3,900.

Zooming in on the signal we see:

Single Blanking Pulse

Single Blanking Pulse

This shows that the signal is 125nS wide. This is acceptable as the minimum pulse width given in the data sheet is 20nS.

So at this point we have the 16MHz grey scale clock signal and the Blank pulse being generated every 4,096 clock pulses.

Connecting the TLC5940

The next task is to connect the STM8S to the TLC5940. You should refer to the article TLC5940 16 Channel PWM Driver for more information on the pins and their meaning. For this exercise we will use the following mapping:

STM8S PinTLC5940 Pin
PD4Blank (pin 23)
PD3XLAT (pin 24)
PD2VPRG (pin 27)
PD5Serial data (pin 26)
PD6Serial clock (pin 25)
PC4 (via inverter)GSCLK (pin 18)

You will note that the serial data and clock are currently connected to PD5 and PD6 respectively. Whilst the eventual aim is to communicate with the TLC5940 via SPI, the initial communication will be using Bit-Banging. We will move on to using SPI once the operation of the circuit has been proven using tested technology.

The first changes we will have to make create some #define statements to make the code a little more readable. We also add some storage space for the grey scale and dot correction data.

//
//  Define which pins on Port D will be used as control signals for the TLC5940.
//
//  BLANK - A pulse from low to high causes the TLC5940 to restart the counter
//  XLAT - A high pulse causes the data to be transferred into the DC or GS registers.
//  VPRG - Determines which registers are being programmed, High = DC, Low = GS.
//
#define PIN_BLANK                   PD_ODR_ODR4
#define PIN_XLAT                    PD_ODR_ODR3
#define PIN_VPRG                    PD_ODR_ODR2
//
//  Bit bang pins.
//
#define PIN_BB_DATA                 PD_ODR_ODR5
#define PIN_BB_CLK                  PD_ODR_ODR6
//
//  Values representing the modes for the VPRG pin.
//
#define PROGRAMME_DC                1
#define PROGRAMME_GS                0

//
//  TLC5940 related definitions.
//
#define TLC_NUMBER                  1
#define TLC_DC_BYTES_PER_CHIP       12
#define TLC_DC_BYTES                TLC_NUMBER * TLC_DC_BYTES_PER_CHIP
#define TLC_GS_BYTES_PER_CHIP       24
#define TLC_GS_BYTES                TLC_NUMBER * TLC_GS_BYTES_PER_CHIP

//
//  Next we need somewhere to hold the data.
//
unsigned char _greyScaleData[TLC_GS_BYTES];
unsigned char _dotCorrectionData[TLC_DC_BYTES];

The Bit-Banging methods should look familiar to anyone who has been reading any of the posts in The Way of the Register series.

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Bit bang data.
//
//  TLC5940 expects the data to be shifted MSB first.  The data
//  is shifted in on the rising edge of the clock.
//
void BitBang(unsigned char byte)
{
    for (short bit = 7; bit >= 0; bit--)
    {
        if (byte &amp; (1 << bit))
        {
            PIN_BB_DATA = 1;
        }
        else
        {
            PIN_BB_DATA = 0;
        }
        PIN_BB_CLK = 1;
        PIN_BB_CLK = 0;
    }
    PIN_BB_DATA = 0;
}

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Bit bang a buffer of data.
//
void BitBangBuffer(unsigned char *buffer, int size)
{
    for (int index = 0; index < size; index++)
    {
        BitBang(buffer[index]);
    }
}

Related to the Bit-Banging methods are the two methods which will send the grey scale and dot correction data:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Send the grey scale data to the TLC5940.
//
void SendGreyScaleData(unsigned char *buffer, int length)
{
    PIN_VPRG = PROGRAMME_GS;
    BitBangBuffer(buffer, length);
    PulseXLAT();
    PulseBlank();
}

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Send the dot correction buffer to the TLC5940.
//
void SendDotCorrectionData(unsigned char *buffer, int length)
{
    PIN_VPRG = PROGRAMME_DC;
    BitBangBuffer(buffer, length);
    PulseXLAT();
    PulseBlank();
}

We also need a few methods to make the TLC5940 latch the data and also restart the counters:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Pulse the Blank pin in order to make the TLC5940 reload the counters and
//  restart timer.
//
void PulseBlank()
{
    PIN_BLANK = 1;
    PIN_BLANK = 0;
}

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Pulse the XLAT pin in order to make the TLC5940 transfer the
//  data from the latches into the appropriate registers.
//
void PulseXLAT()
{
    PIN_XLAT = 1;
    PIN_XLAT = 0;
}

Next we need to set the initial condition. For this we set the TLC dot correction off and also turn all of the LEDs off:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Initialise the TLC5940.
//
void InitialiseTLC5940()
{
    for (int index = 0; index < TLC_DC_BYTES; index++)
    {
        _dotCorrectionData[index] = 0xff;
    }
    for (int index = 0; index < TLC_GS_BYTES; index++)
    {
        _greyScaleData[index] = 0;
    }
    SendDotCorrectionData(_dotCorrectionData, TLC_DC_BYTES);
    SendGreyScaleData(_greyScaleData, TLC_GS_BYTES);
}

The final support method we need to add is the method which sets the brightness of an LED. The brightness is a 12-bit value (0-4095). This means each LED uses 1.5 bytes for the brightness value. The following methods breaks down the value and ensures that the correct bits are set in the grey scale buffer depending upon which LED is being changed:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Set the brightness of an LED.
//
void SetLEDBrightness(int ledNumber, unsigned short brightness)
{
    int offset = (ledNumber >> 1) * 3;
    if (ledNumber &amp; 0x01)
    {
        _greyScaleData[offset + 1] = (unsigned char) (_greyScaleData[offset + 1] &amp; 0xf0) | ((brightness & 0x0f00) >> 8);
        _greyScaleData[offset + 2] = (unsigned char) (brightness & 0xff);
    }
    else
    {
        _greyScaleData[offset] = (unsigned char) ((brightness &amp; 0x0ff0) >> 4) &amp; 0xff;
        _greyScaleData[offset + 1] = (unsigned char) ((brightness & 0x0f) >> 4) | (_greyScaleData[offset + 1] & 0x0f);
    }
}

We should also create a similar method for changing the dot correction value for an LED. This is left as an exercise for the reader as we will not be changing this value in this code.

Proving the concept

If we have connected the TLC5940 correctly and our code works we should be able to connect up some LEDs (common anode) to the TLC5940 and change the brightness under program control.

This main program loop slowly increases the brightness of the LEDs. When they are at full brightness they are turned off and the process starts again:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Main program loop.
//
void main()
{
    //
    //  Initialise the system.
    //
    __disable_interrupt();
    InitialiseSystemClock();
    SetupOutputPorts();
    SetupTimer2();
    
    InitialiseTLC5940();
    __enable_interrupt();
    //
    //  Main program loop.
    //
    int brightness = 0;
    int counter = 0;
    while (1)
    {
        __wait_for_interrupt();
        counter++;
        if (counter == 20)
        {
            TIM2_CR1_CEN = 0;
            counter = 0;
            for (int index = 0; index < 16; index++)
            {
                SetLEDBrightness(index, brightness);
            }
            SendGreyScaleData(_greyScaleData, TLC_GS_BYTES);
            brightness++;
            if (brightness == 4096)
            {
                brightness = 0;
            }
            TIM2_CR1_CEN = 1;       //  Finally re-enable the timer.
        }
    }
}

If you connect a scope to the cathode of one of the LEDs you will see that the wave form slowly changes over time. At the start, the LED is fully on and the trace on the scope shows a horizontal line, i.e. a constant voltage. As time moves on and the value in the dot correction buffer changes you start to see a PWM signal similar to the following:

PWM Output On Scope 1

PWM Output On Scope 1

This trace shows the signal when the LEDs are a little brighter:

PWM Output On Scope 2

PWM Output On Scope 2

Having arrived here we now know that the circuit has been connected correctly and that the control logic in the main method works. We can now move on to considering what we need to do in order to use SPI in master mode. The aim will be to simply remove the Bit-Banging methods and replace these with an interrupt driven SPI master algorithm.

SPI Master

So now we have a working circuit we need to look at SPI on the STM8S. Firstly let’s remind ourselves of the serial communication parameters for the TLC5940. This chip reads the data on the leading clock edge (CPHA = 1). We have also set the clock idle state to low (CPOL = 0).

It is also advisable to start off using the lowest clock speed for SPI in order to confirm correct operation of the software and circuit. Lower speed are less likely to be subject to interference.

SPI Registers

You should review the previous articles on SPI communication if you are not already familiar with the SPI registers we have used so far. In this post we will only discuss the new settings required to switch from being a SPI slave device to a SPI master device.

SPI_CR1_BR – Baud Rate Control

The SPI baud rate is determined by the master clock frequency and the value in this register. The divisor used to set the baud rate according to the following table:

SPI_CR1_BRDivisor
0002
0014
0108
01116
10032
10164
110128
111256

The SPI baud rate is calculated as fmaster / divisor. So for our master clock speed of 16MHz we get the lowest clock speed of 16,000,000 / 256, or 62,500Hz.

SPI_CR1_MSTR – Master Selection

Setting this bit switches SPI into master mode (see also SPI_CR1_SPE).

Note that the reference for the STM8S also states that this bit (and SPI_CR1_SPE) will only remain set whilst NSS is high. It this therefore essential to connect NSS to Vcc if this device is not being used as a slave device.

Implementing SPI

Using SPI presents us with a small problem, namely the program will have to start to operate in a more asynchronous way. The code presented so far has only one interrupt to be concerned with, namely the timer used to control the Blank signal. Adding SPI to the mix means that we will have to also consider the SPI interrupt as well. It also adds the complication of sending dot correction data followed by grey scale data. This last problem will not be covered here and is left as an exercise for the reader.

The initialisation code merely sets things up for us:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Initialise SPI to be SPI master.
//
void SetupSPIAsMaster()
{
    SPI_CR1_SPE = 0;                    //  Disable SPI.
    SPI_CR1_CPOL = 0;                   //  Clock is low when idle.
    SPI_CR1_CPHA = 0;                   //  Capture MSB on first edge.
    SPI_ICR_TXIE = 1;                   //  Enable the SPI TXE interrupt.
    SPI_CR1_BR = 7;                     //  fmaster / 256 (62,500 baud).
    SPI_CR1_MSTR = 1;                   //  Master device.
}

Much of the code should be familiar as it has been used in previous posts discussing SPI slave devices. Not however that we do not enable SPI at this point. We simply set the scene for us to use SPI later.

The SPI data transfers will be controlled by using an interrupt service routine:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  SPI Interrupt service routine.
//
#pragma vector = SPI_TXE_vector
__interrupt void SPI_IRQHandler(void)
{
    //
    //  Check for an overflow error.
    //
    if (SPI_SR_OVR)
    {
        (void) SPI_DR;                      // These two reads clear the overflow
        (void) SPI_SR;                      // error.
        return;
    }
    if (SPI_SR_TXE)
    {
        //
        //  Check if we have more data to send.
        //
        if (_txBufferIndex == _txBufferSize)
        {
            while (SPI_SR_BSY);
            SPI_CR1_SPE = 0;
            _txBuffer = 0;
            PulseXLAT();
            PulseBlank();
            TIM2_CR1_CEN = 1;
        }
        else
        {
            SPI_DR = _txBuffer[_txBufferIndex++];
        }
    }
}

The main works starts when we have established that the transmit buffer is empty (SPI_SR_TXE is set). If we have more data then we put the byte into the data register (SPI_DR). If we have transmitted all the data we have then we wait for the last byte to complete transmission (SPI_SR_BSY becomes false) before we start to terminate the end of the SPI communication.

In order to send some data we really just need to setup the pointers and counters correctly and then enable SPI. So the SendGreyScaleData method becomes:

//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//
//  Send the grey scale data to the TLC5940.
//
void SendGreyScaleData(unsigned char *buffer, int length)
{
    PIN_VPRG = PROGRAMME_GS;
    _txBuffer = buffer;
    _txBufferIndex = 0;
    _txBufferSize = length;
    TIM2_CR1_CEN = 0;
    SPI_CR1_SPE = 1;
}

We also need to have a look at the main program loop as we use the __wait_for_interrupt() method in order to determine when we should start to process the next LED brightness value. We now need to ignore the interrupts when SPI is enabled otherwise the brightness will increase each time the transmit buffer is empty. A crude implementation eliminating the SPI interrupts is:

int brightness = 0;
int counter = 0;
while (1)
{
    __wait_for_interrupt();
    if (!SPI_CR1_SPE)
    {
        counter++;
        if (counter == 20)
        {
            TIM2_CR1_CEN = 0;
            counter = 0;
            for (int index = 0; index < 16; index++)
            {
                SetLEDBrightness(index, brightness);
            }
            SendGreyScaleData(_greyScaleData, TLC_GS_BYTES);
            brightness++;
            if (brightness == 4096)
            {
                brightness = 0;
            }
            TIM2_CR1_CEN = 1;       //  Finally re-enable the timer.
        }
    }
}

Making these changes and running the code shows that the system operated as before.

Increasing the Baud Rate

As noted earlier, the baud rate has been set low in order to reduce the chance of any problems being experienced due to interference. Now we have established that using SPI communication is possible and the circuit works as before we can start to increase the baud rate. Using our 16MHz clock we find we have the following baud rates which are theoretically possible:

SPI_CR1_BRDivisorSPI Frequency
00028 MHz
00144 MHz
01082 MHz
011161 MHz
10032500 KHz
10164250 KHz
110128125 KHz
11125662.5 KHz

A little experimentation is called for. Being ambitious I started with a clock frequency of 1MHz. This resulted in a flickering effect on the LED display. So, 1MHz is too ambitious, let’s start to reduce the frequency. I finally settled on 250 KHz as this allowed the circuit to function as before.

Conclusion

Using SPI master for data transmission was not as difficult as I originally thought. To make this application complete there are a few tasks to follow up on, namely:

  1. Receiving data over SPI
  2. Create the method to allow setting the dot correction values
  3. Transmitting buffers from a queue
  4. Minor tidying up of the timer control

The use of SPI here actually increased the time taken (597uS Bit-Banging c.f. 795uS for 250 KHz SPI) to reliably send the grey scale data to the TLC5940. I suspect that the time can be decreased if the circuit was taken from breadboard and put onto a PCB manufactured for the purpose. The breadboard for this circuit currently looks like this:

Bread Board And Flying Leads

Bread Board And Flying Leads

As you can see, there is a lot of opportunity for interference with all those flying leads.

While the time taken might have increased, the load on the microcontroller will have decreased as the SPI method is interrupt driven. The actual transmission is off-loaded to the microcontrollers dedicated circuitry.

As usual, the source code for this project is available to download.

How much would you pay?

Monday, June 3rd, 2013

One of the joys of being a hobbyist is the fact that you can take a project as far as you want to. Something really fun nearly always remains fun and does not make any money. As long as it’s a hobby it does not really matter.

So what do you do when you want to make money from your hobby. This is the question which Michael Ciuffo of ch00ftech found himself addressing with his QR Clock project earlier this year.

I’d check out The Slowest $380 I’ll Ever Make post for advice on the pros and cons of taking a hobby idea from concept to production.

Regular readers will know that I rarely post links to other peoples work but I feel that I should share this post as much of the post resonates with me. The Output Expander project was for me a great exercise as I had never taken a project from concept through to professional PCB manufacture. Having done this I was left with a simple question – could I make some extra money from this?

I think Michael’s post answers this question and it’s well worth reading.