help: Choosing a MicroController (HAM radio) and some other points

I am looking for a micro-controller to use for my varsity project (ham radio). I am not a great expert in micro-controllers and am not quite sure what uC's I should considering. My priorities with choosing the uC are as follows:

- General: Reliable and some sort of support available for the uC would be great. Relatively affordable.

- Hardware: Code Memory - 16-32K Internal RAM - >256 bytes UART - At least one Preferably SPI (in-system programmable) Preferably DIP version available Preferably low voltage (5-10V ?) Preferably >15 I/O pins

The code memory is because I intend to use C and am not yet sure about the potential length of my program could come to, whereas the RAM is to store packets that may be larger than 256 bytes that can be dealt with in memory as fast as possible. At least one UART should be present, though more than one would be great. An onboard FSK 1200 baud modem chip would be super but not absolutely needed. A reasonable amount of I/O lines would be great.

- Programming :in C (for free): This is a must. Maybe I'll consider other medium-level languages like Visual Basic/etc, but not assembly. I am familiar with assembly before and I'd definitely prefer C in any case, probably using assembly only in certain routines. I'm also looking for a free C compiler since varsity won't be assisting financially and I'm not exactly loaded with cash. The PIC would have been a great choice in this aspect but I won't be using the PIC and 8051 for my project (regulations).

- Other: A programmer. I'm not highly familiar with uC's, and for the 8051 and PIC there are lots of programmers available. What happens when the uC is new/with not a lot of support? Does the user have to try and design one him/herself? I would like to choose a uC that has a programmer (schematic) already available.

I really need to make sure that I chose a reliable microcontroller that I would be happy with. I would like to look at all possible uC's available with regard to the above criteria.

Help would be highly appreciated. Renjith

Reply to
renjith
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"renjith" schreef in bericht news: snipped-for-privacy@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...

Well,

Have a look at the Atmel site.

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The ATmega8 for instance seems to fullfill all your needs. Programming circuits can be found easily and you can also find a GNU C-compiler for free.

You can also find similar PIC and 8051 controllers so what strange regulations make you have to look for others?

petrus bitbyter

Reply to
petrus bitbyter

...

Because the teacher said so.

Cheers! Rich

Reply to
Rich Grise

(ham

quite

Many microcontrollers suit your needs. But I would recommend the ATmega32. Plenty of flash and RAM for you, DIP package, ISP etc. The board is supported by numerous free programmers, or you can buy the official development board (STK500) which is

Reply to
larwe

When did ham radio get to be HAM radio? "Ham" is not an abbreviation.

VY 73 N4TMI

P.S. I know the story about H.A.M. standing for the names of 3 ships, and I know that it's pure fiction.

Reply to
mc

How about the story of messrs. Hyman, Almy and Murray?

73!
--

Tauno Voipio, OH2UG
tauno voipio (at) iki fi
Reply to
Tauno Voipio

Thanks a lot petrus and l..., I took a look at the ATMega series and many of the uC's there seem highly suitable for my needs. However could you also mention a list of other possible uC's just for information sake if you dont mind ? Someone suggested the Motorola 68xxx series to me which I've also looked at and seem promising but I haven't heard anyone else mention about it. Thanks a lot for your suggestions and I'd really appreciate any other feedback.

Reply to
renjith

Hi, Try to "search" the Internet for projects similar to your project. There are many HAM radio projects utilizing different microcontrollers. Some use PIC microcontrollers, some AVR, some '51, some ... A small collection of pages that I have in my "bookmarks" :

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Best regards, Jacek.

Reply to
Jacek M. Holeczek

Here is that story:

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Interesting, I had no idea where it came from before.

--
Roger J.
Reply to
Roger Johansson

I would recommend the 8051 and its variants. Philips make a good range with various sizes of code and data spaces and all have ISP. There are many free simulators available and many of the major IDE vendors have evaluation versions with a 2K or 4K code limit to get you going in C. For bigger programs you can use the free C compiler SDCC.

Ian

--
Ian Bell
Reply to
Ian Bell

If you are wanting to compare microcontrollers, you could always look at the Motorola HC08 series. A table of features is at:

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Simon.

--
Simon Clubley, clubley@remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP       
Microsoft: The Standard Oil Company of the 21st century
Reply to
Simon Clubley

One often overlooked microcontroller is the Zilog Encore Z8. It is a

3.3V process, comes in DIP, supports C (they have a compiler for it, it's not GCC) and supports source level debugging through a debug pin. Look at the website. They usually have eval kits (I got one a few years ago for less than $100) which comes with a processor, some peripherals, a couple of RS232 ports (one for debugging, one for talking to the thing through the UART).

I found it quite nice, until I discovered PICs. The main advantage I find with PICs are that they come in 8 pin, internal clock packages. Thus, they are that they are incredibly simple to prototype with.

--
Regards,
   Robert Monsen

"Your Highness, I have no need of this hypothesis."
     - Pierre Laplace (1749-1827), to Napoleon,
        on why his works on celestial mechanics make no mention of God.
Reply to
Robert Monsen

You will find plenty of more information on the AVR on the

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website. Tools:

  • AVR Studio - Assembler/Debugger/Simulator/ICE Frontend.
  • STK500 - Development Kit/includes an In System Programmer
  • JTAGICE Mk II - Low cost emulator, allows you to download code, run, set breaks and singlstep.
  • WinAVR - gcc compiler for the AVR

Some commercial compilers

  • IAR
  • Imagecraft (Hi Richard!)
  • Codevision
--
Best Regards,
Ulf Samuelsson
ulf@a-t-m-e-l.com
This message is intended to be my own personal view and it
may or may not be shared by my employer Atmel Nordic AB
Reply to
Ulf Samuelsson

So do the Z8 Flash parts ? ( but only recently )

-jg

Reply to
Jim Granville

"mc" wrote

Right, it's an acronym. AIUI, Home Amateur Mechanic was a real magazine that ran real articles about building your own amateur radios.

Reply to
Anthony Fremont

Apparently that's an urban legend.

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"Unfortunately for this story, none of it checks out. A past president of the ARRL did extensive research in an attempt to confirm this story. There is nothing in the Congressional record about little station HAM. There is nothing in contemporary press records. And there is no record of a Hyman, Almay, or Murray at Harvard at the time this supposedly happened. This story first surfaced in an amateur publication in 1948, and doesn't seem likely to die. But it appears to have no factual basis."

Reply to
Anthony Fremont

Maybe it's just an abbreviation of "hammerchewer"

--
Then there's duct tape ... 
              (Garrison Keillor)
Reply to
Fred Abse

I second that ..

I'm using the Atmel AVR Series because of the free development tools (AvrStudio the free debugger/simulator/assembler from Atmel) , AvrGCC the free GNU C compilder (WinAVR is the windows version , on sourcefourge) , and the great support on

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Click on Maximize in the forum to get a better view

Well and the obvious , its a great MCU with a lot of different types to suit every need , and it beats the he.. out if most Pic's speedwise, with the abillity to run 16 MIPS.

The Mega32 fits fine in this little board , costs ~15$ , and i think

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is US distro.
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I use this one as programmer , with PonyProg ~10$

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You can build your own system on a breadboard with just a 7805 , the Mega32 comes with internal Oscillator if low clock accuracy is ok.

A nice"Build your own starterkit on a breadboard" link..

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Ohh... if you are using the new ATmega series. You dont need the "Xtal and Ceramic Capacitors , if you run off the internal oscillator. And dont need the Reset chip , its build into the Mega series.

Have a look at the site in general

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Regards Carsten

Reply to
Carsten

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