Regaining Debug Access to NXP i.MX RT1064-EVK executing WFI

Posted on by
13

Working with low power modes can be challenging. It can severely affect debugging capabilities of a microprocessor or microcontroller. I ported a FreeRTOS application using the Tickless Idle Mode to the NXP i.MX RT1064 board, and all of a sudden, the board was unresponsive to any debugger connection. Luckily the board was not really bricked, but it took me while to find a way to recover it. So for when you end up in a situation with a ‘bricked’ i.MX RT1064 board, this article might be helpful for you to recover it.

i.MX RT1064-EVK Board

i.MX RT1064-EVK Board

Continue reading →

Advertisements

Year End Linden Tree

Image

2

We did not receive much snow this winter in the lower areas. I really love this linden tree (Tilia, or ‘lime tree’ in some areas) up above a hill, and it always looks different.

 

Continue reading →

Freelink LPC4322JET100 based Debug Circuit on NXP i.MX RT1064-EVK Board

Posted on by
2

As noticed in “First Steps with the NXP i.MX RT1064-EVK Board” there is a new LPC4322 based debug interface on the RT1064-EVK board.

LPC4322JET100 based Debug Interface

LPC4322JET100 based Debug Interface

Continue reading →

Using Camera Modules with NXP i.MX RT10xx EVK

Posted on by
2

In “First Steps with the NXP i.MX RT1064-EVK Board” I mentioned that the board kit came with a camera module, but it was unclear to me which module was included in the kit. I know it now: it is the ON Semiconductor MT9M114 :-).

Image from the MT9M114

Image from the MT9M114

Continue reading →

First Steps with the NXP i.MX RT1064-EVK Board

Posted on by
36

I always reserve time between Christmas and New Year to get my hands on technology pieces which I might not have any time otherwise. Among different things I ordered the NXP i.MX RT1064-EVK board from Mouser.com, and it arrived right before Christmas. Time to have it unboxed and started….

i.MX RT1064 Processor

i.MX RT1064 Processor

Continue reading →

Variable Width Character Encoding in Eclipse Editor

Posted on by
Reply

Dealing with variable width character encoding as with UTF-8 is pretty much a standard these days, at least in the Desktop programming world. This is not so much true when programming embedded devices and microcontroller. In any case, Eclipse has you covered. This is especially helpful dealing with non-ASCII character codes in comments:

Comment with UTF-8 in Eclipse

Comment with UTF-8 in Eclipse

Continue reading →

New NXP MCUXpresso IDE V10.3.0 Release

Posted on by
27

Friday this week NXP has released a new version of their flagship IDE: the MCUXpresso IDE V10.3.0. The version number indicates an incremental update from the earlier V10.2.1,  but there are many exciting features and new features which make me switch my lecture material to this new IDE for the next semester.

MCUXpresso IDE V10.3.0

MCUXpresso IDE V10.3.0

Continue reading →

Playing Zork with FreeRTOS on ARM in three different Ways

Posted on by
3

You might wonder what ‘Zork‘ is? Zork is one of the first and earlist fictive computer games, written around 1977 and 1979, written in MDL on a DEC PDP-10 by members of the MIT Dynamic Modelling group (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zork). I believe the first time I have played Zork was around 1984 on a Commodore 64.

Zork

Zork

Continue reading →

Using GDB Server Monitor Commands from Eclipse GDB Console

Posted on by
Reply

With Eclipse as IDE it is very easy to debug an application on a board. Still sometimes it is useful to get one level down and control the GDB server directly.

Monitor Flash Download

Monitor Flash Download

Continue reading →

Replacing a cheap Chinese CO2 Laser Tube

Posted on by
11

What is the life span of a cheap Chinese CO2 laser tube? I mean: how long can I use one these (aka K40) laser engraver/cutter tubes as used in that 50W machine I have? I have used my machine for over a year for now, and I don’t have hour meter, but I estimate it have used it for about 500 hours. I don’t have a data sheet of the tube used inside my machine. Discussions on the internet estimate the live span from DOA (Dead On Arrival) to ‘a few months with moderate usage’ up to 3000-5000h’. Well, whatever it would be: my laser cutter stopped working two weeks ago. Here is how I got it back operating again….

New Laser Tube on the Bench

New Laser Tube on the Bench

Continue reading →

Lasercut Plywood Board for Raspberry Pi

Posted on by
2

Need a quick way how to attach a LED, a push button and two resistors to the Raspberry Pi header? One way is to use some ‘flying’ wires. Or to use three pieces of lasercut plywood for a nice looking Raspy extension board:

Wood Board on Raspberry Pi

Wood Circuit Board on Raspberry Pi

Continue reading →

Tutorial: Git with Eclipse

Posted on by
17

There are things which are game changer in the world of software development: one such event was when I started using a VCS (Version Control System): it changed for me how I keep and store my projects and settings. It even changed the way how I deal with non-software related items like documents or other valuable things: I started storing them in to a VCS too.

EGit with Eclipse

EGit with Eclipse

Continue reading →

McuOnEclipse Components: 30-Sept-2018 Release

Posted on by
3

I’m pleased to announce a new release of the McuOnEclipse components, available on SourceForge. This release includes several bug fixes, extra support for the NXP S32 Design Studio and SDK and includes FreeRTOS V10.1.1.

SourceForge

SourceForge

Continue reading →

Hiking in the Tschamin Valley

Posted on by
1

Summer is over and Fall has started in the northern hemisphere. Time of the year to do more beautiful hikes in the Alps. This time I take you on a hike through the green Tschamin valley: for me one of the most beautiful and scenic places in the Dolomites, Italy.

Rechter Leger

Rechter Leger

Continue reading →

Hiking the Poppenkanzel

Posted on by
6

Oh, the mountains! Getting up, free your mind and have a wonderful view! So here is another hike with stunning views we enjoyed this summer: from the Karer Pass up to the Poppenkanzel on the Latemar. Including sitting in a movie theatre 🙂

View from the Latemar

View from the Latemar

Continue reading →

Tutorial: μCUnit, a Unit Test Framework for Microcontrollers

Posted on by
23

Unit testing is a common practice for host development. But for embedded development this still seems mostly a ‘blank’ area. Mostly because embedded engineers are not used to unit testing, or because the usual framework for unit testing requires too many resources on an embedded target?

What I have used is the μCUnit framework which is a small and easy to use framework, targeting small microcontroller applications.

uCUnit

uCUnit

Continue reading →

Tutorial: First Steps with Embedded Artists NXP i.MX RT1052 OEM Module

Posted on by
14

Not ready for the complexity of a full blown Embedded Linux, but need that extra compute performance? Need an ARM Cortex-M7 running at 600 MHz module on a half-sized business card, ready to be integrated? Here we go: the Embedded Artists i.MX RT1052 OEM module:

Embedded Artists NXP i.MX RT1052 OEM Module

Embedded Artists NXP i.MX RT1052 OEM Module

Compute modules are very common in the Embedded Linux space, for example see this Toradex module. The reason is simple: these high-performance boards simplify the design, as I don’t have to care about the BGA packages and the external SDRAM and FLASH devices: everything is on a module I can easily integrate into my base board.

Continue reading →