Spring 2016 3DOT Goliath, Uploading the Firmware onto the 3Dot Board

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By:  Tae Min Lee (Systems)

Before we upload any programs onto the PCB we have to upload a firmware.  The ATMEL Mega32u4 we soldered on the 3Dot cannot function because the chip has not been programmed.  In order to make the PCB programmable we will require to upload a firmware (programmable program) using ISP (In-System Programmer).

Steps we will be taking to uploading the firmware onto the PCB:

  1. Install the USB driver for the AVRISP mkii (Guide: USB Driver Installation).
  2. ISP connection pins are needed to communicate with a device through the SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) using pins MOSI, MISO, Vcc, GND, SCK, RESET.
  3. Using the ISP connector connect it to the ICSP header to reprogram the microprocessor.
    1. When connecting the ISP connector onto the ICSP header make sure the orientation of the connection is correct. For more info refer to the AVRISP mkii Programming document.
  4. Download the following zip file from https://github.com/sparkfun/Arduino_Boards
    1. Extract Caterina-promicro8. hex file
      1. Open Arduino_Boards-master -> sparkfun -> avr -> bootloaders -> caterina
    2. Open up AVR Studio 4 and click on AVR Icon shown below
    3. Click on disconnected mode and go to Main tab and select the device that will be used and click read signature
    4. Go to program tab and under flash open the file from step an and press program
  5. Now you’re finished and ready to use the 3Dot Board

 

Sources:

  1. https://github.com/sparkfun/Arduino_Boards