BASIC Compiler & Programming on Arduino Zero Boards (Crowdfunding)

BASIC Compiler Arduino

Arduino boards are normally programmed using Arduino “programming language” that’s more like an API using C/C++ language.  But when I started in high-school I remember learning Pascal and BASIC programming languages. Bruce Eisenhard also learned BASIC in the past, so he decided to port his company’s ARM BASIC compiler to Arduino Zero, and it should also work on other boards based on Microchip SAMD21G Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller. The compiler includes floating-point, strings, inline assembly, interrupts, pre-processor, and the BASIC firmware supports direct access to hardware registers so you can control digital and analog I/Os, ADCs, and other peripherals using BASIC programming language. A runtime monitor also facilitates debugging. The IDE used for development is called BASICtools that’s a free 30MB download which install programs and documentation. There are also libraries and examples from blinky to more complex code. It’s been possible to run interpreted BASIC on Arduino for a while, […]

The Visible Lisp Computer Runs on Adafruit ItsyBitsy M0 Board

Specified in 1958, Lisp is one of the oldest programming languages, and it does not appear to be widely used anymore. But if you want to play around with the 61 years old language, you may want to do so in a neat way via the Visible Lisp Computer, a Lisp interpreter that displays the contents of the Lisp workspace on an OLED display. It is a modified version of Technoblogy’s uLisp interpreter for Arm boards designed to run on  Adafruit ItsyBitsy M0, or other boards based on Microchip ATSAMD21E MCU on a prototyping board, connected to a 64×48 OLED display over I2C. uLisp gives you a workspace of 3072 free Lisp objects (each of 8 bytes) on this hardware, which exactly matches the 3072 pixels (64×48) from the display.  Having said that the program would also work on larger SSD1306-based OLED displays. The display shows free Lisp objects in […]

$10 Wio Lite W600 Arduino Zero Compatible WiFi Board Follows Adafruit Feather Form Factor

Seeed Studio has just released the latest Arduino compatible Wio Lite W600 a combination of the W600 WiFi module mounted on the board and an Atmel  SAM D21 Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller. The WiFi core is a W600 2.4 GHz module featuring the Arm Cortex-M3. The SAM D21 is the same chip used by the Arduino Zero, so the Wio Lite W600 is compatible with Arduino Zero. Basic Specs The I/O level is 3.3V, and there are 6 analog pins and 14 digital pins, as well as one UART, I2C, and ICSP port. The board is powered through a USB Type C port or a 3.5V–4.2V LiPo battery. The latest feature is the W600 module is CE/FCC certified and supports 802.11 b/g/n WiFi. The WiFi module also features 1MB on-chip flash to store and run freeRTOS operating system. Seeed Studio provides a full Arduino W600 library and demos for many wireless […]

Arduino Partners with Chirp to Enable Data-Over-Sound M2M Connectivity

Announced on August 12, 2019, Arduino has partnered with the London-based Chirp, a wireless data-over-sound software solution for machine-to-machine connectivity.  The system has the ability to work online or offline, as long as there is a loudspeaker and a microphone available. The software works with the Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense board in send and receive mode, while most Arduino MKR boards and Arduino Nano 33 IoT will also be supported by the SDK, but only to send data. The software and board are fully compatible with SDKs from a wide variety of platforms. The Nano 33 BLE Sense is available for purchase from the Arduino website, for $29.50. The sensor-rich Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense is application-ready right out of the box, and Chirp is ready to start sending encoded data from a device fitted with an audio speaker, to the board’s built-in microphone, where it is encoded and […]

SAMD21 MINI / Wemos D1 SAMD21 M0 Mini Development Board Sells for $7 and Up

SAMD21 Mini Development Board

Microchip / Atmel SAMD21 Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller has been around for several years, and we covered various boards based on the MCU include the official Arduino Zero launched in 2014, Arduino Tian, and the tiny SAM 15×15 or Exen Proto boards among others. Another SAMD21 development board has now shown up on Electrodragon website: SAMD21 Mini Development Board sold for $14.50 on the website, but you’ll also find it, under the RobotDyn or Wemos brand on Aliexpress for $7.05 and up. SAMD21 Mini Board / WeMos D1 SAMD21 M0 Mini Specifications: MCU – Microchip ATSAMD21G18 Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller @ 48 MHz with 32KB data RAM, 256KB flash USB – 1x micro USB port for power and programming Expansion 2x 14-pin headers with 19x digital I/O (including 12x PWM), 6x Analog I/O 3.3V logic level Programming – 6-pin ISCP connector Misc – Power, Tx and Rx LED’s, button Power Supply Input […]

LEGO Minifigure shaped Mini SAM M4 Board Supports CircuitPython and Arduino

Mini SAM Lego Board

If you are a fan of the Lego movie. Perhaps you have always wanted to use Lego bricks to make something innovative and techy. Then the Mini SAM M4 board is here for you, as it is a LEGO minifigure-sized development board. Additionally, the design and layout of the board is based around the classic 1980’s ‘spaceman’, and is made by Ben Shockley. Although the board is very small, it has a lot of wonderful features. It comes with an analog reference decoupling/filtering capacitors. Also, it has an analog to digital ferrite bead, as well as a debounce circuitry for the reset and user buttons. Furthermore, the board’s software and firmware can be developed using CircuitPython or Arduino. The development board is either based on the Microchip SAMD51G 48-Pin 32-Bit ARM – Cortex M4F MCU (Mini SAM M4), or features the Microchip SAMD21G 48-Pin 32-Bit ARM Cortex -M0+ MCU running […]

DIP-Sized uChip Arduino Zero Compatible Board Loves Your Breadboard (Crowdfunding)

uchip breadboard-friendly arduino board

Most so-called breadboard-friendly boards that can easily be inserted into a breadboard often leave only one or two rows to play with on each side. This may suitable in many cases, but some people really want to use as many rows as possible, and come up with a solution using 90 degrees headers with 0.3″ spacing between them, just like 0.3″ wide chips do, and allowing the use of 4 rows on each side of the board. It does the trick, but this is not a standard solution, requires some bending of the headers, and covers part of the board so it’s not really ideal. A better way would be for somebody to design a narrow board using headers with 0.3″ spacing, and that’s exactly what Itaca Innovation has done with their Arduino Zero compatible uChip board designed in a 16-pin DIP package. uChip specifications: MCU – Microchip SAMD21 Arm […]

Seeeduino Lotus Cortex-M0+ is a $10 Arduino compatible Board with 12 Grove Connectors

Seeeduino Lotus

Grove modules are cool little add-on boards that connect through 4-pin header using UART, I2C, analog or digital I/Os, and usually you’d need to buy a HAT or shield to connect them to respectively Raspberry Pi or Arduino board. But Seeed Studio has come up with a small Arduino compatible board based on Microchip  SAMD21 microcontroller called Seeeduino Lotus Cortex-M0+ that may be the cheapest “Grove” solution around as it sells for just $9.90. Seeeduino Lotus Cortex-M0+ specifications: MCU – Microchip Atmel SAMD21 Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller at 48MHz with 256KB Flash and 32KB SRAM as found in Arduino Zero. USB – 1x micro USB port for power and programming Expansion 12x on-board Grove connectors (6x Digital, 3x Analog, 1x UART and 2x I2C) Arduino UNO headers 14x Digital I/O Pins (10 PWM outputs) 6x Analog Inputs I/O pins are 3.3V, do not input more than 3.3V, otherwise the CPU may […]

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