msp430 News - Page 2 of 2 - CNX Software

January 19, 2012January 19, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

TI SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3000 Brings WiFi Connectivity to All Devices

Yesterday, Texas Instruments unveiled the SimpleLink product family, a portfolio of wireless connectivity technologies for low-power, low-cost embedded applications, which includes self-contained wireless processors supporting Wi-Fi, ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, and ANT. The most noticeable product is the SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3000, a self-contained 802.11 (WiFi) network processor, that can be added to any embedded application and provide WiFi connectivity to the Internet of Things. With this solution, you can add WiFi to any device, even those powered by MCUs without operating systems such as dishwashers, toasters, refrigerators, thermostats, and factory automation equipment. I wish they’ll make new version of the MSP430 Chronos Wireless Watch with WiFi connectivity, this would remove the need for the RF Dongle. This solution features TCP, UDP and IP software stacks in the chip, it consumes 0.5% of the resources as compared to traditional Wi-Fi and only requires 6KB Flash and 3KB RAM. The company claims it can be […]

September 8, 2011September 8, 2011 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Embedded Systems Conference Boston 2011 Sessions Schedule

ESC Boston 2011 will take place on the 26-29 September 2011, four days of hands-on training, educational sessions and an interactive exhibit hall. There are 5 programs during the event: ESC Boston – Embedded software development tutorials for Android, Linux, microprocessors, QA, C programming, etc… DesignCon East – Hardware tutorials, e.g. SDRAM debugging, hardware encryption… DesignMED – Embedded systems development for embedded medical devices. Designing with LEDs! – LED hardware and drivers. DesignDays – Embedded systems sessions mainly presented by semiconductor companies and hands-on tutorials on specific platforms such as Beagleboard or TI MSP430 Chronos Wireless Watch. There are simply too many sessions (over 170) to list them all here. So I’ll selected a few among ESC Boston and DesignDays that look particularly interesting: Android Jump Start (Monday 26 – 8:00 – 17:00) by William Gatliff (Consultant, Freelance) and Karim Yaghmour (CEO, Opersys Inc.) . The features that make Android a great cell […]

August 17, 2011August 17, 2011 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Texas Instruments TRF7970A NFC Transceiver

Texas Instruments has introduced the TRF7970A NFC Transceiver ” speeds designs with easy-to-configure software that helps developers bring peer-to-peer, ultra-low-power capabilities to more applications”. Here’s an excerpt from the press release: Raising the standard for ultra-low-power near field communication (NFC) devices, Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NYSE: TXN) today announced the industry’s lowest power contactless short-range communication transceiver. Ideal for infrastructure devices, the new TRF7970A extends battery life up to 2 times longer than competitive products, as it provides eight selectable power modes ranging from <1 uA in power-down mode to 120 mA in full-power mode. The transceiver comes with easy-to-configure software to help developers get started quickly. Royalty-free stacks are compatible across a broad range of ultra-low-power MSP microcontrollers. Additionally, developers are able to directly access all control registers, allowing for easy fine-tuning of various parameters for the highest performance in every application. You can also read the complete TRF7970A […]

March 25, 2011March 25, 2011 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Temperature Data Logging with TI eZ430-Chronos Watch

I wanted to record 24-hour of temperature data with eZ430-Chronos devkit and draw the result in a spreadsheet to see how the temperature evolves during the day. Here are the instructions to do so. 1. Update firmware to Chronos Datalogger. In order to record temperature data in your eZ430-Chronos development kit, you’ll need to update the firmware to use Chronos Datalogger. First start the Chronos Control Center, click on the Wireless Update tab, click on browse to select the Chronos Datalogger firmware file matching your hardware. In my case, I selected C:\Program Files\Texas Instruments\eZ430-Chronos\Recovery\Chronos Watch\Applications\eZ430_Chronos_Datalogger_433MHz_1_5.txt. Then click on Update Chronos Watch. On the watch, press the # button several time to enter rFbSl mode and press the down button to start the wireless update. 2. Configure the watch for temperature logging. Now start Chronos Data Logger software, click on Start Access Point. On your watch, press the # button to […]

March 22, 2011 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Texas Instruments eZ430-Chronos Wireless Watch Unboxing

I’ve just received the eZ430-Chronos development tool I ordered last week (after 2 working days) by Fedex. Today, I’ll just post some pictures of the kit and provide some descriptions. There is a woman jogging on the box because you can actually buy a chest strap to monitor your speed, heart beat and calories consumption. If you would like to purchase one (49 Euros), it is available at http://www.bm-innovations.com/index.php/shop_products.html. Apparently there are only 868MHz (EU) and 915MHz (USA) versions, and they do not sell the strap for the 433MHz (international) version as I have. The watch is normally turned off the first time you open the box, it’s just turned on on the picture because I used it before taking the pictures. The content of the box includes: eZ430-Chronos wireless watch eZ430 USB programming and debugging interface (Bottom left) CC1111 USB RF access point (Bottom right on top of the […]

March 17, 2011March 17, 2011 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Texas Instruments MSP430 Devkit Facebook Promotion

Texas Instruments is currently offering 50% discount on selected development kits for its Facebook Fans for purchase on TI eStore until stocks last. The two development kits are sold at 50% discount: EZ430-Chronos-433 – eZ430-Chronos Wireless Watch Development Tool, a highly integrated, wireless development system based for the CC430 in a sports watch. It may be used as a reference platform for watch systems, a personal display for personal area networks, or as a wireless sensor node for remote data collection. The original price is 49 USD, but it can be ordered for 24.50 USD (including shipping) with the promo code: FCB-sfVwiUYe EZ430-F2013 – MSP430 USB Stick Development Tool, a complete development system with detachable target board and USB emulator. Ideal for new users. The original price is 20 USD, but it can be ordered for 10 USD (including shipping) with the promo code: FCB-ZC7Y86yQ I’ve ordered the Wireless Watch […]