Week 4: Embedded Programming

Regional Meeting
Yerlan Turgenbayev
Penguin as paper-fold
Teneth Vinyl cutter
Fiber-laser monportlaser
Mkhitar Evoyan
Crazy inclined cuts
[
Zhirayr Ghukasyan
beautiful origami fold
Patrick Dezséri
http://www.lasersaur.com/
svgsilh
Vinyl cut
Irja Linnerud
http://irja-ed23b9.waaglabs.nl/Assignments/week3/
Dylan Heneck
https://cutecutter.com/
Fab Lab Hisar (Istanbul, Turkey)
Group assignment is not online yet
dora-tasci

Neil's Lecture
Intro
everybody now has a global evaluator. the global eval is not only an evaluation but its also a person to talk to when there are problems and they help you to fulfill fa standards
there is a schedule for it
February 12: global eval started
March 9: US Daylight Savings Time
by March 1: student+local+global intro meetings
April 9-23:
    - break, midterm
    - preceding weekly assignments due
    - student+local+global review meetings
    - review assignments and final plan
    - sort into likely/possible/unlikely to finish this cycle
June 4: weekly assignments due
June 9-13: final presentations
June 16-20: student+local+global review meetings
June 23: global eval decisions deadline
July 4-11: FAB25
Student Reviews
... ??? from charlotte latin
button box
https://fabacademy.org/2020/labs/oulu/students/anssi-heikkinen/finalproject.html
reykjavik, evert
https://fabacademy.org/2025/labs/reykjavik/students/evert-jensson/
https://fabacademy.org/2021/labs/leon/students/alberto-gonzalez/finalproject.html
works in the fablab, interested in using the fablab more an dimproves his teaching.
include the prompts when you do LLM stuff!
final project: some chair thingy
but you can also do a final project that fly:
kitagaya: https://fabacademy.org/2022/labs/kitakagaya/students/yusuke-takahashi/projects/final-project/
ernesto castro
https://fabacademy.org/2025/labs/ulima/students/ernesto-castro/
final project: ...
there is a mini mini tiny fab thingy neil showed
concern: you need a material that easily dissolves, but the materaial would be very  vulnerable
you can also cut using hot wire.
search: "pancake plotter"
ahmet burhan bas
https://fabacademy.org/2025/labs/hisar/students/ahmet-bas/
does automata kit to teach people about automatic systems
https://507movements.com/
https://dl.acm.org/doi/fullHtml/10.1145/3701571.3703389
https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/3701571.3703389
wants to do somethign with audio
https://archive.fabacademy.org/fabacademy2016/fablabreykjavik/students/331/final_project.html
final project:
this in hardware: https://www.incredibox.com/
the best music project ever: antonis cristion of htmaa: https://fab.cba.mit.edu/classes/863.24/people/AntonisChristou/about/
he likes very abstract music
it was a graphical game. while you were building the sahpes, you are synthesizing
shintaro ito: node japan kannai
data analysis
https://fabacademy.org/2025/labs/kannai/students/shintaro-ito/
fabacademy because: read some book from neil
final project: cleaning wheels
project to make a dishwasher by jfduval
koharu takeda
nice vinyl cutting design
final project:
some table tennis table
Doaa Elbess
jewelry holder
Evelyn Cuadrado
akash
did flexible cardboard thing by engravign away the top layer of it.
ofelia
in week 3 sh built masks from vinyl cutter
Ferdi's Addendum
option to have class in bigger classroom?
yes why not
tomorrow at 9:
we all would be terribly bored with an arduino intro class
arduino intro
we should have a look at the few available microprocessors
make a plan on what we have to do for the group assignment
social modia appointment
available boards
xiao
we will use the rp2040 a lot
yes, we really should read all the manual

Microprocessors and -controllers
audiobook of data sheet ATtiny212_412
recitation
presentation
literature explaining working with AVRs
microcontroller vs -processor
download platformio for vscode
MCU
An MCU is a group of microcontroller units that share a common architecture, design, and often the same core features
ARM Cortex-M is a popular MCU family, where multiple manufacturers like STMicroelectronics, NXP, and Microchip produce MCUs that are based on the ARM Cortex-M core.
AVR is another MCU family, famously used in the Arduino platform.
PIC is a family of MCUs from Microchip Technology, with a range of devices from small 8-bit controllers to more powerful 16-bit and 32-bit versions.
Within each MCU family, you’ll typically see models that differ by features like:
Flash memory size
RAM size
Clock speed
Number of GPIO pins
Peripheral support (e.g., UART, SPI, I2C, timers, etc.)
In-System Programming (ISP)
the act of programming a microcontroller while it is already mounted on the board
Contrary to Pre-Programming. You program the contro
CMSIS-DAP Devices are all devices that can write programs into a microcontroller's memory using JTAG or SWD.
ler before soldering it somewhere.
Available Controllers
At least 5 of each:
SEEEDSTUDIO XIAO SAMD21 NO HDRS
SEEEDSTUDIO XIAO ESP32C3 NO HDRS
SEEEDSTUDIO XIAO ESP32S3 NO HDRS
SEEED STUDIO XIAO RP2040 ARDUINO
ATSAMD11C14A-SSUT
ATSAMD21E18A-AUT
ATTINY412-SSFR
ATTINY1624-SSFR
ATTINY3226-SU
AVR128DB32-I/PT
Xiao RP2040
Pico RP2040
ESP32C3
ESP32S3
SAMD21
ATSAMD11C14A-SSUT
ATSAMD21E18A-AUT
ATTINY412-SSFR
ATTINY1624-SSFR
ATTINY3226-SU
AVR128DB32-I/PT
Type
ARM Cortex M0+ 32Bit
ARM Cortex M0+ 32Bit
ESP-RISC-V  32Bit
Xtensa® 32-bit LX7
ARM-Cortex M0+ 32Bit
ARM Cortex-M0+ 32Bit
ARM Cortex M0+ 32Bit
AVR® RISC 8-bit
AVR® RISC 8-bit
AVR® RISC 8-bit
AVR® RISC 8-bit
Frequency
133MHz
133MHz
160 MHz
240 MHz
48MHz
48MHz
48MHz
20MHz
20MHz
20MHz
24MHz
SRAM
264KB
264KB
400 KB
8MB
32KB
4KB
32KB
256B
2KB
3KB
16KB
onboard memory
2MB
2MB
4MB
8MB
256KB
16KB
256KB
4KB
16KB
32KB
128KB
I/O-Pins
11
26
11
11
11
12
26
6
12
18
25/26 (1x only In)
ADC
4
3
3
9
11
5
6
6
9
15
13
DAC
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
1
Package
SOIC-14
TQFP-32
SOIC-8
SOIC-14
SOIC-20
TQFP-32
Price
4,68 $
5 $
4,99 $
7,49 $
5,4 $
1,58 $
4,03 $
0,59 $
1,01 $
1,29 $
2,06 $
FPU available?
RP2040 (Raspberry Pi Pico)
Toolchain:
Primary: Pico SDK (C/C++), CMake
Alternatives: Arduino IDE (via Arduino-Pico Core), MicroPython/CircuitPython
Workflow:
Write code in C/C++ or Python.
Build with CMake (Pico SDK) or Arduino IDE.
Flash via USB (UF2 bootloader) or SWD debugger (e.g., Picoprobe).
Efficiency Tips:
Use Visual Studio Code with the Pico SDK extension for CMake integration.
Leverage Picoprobe (a second Pico) for debugging.
ESP32 (Espressif)
Toolchain:
Primary: ESP-IDF (C/C++), PlatformIO
Alternatives: Arduino IDE (via ESP32 Core)
Workflow:
Develop in C/C++ (ESP-IDF) or Arduino framework.
Build with ESP-IDF CLI or PlatformIO.
Flash via USB (esptool.py) or OTA updates.
Efficiency Tips:
PlatformIO streamlines ESP-IDF/Arduino workflows.
Use ESP-Prog or JTAG for advanced debugging.
SAMD21/SAMD11 (Atmel/Microchip)
Toolchain:
Primary: Atmel/Microchip Studio (C/C++)
Alternatives: Arduino IDE (via SAMD Core)
Workflow:
Code in C/C++ (Microchip Studio) or Arduino.
Build and flash via USB (UF2 bootloader) or EDBG/SWD.
Efficiency Tips:
Use Arduino IDE for simplicity; enable verbose upload for debugging.
For low-level control, use CMSIS libraries in Microchip Studio.
Attiny/AVR128 (AVR Family)
Toolchain:
Primary: AVR-GCC + AVRdude
Alternatives: Arduino IDE (via ATTiny Core)
Workflow:
Write code in C/C++ or Arduino.
Compile with AVR-GCC or Arduino IDE.
Flash via ISP programmer (e.g., USBasp, Arduino-as-ISP).
Efficiency Tips:
Use PlatformIO for project management.
For tinyAVR (e.g., ATtiny85), optimize code size with 
-Os compiler flag.
General Workflow Optimization Tips
Unified Environments:
PlatformIO (VS Code) supports all listed MCUs, reducing toolchain setup time.
Arduino IDE (with board managers) simplifies entry-level development.
Debugging Tools:
SWD/JTAG: Use for RP2040, ESP32, SAMD21 (e.g., Segger J-Link, CMSIS-DAP).
Serial Monitor: Essential for ESP32/RP2040 debugging.
Version Control:
Use 
git for code management; track dependencies (e.g., submodules for Pico SDK).
Automation:
Write Makefiles or use PlatformIO scripts for CI/CD pipelines.
QFP mit Beinchen seitlich
TQFP ohne Beinchen
Soic-8 8 Beinchen
Punkt oder Kerbe kennzeichnen Pin 1
Putting code onto it
In-System Programming (ISP)
the act of programming a microcontroller while it is already mounted on the board
Contrary to Pre-Programming. You program the contro
CMSIS-DAP Devices are all devices that can write programs into a microcontroller's memory using JTAG or SWD.
ler before soldering it somewhere.
Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI)
A standard synchronous serial communication interface used for short-distance communication between a main device and one or more peripheral devices.
synchronous (needs clock signal), serial communication
multiple secondary devices are possible
full-duplex
pins:
MOSI (main out secondary in)
MISO (main in secondary out)
SCK (clock)
SS (secondary select): select which secondary device to communicate with
Serial Peripheral Data Interface (SPDI)
do not find any source for it
Good Article GERMAN
Joint Test Action Group (JTAG)
eletronics manufacturers committee
they developed a protocol with the same name
mostly used for programming ARM cores
daisy-chaining possible
pins
TMS: mode select
TCLK: clock
TDO: data out
TDI: data in
nRESET: reset (optional)
Serial Wire Debug (SWD)
two-pin variant of the JTAG protocol -> replaced JTAG
daisy-chaining not possible
most common on newer ARM chips
pins:
swdio: in/out
swclk: clock
Unified Program and Debug Interface (UPDI)
proprietary
single-wire,
bi-directional, half-duplex
asynchronous
can use off-the shelf UART adapters
used to program AVR microcontrollers released since 2016, ATTINY412, ATTINY164.
more detailed blog article
debugging is hidden behind a proprietary interface, but even though you can snoop on the protocol with just a serial adapter and even though the large scale structure of the protocol is known too
even more detailed article
i did not find out what part of the protocol actually is proprietary and what not.
Difference between microcontroller and -processor
...
Programmierer:
ISP-Programmierer
AVRISP MKII
FabISP
JTAG-Programmierer
ATMEL-ICE
http://pub.fabcloud.io/programmers/summary/

Open time
the key word is "browse" the datasheet
multiple projects failed last year due to unknown reasons
blacklisted in our lab
try ESP32 C6
Ricardo Marques
I've only used the esp32's for test but I had a lot of problems with a couple SAMD21 xiaos a while back.
I only use xiaos for testing these days.
For Datasheet Newbies...seek and find the following...
What chip?
What speed (indicated in MHz)?
What flash/SRAM memory (for storing programs)?
How many GPIO pins?
How many Analog pins?
What communication protocols does the board "speak" (UART, ISP, SPI, I2C, I2S, etc.)?
Does it have an ADC?
What voltage requirement for the microcontroller?
What is the microcontroller's Logic Voltage?
What Voltage and Current can the GPIO pins OUTPUT...and tolerate?
...for starters
if you haven't started one...start your personal FabAcademy Jargon Dictionary.
micro-controllers datasheets are super overwhelming, but once you go into inputs and outputs you won't have a choice but really get into them. thankfully they're shorter.
How I plan to do it: I would go through the data sheet and note down what I found interesting, just like "oh see, the esp32 c3 has this little feature". I would consider the data sheet reading documentation "playing around with the data sheet" so to say. less as an exhaustive summary of the data sheet.
Additional Tips
Teaching from leo-kuipers
Notes from Nicolas Decoster
Some interesting tabs I have open
pieter-hijma leo-kuipers
getting-started-with-arduino-ide
a-guide-to-making-the-right-microcontroller-choice
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars - APT. (Lyrics)