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14-Aug-23 23:44

Hi All,

In my constant struggles called a job I have to design a test rig for a project. In it is an Embedded Section which I have an issue (dang serial port not sending quite the right characters), I go to the Arduino website to ask a question, I can't log in with any of my accounts, I choose the 'Help, I have forgotten my Password' enter my email and wait I have been waiting since yesterday. Give it a kick while checking Spam, nothing contact the help desk via Email, nothing. I was against using Arduino as it's too hobbyist (I use them for controlling Christmas Lights!). Has anyone else used Arduino for Real applications?
Glenn

Graeme_Grant15-Aug-23 0:01

Graeme_Grant

15-Aug-23 0:01

If you're seeing garbage, changes are you have the wrong baud rate, bits, parity, &/or stop bit. The last 3 are usually 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop bit (8N1).

Graeme

"I fear not the man who has practiced ten thousand kicks one time, but I fear the man that has practiced one kick ten thousand times!" - Bruce Lee

glennPattonWork315-Aug-23 0:08

15-Aug-23 0:08

Thanks for that, but I think I may be onto the issue, Voltage levels not correct. If I use the serial port connected via the USB I get the correct output. Using one which is present on the chip (also broken out on the headers) It does not have the correct levels. Using a scope I can see the voltage is around 500mV when I send something... MAX232 to the rescue?

Mircea Neacsu15-Aug-23 0:39

Mircea Neacsu

15-Aug-23 0:39

If it’s a proper RS232 port, your Tx line should have a negative voltage while not sending. If it’s one of those TTL serial ports you would see 3.3 (or 5V) while not sending.

Mircea

glennPattonWork315-Aug-23 1:57

15-Aug-23 1:57

Thanks, that was the issue need a dang buffer! Now a seperate issue, finding 5V available on the board!

Peter Shaw16-Aug-23 8:45

Peter Shaw

16-Aug-23 8:45

And you would be most likely right.

It's bitten me before, not just on Arduino, but other MCU's too.

The uarts on all of them, output at the supply voltage 99% of the time, so a 5V Arduino, is gonna signal at 5v on it's UART lines, you can use a MAX232 that will certainly solve your issue and push the signals into the 12v range which is where they need to be for traditional serial connections... BUT, you need to remember that in some cases it's not just the voltage level but the offset too.

I've encountered serial systems that run from -6v to +6v with 0 meaning NO DATA on the line, your MCU signals irrespective of voltage are mostly going to be 0v to VCC.

What I often do is use one of those voltage bridge things (Forget the exact name), something similar to this:

RUNCCI-YUN 15pcs 4 Channels IIC I2C Logic Level Converter Bi-Directional Module 3.3V to 5V Shifter for Arduino (Pack of 15) : Amazon.co.uk: Business, Industry & Science

You can get ones where you can actually set the low side and high side voltages yourself, while everything still shares a common ground.

What you then do is you set the low side to your MCU voltage range, and your high side using a separate power supply to your serial line voltage range (accounting for the correct offset).

The problem with the MAX232 is that there are so many fakes around it's stupid hard to know if you have a genuine one, it's exactly the same problem with the FTDI & Prolific chips too, if your going that route you have to absolutely make 100% sure that your supplier is NOT sourcing Chinese stock.

glennPattonWork316-Aug-23 9:10

16-Aug-23 9:10

Thanks, I am well aware of the fakes, I have had experience of some Lattice X64 chips, which were got by a customer despite them being out of stock (this was for a use that 'questions were asked' by the end user!) it seemed they were mostly 'OK' a few lacked the top 32MB, hence the questions 'where did these come from?', responce, 'dear Green Alien | [Alien]

pull the product now!'...

Peter Shaw16-Aug-23 11:02

Peter Shaw

16-Aug-23 11:02

Yep, and very often, sadly they can be quite hard to spot until it's too late.

I've been bitten so much over the years, that I now try to source direct from the manufacturers, even if it does cost more.

Mike Hankey15-Aug-23 4:15

Mike Hankey

15-Aug-23 4:15

Try these people, they are very helpful and responsive.

AVR Freaks[^]

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honey the codewitch15-Aug-23 5:06

honey the codewitch

15-Aug-23 5:06

On an ESP32, the Arduino HAL is superior in some ways to that of the ESP-IDF. If you are using an ESP32 in your professional projects, it makes sense to seriously consider Arduino, but you have to be careful because a lot of the libraries and such are hobbyist implemented.

I wouldn't even recommend using an ESP32 in your projects, and since then my outfit has moved away from them in favor of more professional offerings.

Check out my IoT graphics library here:
https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx

Owen Lawrence16-Aug-23 4:15

Owen Lawrence

16-Aug-23 4:15

Now I have so many questions:

How is Arduino HAL superior? Is it just coverage for more devices, better implementation of specific devices, or something more architectural, or ESP-32 specific?
What led you to divert from ESP32? What would you consider to be "more professional"?

I've invested a lot of time learning ESP32-IDF, but if there's something better I'd like to know about it. The fact that they're cheap is a big one for me. Sure I'm just doing hobby IoT stuff, but I've got well over three decades of software development experience under my belt and I've got some attitude about how I'm willing to go about things.

_ Owen _

honey the codewitch16-Aug-23 5:03

honey the codewitch

16-Aug-23 5:03

For starters ESP-IDF's SPI Master API does not let you manually set transaction boundaries, and requires you to copy memory into a buffer in order to send. It's heavy handed, and I get up to 30% better frame rates driving LCDs from Arduino. Also, you can't set speeds once you configure the device, making driving things like the RA8875 with integrated touch unrealistic.

Check out my IoT graphics library here:
https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx

honey the codewitch16-Aug-23 5:05

honey the codewitch

16-Aug-23 5:05

I forgot to answer your other question.

I've moved to a variety of other chips including STM32s and Nordic chips. The straw that broke the camel's back was the inability to drive 40 pin LCDs from an ESP32.

Check out my IoT graphics library here:
https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx

Owen Lawrence16-Aug-23 6:09

Owen Lawrence

16-Aug-23 6:09

Thanks for the answers.

If the provided libraries don't do what I want (or the way I want), I tend to scavenge for other more focused ones, often building up my own, piecemeal, to remain minimalist. The last thing I want is to drag in resource hunger for features I'll never use. But I'll admit I've got more time than brains, and at the moment I'm not doing anything sophisticated. I do have long term plans that may require following your example, though these problems could go away by the time I get there.

I would have liked something better for provisioning over Bluetooth. It took so much room (why?!!!) that I couldn't use OTA. In the end I rolled my own without Bluetooth, something that served my immediate needs.

_ Owen _

CCC 15-08-2023 - edit

pkfox14-Aug-23 22:03

pkfox

14-Aug-23 22:03

Formally enough for instance (7)
As Richard MacCutchan pointed out - formally should've been formerly - Mea culpa

In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity. - Hunter S Thompson - RIP

modified 15-Aug-23 5:05am.

Re: CCC 15-08-2023 - Winner !

OriginalGriff14-Aug-23 22:14

OriginalGriff

14-Aug-23 22:14

Formally   EX
enough       AMPLE

for instance
EXAMPLE

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pkfox14-Aug-23 22:17

pkfox

14-Aug-23 22:17

Well done I didn't want to do another one Thumbs Up | :thumbsup:

In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity. - Hunter S Thompson - RIP

Re: CCC 15-08-2023 - Winner !

OriginalGriff14-Aug-23 22:38

OriginalGriff

14-Aug-23 22:38

I guessed that! Laugh | :laugh:

Richard MacCutchan14-Aug-23 22:44

Richard MacCutchan

14-Aug-23 22:44

"Formally", i.e conventional, does not mean "formerly", i.e something from an earlier time.

pkfox14-Aug-23 22:54

pkfox

14-Aug-23 22:54

Predictive text Sniff | :^)

I should have spotted it

In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity. - Hunter S Thompson - RIP