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  1. #41
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    chose from stellaris Cortex-M3 MCU (has hardware divide) and STM32 also new CORTEX M3 MCU just released and is really cheap, or LPC2101 70Mhz ARM7 just 3,15$, this was cheapest ARM mcu before Cortex-M3 mcu appeared.

    Hardware should be plenty powerful and adaptive to lots of situations.
    Hard stuff!
    I know just one chip that is super powerful, super adaptive, fits all and it is FPGA.
    currently the most cheapest fpga of all cheapest fpgas out there that are available in small Quantities is 10,97$ Mouser.com Lattice ECP2 6000 Lut's packed in 144EQFP. in this chip you can put inside 2 independent 32bit CPU's (they offer free Open source LaticeMicro32 Core) + other logic like quadrature encoder decoders. This is only cheapest 6000 logic fpga that has special sysDSP blocks

    and this cheap fpga has 3 such DSP blocks which offer impressive DSP power running on 375Mhz we get more than 3.375 GMACs in 9bit mode in32bit mode that would be about 1.125 GMACs.
    so you can say that this is most powerfully 11$ chip out there for hobby use.

    I am playing now with cyclone III



  2. #42
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    Good GOD!
    I was about to shell out 11$ for a ATmega88-20...

    That's what i'm talking about!



  3. #43
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    ATmega88 is $3.76 at digikey: http://search.digikey.com/scripts/Dk...MEGA88-20AU-ND

    LPC2101 is $3.32 at digikey: http://search.digikey.com/scripts/Dk...me=568-2092-ND

    Lattice LFE2-6E,,,, 10.97 at mouser: http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...t8clyMEg%3d%3d

    I'm not sure how many hobbiests can handle a 144 pin tqfp......:-)

    Phil, Still too many interests, too many projects, and not enough time!!!!!!!!
    Vist my websites - http://pminmo.com & http://millpcbs.com


  4. #44
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    got to be good first with SOICs and LQFPs then SSOPs and TQFPs I hate putting $$ into waste just because of failed solders. I practiced with sample ICs of the same package.

    I would not suggest to get into FPGAs if you're just beginning with Embedded Systems. If you don't intend to buy a debugger, it's so hard to check where you went wrong with an FPGA. You may also want to step into CPLDs first before FPGAs.

    Simplest first before going to Complex ones. The more internal hardware and the more complex the structure of the Architecture, the more time you need to spend reading the datasheets and the notes. Besides, there would be fewer hobbyists who can help you with some more complex ICs.



  5. #45
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    Yes the comparison between a family of microprocessors and an FPGA, is much more complex, and it really depends on the application. There are an awfull lot of applications that an FPGA would be the wrong choice for. Maybe all the user wants to do is make a LED blink, or read a voltage and vary the rate the LED blinks....:-)

    Phil, Still too many interests, too many projects, and not enough time!!!!!!!!
    Vist my websites - http://pminmo.com & http://millpcbs.com


  6. #46
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    Indeed, however i do not see it how i could choose atmega88 upon the LPC2101/2102/2103.

    The FPGA will be later in a few years.
    Too bad the shipping on that site is 35$, since the chip price is 1/3 from here!

    I hate Portugal sometimes



  7. #47
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    Try Newark or RS.

    You get to talk with a lot of hobbyists on AVR and PIC. Few on the ARM7 and fewer for the FPGAs. There would also be a lot of registers to study for the higher end MCUs which may lead you to wonder why you're design ain't working even if the program is right (especially if you're using a GPIO that is also multiplexed to a special function like an ADC, though you will also be encountering them on the AVR and PIC).

    The widespread popularity of PICs and AVRs on the hobby world is more or less due to the fact that there are a lot of DIY kits and cheap programmers for them. And its availability in DIP form which is more accomodating to us hobbyists. For products I'd prefer surface mount, but for hobby I'd prefer DIP. You may also add the amount of help you can get from a lot of hobbyists who also use them, whereas you may be talking with a bunch of experienced pros to know a lot more about ARM7, DSPs, and FPGAs.

    Even if the ATMega88 cannot compete in power with the LPC2101 at the same price range, I will choose ATMega88 for the simpler projects. I'd laugh at myself if I'm under utilizing a powerful chip on my hardware. Actually, I'd even like the challenge of doing something without requiring the peripherals available in the better chips.



  8. #48
    Dream outside the Box frog's Avatar
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    You are correct there is a difference between microcontroller and Microprocessor.



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    Dream outside the Box frog's Avatar
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    I just had another Idea using a Pic Micro to control Mach3 through the USB port very complicated but a good idea. Any comments kd4fffd@yahoo.com



  10. #50
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    There is a product called smooth stepper that does that. The people that are using it say great things about it.

    Steve



  11. #51
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    Quote Originally Posted by frog View Post
    I just had another Idea using a Pic Micro to control Mach3 through the USB port very complicated but a good idea. Any comments kd4fffd@yahoo.com
    Why would you want to control MACH3?

    Phil, Still too many interests, too many projects, and not enough time!!!!!!!!
    Vist my websites - http://pminmo.com & http://millpcbs.com


  12. #52
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    I've used PIC processors alot, but im checking out others since PIC doesn't have Divide command in most of their line.

    Anything rotary like a lathe spindle or ignition timing in a car needs to Divide to calculate angle.

    I was working on building a PIC ignition controller for my turbo Mazda, but most automotive controllers use the Motorola Freescale processor that have a 1 cycle divide instruction. They get their crankshaft position from a pulse wheel then need to calculate ignition advance on the fly.

    Does the Arm7 have a fast divide?

    Manufacturer of CNC routers and Viper Servo Drives
    www.LarkenCNC.com and www.Viperservo.com


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Microchip vs Atmel

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