Which Microcontrollers to get?

[Pantsignal]

Hi
I am still very new to embedded systems and the such, I am learning basics on an Arduino UNO.

I am getting eager to try and create a simple circuit off of the Arduino. I have some board to wire the components too. In fact I have all parts I need except for a microcontroller. I am not sure what I need to but to make a small project, lets say using Blink (blink and LED based on the software uploaded). How would I use a microcontroller on just a plain electronics board (not on the Arduino).

By 'palin board' I mean something like this
https://solarbotics.com/product/20932/

 

[Bluejets]

One can "roll their own" using the board you referred to plus a few other components BUT ....
you can also buy a "clone Uno " that will get you going quite ok for probably less than the price of the piece of proto-board.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-ATme...791772?hash=item2a5459b59c:g:qPgAAOSwpdpVcFmW

 

[hevans1944]

I am getting eager to try and create a simple circuit off of the Arduino. I have some board to wire the components too. In fact I have all parts I need except for a microcontroller. I am not sure what I need to but to make a small project, lets say using Blink (blink and LED based on the software uploaded). How would I use a microcontroller on just a plain electronics board (not on the Arduino).

You are aware of course that once you have used your PC to download a program to the Arduino, you can disconnect the Arduino USB cable and use the Arduino "standalone" as an embedded microprocessor? As @Bluejets mentioned, you can purchase a "clone" Arduino (it is an open-source design) very inexpensively, connect it to your PC for programming, and after that it does whatever you programmed it to do as an embedded microcomputer or microcontroller. If you need an area for prototyping external circuits, there is a prototyping "shield" available for the Arduino that you can do that on. The shield plugs into the female receptacles on the Arduino Uno, bringing power and signals to the shield.

If you really want to program on a separate, tiny, microprocessor the Microchip PIC series is hard to beat. They come in all sorts of packages from teeny tiny itsy bitsy surface mount to easy-to-mount dual-in-line (DIP). You will need to purchase a PICkit 3 or the older PICKit 2 programming pod to allow you to download programs to the PIC, but these will work for the entire line of PICs that Microchip sells, so it's a one-time investment. The PICs have non-volatile FLASH memory, so once a PIC is programmed, it operates as a standalone embedded microprocessor... just like the Arduino but in a much smaller footprint.

I predict you are going to have a lot of fun @Pantsignal! Welcome to Electronics Point!

 

[Pantsignal]

You are aware of course that once you have used your PC to download a program to the Arduino, you can disconnect the Arduino USB cable and use the Arduino "standalone" as an embedded microprocessor? As @Bluejets mentioned, you can purchase a "clone" Arduino (it is an open-source design) very inexpensively, connect it to your PC for programming, and after that it does whatever you programmed it to do as an embedded microcomputer or microcontroller. If you need an area for prototyping external circuits, there is a prototyping "shield" available for the Arduino that you can do that on. The shield plugs into the female receptacles on the Arduino Uno, bringing power and signals to the shield.

If you really want to program on a separate, tiny, microprocessor the Microchip PIC series is hard to beat. They come in all sorts of packages from teeny tiny itsy bitsy surface mount to easy-to-mount dual-in-line (DIP). You will need to purchase a PICkit 3 or the older PICKit 2 programming pod to allow you to download programs to the PIC, but these will work for the entire line of PICs that Microchip sells, so it's a one-time investment. The PICs have non-volatile FLASH memory, so once a PIC is programmed, it operates as a standalone embedded microprocessor... just like the Arduino but in a much smaller footprint.

I predict you are going to have a lot of fun @Pantsignal! Welcome to Electronics Point!

Thanks for the response. Yes, I knew you could disconnect the Arduino, I just had no idea how to move a project from prototype to actual device. For example, if I wanted just a small device then having a whole Arduino is overkill in size.

I never knew about the PIC stuff, I will get researching so thanks for the lead on that info

 

[Crystal Wizard]

You can get smaller Arduinos.
I picked up a Nano Clone for £3.50

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Arduino-N...673207?hash=item2361bda277:g:xL4AAOSwqrtWp5Al

 

[Fish4Fun]

Hey Pantsignal! Welcome to EP and Welcome to the wonderful world of AVRs!

From my perspective there are two basic types of "embedded design".....the first case covers "one-offs" through short-run production of less than ~5k pieces....the other case covers "full-blown production" typically for the consumer market and generally has production schedules of > 5k pieces per month. In the first case the cost of the components is generally negligible compared to the costs of design/debugging/testing....in the second case the cost of components becomes increasingly important as the production quantity increases.....To help get a feeling for this, simply go to digikey's website and price some ATTINY2313A uControllers, currently they are $1.76 each in odd-lot quantities ( https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/atmel/ATTINY2313A-PU/ATTINY2313A-PU-ND/2238277 )....Certainly not a budget buster, but by the time you add a PCB, a Voltage Regulator, a Power Connector, some capacitors, shipping and sales tax, you will have >$20 in your components (I am certain of this because DigiKey's minimum order is $25, hehe).....By buying enough parts at one time to do 10 PCBs you could likely cut the cost per board in half.....but you will have spent ~$100.....And the ATTINY2313A is a mouse compared to its ATMEGA counterparts.... For the Same $100 you can easily find 10 x ATMEGA2560 clones or 15 x UNO clones.....But that is only part of the story......Even a very simple embedded uController project requires time to develop, debug, test and implement.....As an example take a simple project like a digital clock.....you can run to your local box store and pick one up for $10 and go to bed with the certain knowledge it will work, and that the box store made $4 selling it to you and your local government likely extorted you for another $0.50 to $1.00, or you can "build one" using a uController, a RTC module and some type of display module for ~$20 in components PLUS 10 to 120 hours of your time (too large a variable in time? hehehe...welcome to the wonderful world of embedded systems where things NEVER quite seem to go like you think they will ;-) ). Obviously in this example you would need a really good reason to start the clock building project....But there are many, many, many examples of projects involving embedded designs which don't have mass-market analogues so readily and cheaply available.....and for those projects a $6-$12 Arduino board is a really cheap way to avoid the costs associate with one-off PCB production and population.

A great example of how an Arduino can be used very cost effectively in an embedded system is the Rep-Rap 3D printers.....In this case the Arduino2560 replaces both a traditional PC and a Motion Control board......3D printers prior to the Rep-Rap revolution were exorbitantly expensive.....it took some really clever programmers thousands of code-hours to transform the inconspicuous Arduino Board into a top-notch motion control system......Industrial systems that do far less still cost thousands of dollars....Would a more robust processor have made a "better" motion control system? Would it have been easier to design a motion control system from the ground up? Yes, Yes, certainly, but I don't think there is nearly enough volume in the 3D printer market to make such a proprietary system affordable.....

The moral of the story here is that while it might seem "wasteful" to use an Arduino in a "simple project", in reality in most DIY cases it is hands down the most cost effective and time efficient solution....

Have Fun!

Fish