Itaca Innovation uChip Instruction manual

www.itaca-innovation.com uChip 1.5 user manual
mchip quick start manual
Document Version 1.2 –27/08/2019

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Table of contents
Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................4
Getting started ..................................................................................................................................................5
Integration with Arduino IDE........................................................................................................................ 5
Driver Installation.......................................................................................................................................... 6
Integration with Atmel Studio 7 IDE ............................................................................................................ 6
uChip power supply block diagram................................................................................................................8
SCHEMATICS .................................................................................................................................................9
Pinout, jumpers, LED and pushbutton ........................................................................................................10
Jumpers........................................................................................................................................................ 10
Built-in LED and reset/program button....................................................................................................... 11
Power management library for the Arduino IDE .......................................................................................12
FAQS ...............................................................................................................................................................13
Contact US ......................................................................................................................................................13

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www.itaca-innovation.com uChip 1.5 user manual
INTRODUCTION
Thank you for buying uChip!
This document covers the first steps required to use this small development board.
-Integration with Arduino
-Driver Installation
-Integration with Atmel Studio 7.
-Hardware and pinout
uChip is a small, open-source, Arduino
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-compatible development board, which fits a low cost 16-pin socket.
Featuring a Cortex M0+ ATSAMD21E18, it implements most of the functions of the Arduino Zero
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, including
a fully functional OTG USB Host. Like Arduino Zero has 256 kB of flash and 32 kB of RAM.
uChip also includes integrated buck and boost DC-DC converters, which allow:
-to generate the 5V@500mA for the USB Host, when the external voltage is between 3.3V and 5V.
-to provide externally 3.3V or the USB voltage at up to 1A, when uChip is USB-powered.
A support circuitry also prevents reverse current between the external voltage and the USB, when uChip is not
working as USB host. Furthermore, the support circuitry also implements an automatic power selection
between the USB and the external voltage.
When uChip is USB powered, the output voltage (VEXT) provided to pin 16 can be software selected, between
3.3V and the USB voltage (nominally 5V
3
).
Every uChip is 100% tested, with a very rigorous procedure:
1) The PCB is optically and electrically inspected.
2) The assembled PCB is optically inspected.
3) A test program is uploaded. The test involves checking all the pins, the DC/DC converters (up to the
maximum current), the USB port, the on-chip flash and RAM and read-out of the SAMD21 chip ID.
During all the steps, the input and output currents and voltages are monitored so that they comply with
the expected values.
4) The microcontroller is erased and a bootloader is flashed. Bootloader protection fuses are programmed
as well.
5) Finally, the bootloader functionality is tested.
This makes sure that defective units do not reach the market.
ESD Warning! uChip contains electrostatic sensitive devices. Electrostatic charge might
permanently damage uChip. Observe precautions when handling it. Itaca Innovation is not
responsible for any damage caused by ESD or improper handling/usage.
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Arduino is a trademark of Arduino s.r.l. There is no connection between Arduino s.r.l. and Itaca Innovation S.R.L.
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Some functions and pins might not be 100% implemented due to the reduced pin-count.
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Note that, when the USB voltage is selected, the actual output voltage will depend on the USB voltage (which might be
as low as 4.4V) and the output current (the voltage drop is typically 0.5Ω× I, where I is the output current in amperes).
When the 3.3V is selected, the output voltage will depend only on the current, with the typical relationship:
VEXT= 3.3V - 0.15Ω× I.

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GETTING STARTED
Integration with Arduino IDE
We assume that you already installed the Arduino IDE. If not, download it from here
https://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/software and follow the instructions.
1) Open the Arduino IDE.
2) Choose File preferences from the menu. This will open the “Preferences” window.
3) In the settings tab, add the following line, to the “additional Boards Manager URLs”
http://github.com/ITACAInnovation/uChip/raw/master/package_uChip_index.json
4) Press OK. This will close the “Preferences” window.
5) Select “Boards Manager” from the ToolsBoard: menu. This will open the “Boards Manager”
Window.

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6) Find and select uChip SAMD boards from ITACA INNOVATION S.R.L. and click on “Install”.
7) Close the window.
8) Now, depending on your OS:
Windows 10, linux, Mac OS X: No drivers are required, and you are ready to go!
Windows 8, 8.1, 7, Vista and XP: Driver installation is required (see next section).
Driver Installation
If you installed the uChip package on Arduino, the drivers are located here:
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Arduino15\packages\uChip\hardware\samd\1.0.0\drivers\
You can launch the installer by following these steps:
1) Open the “Run” dialog box by pressing and holding the Windows key, then press the R key (“Run”).
2) Write the following line:
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Arduino15\packages\uChip\hardware\samd\1.0.0\drivers\uchip
_driver_installer.exe
3) Press OK
The installation procedure should take few seconds.
Alternatively, if you do not want to install the Arduino IDE, you can download the drivers here:
https://github.com/ITACAInnovation/uChip/raw/master/uChip1.0.0.zip
Once you unzip this archive, you will find the drivers “uchip_driver_installer.exe”in the directory:
uChip1.0.0\drivers\
You can just double-click on uchip_driver_installer.exe.
Integration with Atmel Studio 7 IDE
uChip can be either programmed using a SWD programmer/debugger, such as JLINK, or by its USB port.
To be able to program uChip through the USB port, you must perform the following preliminary steps.
Warning: these steps assume that you either installed the Arduino IDE and the uChip package, or you have
downloaded and installed “Bossa” (http://www.shumatech.com/web/products/bossa).
1) Install the drivers, if you are not using Windows 10.
2) Open the Atmel Studio 7 IDE.
3) For the Menu “Tools” choose “External Tools”.
4) Click on “Add”.
5) In “Title” write something meaningful, such as “Program uChip”.
6) In “Command”, locate and choose the “bossac.exe”. For instance, in our system we wrote (without
quotes “”):
“%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Arduino15\packages\arduino\tools\bossac\1.7.0\bossac.exe”
7) In “Arguments” write (without quotes “”):
“-i -d -U true -i -e -w -v $(TargetDir)$(TargetName).bin –R”
8) Press OK.
Now in the “Tools” menu, you should see “Program uChip” (or whatever you typed in “Title” on step 5).
To upload your code on uChip using Atmel Studio 7:
1) Build your code.

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2) Connect uChip to the USB port (if you did not already do it)
3) Press twice (double click) on the program/reset button on the uChip board (uChip’s LED should slowly
pulse now from the maximum to the minimum brightness).
4) Select from the menu: ToolsProgram uChip (or whatever you typed in “Title” on step 5 of the
previous procedure).
5) You will see that uChip’s LED will flash and after that your code will be already running.

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UCHIP POWER SUPPLY BLOCK DIAGRAM
uChip is not just a microcontroller mounted on a board. It contains also a power management circuitry that
allows:
1) To output the USB voltage
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or regulated 3.3V on pin 16, when uChip is USB-powered.
2) To provide a 5.0V USB voltage, when uChip is externally powered (pins 16-8) with a 3.3V to 5V
voltage, and an USB OTG cable is connected on the micro-USB port of uChip. This 5.0V can be
enabled/disabled by software.
3) To automatically switch between USB and external voltage.
4) To prevent current flowing into the USB port, when uChip is connected to an USB port, and an external
voltage is applied between pins 16-8.
The block diagram below shows a general view of uChip. Please refer to the latest schematics for the actual
detailed implementation.
Warning! Although uChip accepts and can provide ad external voltage of up to 5V in pin 16, all other I/O
pins are NOT 5V tolerant, and they only accept 3.3V digital or analog levels. Forcing a voltage higher than
3.3V on I/O pins will irreversibly damage uChip.
Furthermore, do not apply a voltage higher than 5.5V on pin 16, as it will damage uChip as well.
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When the USB voltage is chosen, the actual output voltage depends on the USB input voltage, and on the current drawn
on pin 16. In this case, the typical output voltage is V(pin 16) = VUSB - 0.5Ω× I, where I is the current drawn on pin 16,
in amperes.
When 3.3V output is chosen, the typical relationship is V(pin 16) = 3.3V - 0.15Ω × I, where I is the current drawn on pin
16, in amperes.

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SCHEMATICS
Warning: always check for the latest schematics on itaca-innovation.com. The schematics are provided
as-is, in the hope that they will be useful for your purpose, without any warranty (express or implied).
Itaca innovation s.r.l. declines any responsibility for any error in the schematics and reserves any right
to change specifications at any time without notice.

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PINOUT, JUMPERS, LED AND PUSHBUTTON
In the following figure, the simplified pinout is shown.
In particular, from the innermost toward the outermost columns, we show:
1) The Arduino digital/analog pin number (innermost column).
2) The actual port number on the SAMD21 (this is useful especially if you do not use the Arduino
Framework).
3) The capabilities of the particular pin.
4) The default Arduino pin function (outermost columns).
Please refer to the ATSAMD21 datasheet for further details on pin functions.
Jumpers
uChip features two jumpers, SC and 3V.
SC Jumper
SC is by default shorted, and it connects PA30 (which is by default the clock signal of SWD) to Pin 13.
Pin 13 is also connected to PA05. If SC is cut, P13 will be still connected to PA05.
Warning! PA30 is pulled up by default. Furthermore, it must be held high during reset, to allow the
SAMD21 to run, otherwise it will remain in the reset state. This is due to the SWD implementation on
the SAMD21 microcontroller.
If your application does not need SWD debugging and if pin 13 might be low even during reset you can cut
the small track that connects the pads of the SC jumper. If you later need to use PA30 or the SWD function,
you can just use a drop of tin, to short again the jumper. Please exercise extreme caution when cutting SC,
as there are other traces close to it!
Warning! Itaca Innovation is not responsible for any damage caused by soldering the jumpers or by cutting
the trace.
Warning! Some examples from Itaca Innovation might require pin PA30!