NXP Semiconductors MCU-Link Pro User manual

MCU-Link ProUM11673
UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
Rev. 1.0 — September 13, 2021 User manual
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Keywords MCU-Link Pro, MCU-Link, MCU-LINK-PRO
Abstract MCU-Link Pro user manual

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Contact information
For more information, please visit: http://www.nxp.com
For sales office addresses, please send an email to: [email protected]
NXP Semiconductors UM11673
MCU-Link Pro
Revision history
Rev Date Description
1.0 20210831 First release

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MCU-Link Pro
1. Introduction
Jointly developed by NXP and Embedded Artists, MCU-Link Pro is a powerful and cost
effective debug probe that can be used seamlessly with MCUXpresso IDE, and is also
compatible with 3rd party IDEs that support CMSIS-DAP protocol. MCU-Link Pro includes
many features to facilitate embedded software development, from basic debug to
profiling, energy consumption analysis, and support of peripheral and host emulation via
USB bridging functions. MCU-Link Pro is one of a range of debug solutions based on the
MCU-Link architecture, which includes a very low cost base model and implementations
built into NXP evaluation boards. MCU-Link solutions are based on the powerful, low
power LPC55S69 microcontroller and all versions run the same firmware from NXP. The
MCU-Link Pro can be programmed with a special version of firmware to implement a
version of SEGGER’s popular J-Link debug probe.
The MCU-Link Pro includes following features:
•CMSIS-DAP firmware to support all NXP Arm®Cortex®-M based MCUs with SWD
debug interfaces
•SEGGER J-Link firmware option
•High speed USB host interface
•USB to target UART bridge (VCOM)
•Simultaneous target supply and current measurement
•SWO profiling and I/O features
•USB SPI and I2C bridges for programming/provisioning and host-based application
development
•Option to power target system at up to 350mA (at 1.8V or 3.3V)
•Analog signal trace input
Fig 1. MCU-Link Pro

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MCU-Link Pro
•On-board, user-programmable LPC804 for peripheral emulation
•Multiple status LEDs for diagnosis of issues
•Target reset button

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MCU-Link Pro
2. Board layout and Settings
The connectors and jumpers on the MCU-Link Pro are shown in Figure 1 and descriptions
of these are shown in Table 1.
3. Installation and firmware options
MCU-Link Pro debug probes are factory programmed with NXP’s CMSIS-DAP protocol
based firmware, which also supports all other features supported in hardware. A custom
version of J-Link firmware to make MCU-Link Pro compatible with J-Link LITE is also
available but note that this firmware is limited to supporting debug (including SWO) and
VCOM features.
3.1 Host driver and utility installation
A step-by-step installation guide for MCU-Link Pro is provided at the board web page on
nxp.com (https://www.nxp.com/demoboard/MCU-LINK-PRO.) The rest of this section
explains the same steps as can be found on that page.
Table 1. Indicators, jumpers, buttons and connectors
Circuit ref Description Default Ref
LED1-7 Status LEDs n/a 4.7
J1 Host USB connector n/a 2
J2 Multi-probe sync (reserved for future use) n/a n/a
J3 LPC55S69 SWD connector (for development of custom debug probe
code only)
n/a 4.9
J4 Firmware update jumper (ISP) Open 3.2
J5 Target voltage selection (when powering target)
Open: 3.3V
Closed: 1.8V
Open 4.2
J6 Insert to power target from MCU-Link Pro Open 4.2
J7 SWD connector for connection to target system n/a 4.1
J9 Energy measurement connector n/a 4.4
J10 VDDIO selection for LPC804 3.3V (1-2) 4.8
J11 SWD connector for LPC804 n/a 4.8
J12 Connector for LPC804 peripherals n/a 4.8
J13 SWD disable jumper (install to disable) Open 4.1
J14 VCOM disable jumper (install to disable) Open 4.3
J15 USBSIO (I2C/SPI USB bridge) disable jumper (install to disable) Open 4.5
J16/17/18 Energy measurement range configuration High (350mA) range
(pos 1-2)
4.4
J19 MCU-Link digital connector (for VCOM, bridge and analog trace signals) n/a 4
J26 UART connection to LPC55S69 (for development of custom debug probe
code only)
n/a 4.9
SW1 Target reset button n/a 4.1

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MCU-Link Pro
MCU-Link debug probes are supported on Windows 10, MacOS X and Ubuntu Linux
platforms. MCU-Link probes use standard OS drivers but the installation program for
Windows includes information files to provide user friendly device names. To install these
information files and the firmware MCU-Link Pro update utility, go to the Design
Resources section of the board web page click on and then select “Development
software” from the SOFTWARE section. Installation packages for each host OS will be
shown.
Download the package for your host OS install (Linux or MacOS) or run the installer
(Windows). After setting up the OS drivers, your host computer will be ready to use with
MCU-Link Pro, however it is advisable to update to the latest version of the firmware as
this may have changed since your MCU-Link Pro was manufactured; see Section 3.2 for
the steps to do this update.
3.2 Updating MCU-Link Pro firmware
To update the MCU-Link’s firmware it must be powered up in (USB) ISP mode. To do this
insert jumper J4 then connect MCU-Link Pro to your host computer using a micro B USB
cable connected to J1. The red STATUS LED (LED3) should light and stay on (for further
information on LED status information refer to Section 4.7. The board will enumerate on
the host computer as a HID class device. Navigate to the MCU-LINK_installer_Vx_xxx
directory (where Vx_xxx indicates the version number, e.g. V2.244), then follow the
installation instructions in the readme.txt to find and run the firmware update utilities for
CMSIS-DAP or J-Link versions. After updating the firmware using one of these scripts,
unplug the board from the host computer, remove J4 and then reconnect the board.
After programming the MCU-Link Pro with the CMSIS-DAP firmware three USB HID
devices will enumerate, plus a virtual com port, as shown below (for Windows hosts):
The red status LED will repeatedly fade from on to off and back on again (“breathing”),
while the green USB status LED will stay on constantly. For more information on the
status LEDs when using CMSIS-DAP firmware please see Section 4.7.
If the J-Link firmware is programmed then only a J-Link device and single VCOM port will
enumerate. Note that the J-Link firmware uses the VCOM LED to indicate status. The
LED will illuminate after boot up then blink to indicate debug activity.
Fig 2. MCU-Link USB devices

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MCU-Link Pro
If a more recent firmware version is available for MCU-Link, MCUXpresso IDE (from
version 11.3 onwards) will alert you to this when you use the probe in a debug session. If
you are using another IDE with the MCU-Link Pro it is advisable to update the firmware to
ensure the latest version of firmware is installed.
Once the J-Link firmware has been installed, the SEGGER device drivers will be able to
perform subsequent firmware updates as these are released without the need to use the
NXP supplied firmware update scripts and without having to install the ISP mode jumper.
Note that if the CMSIS-DAP firmware is installed later then this update capability will be
lost until the J-Link firmware is installed again using the NXP firmware update scripts.
3.3 Setup for use with development tools
The MCU-Link debug probe can be used with IDEs supported within the MCUXpresso
ecosystem (MCUXpresso IDE, IAR Embedded Workbench, Keil MDK); for more
information on getting started with these IDEs please visit the Getting Started section of
the MCU-Link Pro page on nxp.com.
3.3.1 Use with MCUXpresso IDE
MCUXpresso IDE will recognize any type of MCU-Link probe, either with CMSIS-DAP or
J-Link firmware, and will show the probe types and unique identifiers of all probes it finds
in the probe discovery dialog when starting a debug session. This dialog will also show
the firmware version, and will show a warning if the firmware is not the latest version. See
Section 3.2 for information on how to update the firmware. MCUXpresso IDE 11.3 or later
must be used when using MCU-Link Pro, and version 11.4.1 or later is required to use the
Energy Measurement features.
3.3.2 Use with other IDEs
MCU-Link Pro should be recognized as a CMSIS-DAP or J-Link probe by other IDEs
(depending on the firmware that is programmed), and should be usable with standard
settings for that probe type. Follow IDE vendor instructions for setup and use of
CMSIS-DAP and J-Link probe types.
4. Feature descriptions
This section describes the various features of MCU-Link Pro. The USB bridging, VCOM
port, power measurement and analog trace features all utilize the Digital I/O Connector
(J19), for which an accompanying cable is provided with the MCU-Link Pro. The table
below shows the connections for J19. All the signal pins on J19 have ESD protection. SPI,
I2C and triggering digital signals used can be in the range 1.2V to 5.5V; if no target VDD
IO reference is used then the circuit will default to 3.3V. Note the Analog trace input
should be kept in the 0 to 3.3V range to avoid damage to the voltage follower circuitry on
MCU-Link Pro.
Table 2. Digital I/O Connector
Cable color J19 pin Signal Feature
Black 1 GND

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MCU-Link Pro
4.1 Target SWD/SWO interface
MCU-Link Pro provides support for SWD-based target debug, including features enabled
by SWO. The MCU-Link Pro board includes footprints for both 10 (J7) and 20 pin (J8)
Cortex debug connectors, with the 10-pin connector installed. MCU-Link Pro comes with
cables for 10-pin to 10-pin and 10-pin to 20-pin target connections.
Level shifters are provided between the LPC55S69 MCU-Link Probe processor and the
target to enable target processors running at between 1.2V and 5V to be debugged. A
reference voltage tracking circuit is used to detect the target voltage at the SWD
connector and set the level shifter target-side voltage appropriately (see schematic page
5.)
The Target SWD interface can be disabled by installed jumper J13 but note that the
MCU-Link software only checks this jumper at boot up time.
SWO activity is indicated by the SWO status LED, which will illuminate/flicker when SWO
data is being sent/received on this interface (this can happen during profiling and during
energy measurement.)
A target reset button (SW1) is provided on MCU-Link Pro; note that this does not reset the
LPC55S69 MCU-Link processor.
4.2 Powering the target
MCU-Link Pro provides an option power to the target system (via the target SWD
connector) from one of its on-board regulators. The target supply voltage can be set to
1.8V or 3.3V using jumper J5 (open for 3.3V, closed for 1.8V). The maximum supply
current from this regulator is 350mA. Note that the USB power capabilities of host
computer being used may affect the maximum current available. When using the target
powering feature jumper J6 must also be installed in order to correctly set the reference
voltage level at the SWD connector. See the schematic page 5 for more information.
Brown 2 SPI SSEL USB-SPI bridge
Red 3 SPI MOSI
Orange 4 SPI CLK
Yellow 5 SPI MISO
Green 6 I2C SDA USB-I2C bridge
Blue 7 I2C SCL
Violet 8 UART IN (Target TXD) VCOM
Gray 9 UART OUT (Target RXD)
White 10 SYNC trigger (for future use)
Black 11 GND
Brown 12 Analog trace input Analog trace
Red 13 Energy Measurement trigger Energy measurement
Orange 14 Target VDD IO Reference voltage
Table 2. Digital I/O Connector
Cable color J19 pin Signal Feature

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MCU-Link Pro
4.3 VCOM (USB to Target UART bridge)
MCU-Link Pro includes a UART to USB bridge (VCOM) function. A target system UART
can be connected to the MCU-Link Pro via connector J19 (pin 8 and 9) using the supplied
cable. The Violet wire connects to the MCU-Link Pro UART input (target TXD) and Gray to
the UART output (target RXD). VCOM activity is indicated by the VCOM status LED,
which will illuminate/flicker when traffic is present on this interface.
The MCU-Link Pro VCOM device will enumerate on the host computer system with a
name MCU-Link Vcom Port (COMxx) where “xx” will be a dependent on host system.
Each MCU-Link board will have a unique VCOM number associated with it. The VCOM
function may be disabled by installing jumper J14 before powering the board. Note that
installing/removing this jumper after powering the board will have no effect on the feature
in terms of how the MCU-Link Pro software behaves since it is only checked at power up.
It is not necessary to disable the VCOM function when not in use.
The VCOM device is configurable via the host computer (e.g. Device Manager in
Windows), with the follow parameters:
•Word length 7 or 8 bits
•Stop bits: 1 or 2
•Parity: none / odd / even
Baud rates of up to 5.33Mbps are supported.
4.4 Energy measurement
MCU-Link includes circuitry to measure the Target’s supply voltage and current drawn,
and the Energy Measurement features in MCUXpresso IDE can display this measurement
data along with energy and power consumption. For information on MCUXpresso IDE
please visit https://www.nxp.com/mcuxpresso and follow links to the IDE page.
Current into the Target is measured at J9 by measuring the voltage drop across sense
resistors on the MCU-Link Pro. J9 should be connected in line with the supply with pin 1
as the supply side connection and pin 3 as the target side. J9 pin 2 should be grounded
close to these connections to provide good measurement integrity.
MCU-Link Pro has two current measurement configurations available, with each
configuration having a maximum measurable current. This is to allow the maximum
accuracy of measurement for various different targets. Within each configuration there are
two, automatically controlled ranges in order to provide and even further higher accuracy
to be achieved. The automatic switching from low current measurement to high current
measurement is controlled solely by hardware in order to avoid excessive voltage drop
across the sense resistor. When switching from high current to low current measurement
the MCU-Link Pro firmware controls the switch back to low current measurements
triggered by an interrupt from a monitoring circuit.
The measurement circuit self-calibrates each time the MCU-Link Pro is powered on. No
user intervention is required to setup the calibration or adjust the measurement ranges.
Transistors are used to isolate the sensing circuitry from the target supply to avoid
contention and ensure a known voltage is applied to the system during calibration, so it is

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MCU-Link Pro
not necessary to disconnect / reconnect the MCU-Link Pro. It is recommend to power the
MCU-Link Pro first when not using the MCU-Link Pro to power the target as the MCU-Link
could be back-powered through the current measurement circuit.
The power measurement feature is intended for low power measurements, with a target
MCU running at up to 3.6V. The design uses the LPC55S69 16-bit ADC, with power data
sampled at up to 100kS/s. At high sample rates MCUXpresso IDE may not be able to
capture all data, so the sample rate may need to be adjusted using the configuration
options in the Energy Measurement configuration settings in that tool.
4.4.1 Measurement range configuration
As mentioned above, MCU-Link Pro has two maximum current range measurement
configurations, with the lower range providing better resolution at very low currents. If the
target current exceeds the maximum current for the selected range then the measurement
will clip and hence be inaccurate, but the target operation may continue as normal
(provided the current is not high enough to cause a significant drop across the high
current sense resistor and hence cause a brown out and/or trigger glitch security
protection on some devices). Note that the MCU-Link Pro on-board regulator for the target
is limited to a maximum of 350mA output.
Range configuration settings with corresponding accuracy and resolution are shown
below. Note that all settings for J16/J17/J18 must be consistent for correct operation.
Accuracy may vary with temperature and is provided for reference purposes only.
4.5 SPI and I2C bridging (USB to Target SPI and/or I2C bridge, USBSIO)
MCU-Link Pro includes a capability to bridge SPI and/or I2C ports to a host computer via
USB, called USBSIO. This port bridging function can be used for emulating a system host,
peripherals (in the case of I2C) and/or for device programming via the ISP feature. NXP’s
MCUXpresso SEC tool has an option to program a target system via this bridge (see SEC
tool documentation for details). USBSIO activity is indicated by the USBSIO status LED,
which will illuminate/flicker when traffic is present on this interface. This feature is
supported by a free host library from NXP called LIBUSBSIO; for more details on this
library please visit https://www.nxp.com/libusbsio.
The SPI interface connections are routed via level shifters/buffers with the target side IO
voltage determined by the voltage connected to the VDD_IO_REF signal at pin 14 of J19.
The I2C interface connections are routed to an open drain buffer on the MCU-Link Pro.
USBSIO may be disabled by inserting jumper J15 before powering the MCU-Link Pro; this
will instruct the firmware not to enumerate the USB end point for USBSIO (which is called
“MCU-Link LPCSIO” for backward compatibility reasons). Note that installing/removing
this jumper after powering the board will have no effect on the feature in terms of how the
Table 3. Energy measurement range configuration (as at firmware revision 2.243)
Maximum measureable
current
J16
setting
J17
setting
J18
setting
Measurement
ranges
Resolution Accuracy
(typical)
50mA 2-3 2-3 2-3 200nA to 400uA
>400uA to 50mA
200nA
5uA
1%
1%
350mA 1-2 1-2 1-2 10uA to 1.5mA
>1.5mA to 350mA
1uA
20uA
1%
5%