MINI-MAX/AVR-C Support & Frequently Asked Questions

[1] Is there an extended temperature version of your boards ?

[2] How about USB support for MINI-MAX/AVR ?

[3] How can I add more data RAM to MINI-MAX/AVR ?

[4] I installed both the ARM Development System (GNU ARM) and WinAVR on my computer. After this GNU ARM compiler does not work anymore. It freezes inside MicroIDE. I use Windows XP.

[5] How can I download to MINI-MAX/AVR-C from within Flowcode ?

[6] Why is the download slow ?

[1] Is there an extended temperature version of your boards ?

Here is a temperature range list of the various semiconductor components that make up the MINI-MAX/AVR-C. As you can see from the list, all the components are already extended or industrial temperature grade. Please contact us if your application requires an extended or industrial temperature range of our boards.

Component
Operating Temperature Range
Microcontroller ATMEGA2560-16AU
-40 to 85 ºC
Transistor
-55 to 150 ºC
Regulator
-40 to 125 ºC
Voltage Suppressor
-55 to 125 ºC
RS232 transceiver (ADM202EARU)
-40 to 85 ºC
Diode
-65 to 150 ºC
LED
-25 to 80 ºC

[2] How about USB support for MINI-MAX/AVR ?

MINI-MAX/AVR boards do not have a USB host or USB device port. Implementing USB host on small microcontrollers is difficult due to the availability of USB drivers ( such as modem, hard disk, mouse, etc. ) only for higher level operating systems such as Linux or Windows.

You can still connect to MINI-MAX/AVR through your computer's USB port using our CBL-USB-COM-1 that converts USB to COM. In this case, MINI-MAX/AVR appears as a COM port to your computer.

[3] How can I add more data RAM to MINI-MAX/AVR ?

The program RAM of MINI-MAX/AVR is limited to the RAM of the microcontroller ( ATMEGA2560-16AU ). This RAM is typically used for variables, program stack, arrays, etc. However, it is possible to expand the data RAM by using RAM-1 peripheral board. This board has 512 Kbytes of volatile RAM and 512 Kbytes of Flash. Data in this RAM is lost when power is turned off. This RAM may be useful for temporary storage of program data, such as large arrays.


[4] I installed both the ARM Development System (GNU ARM) and WinAVR on my computer. After this GNU ARM compiler does not work anymore. It freezes inside MicroIDE. I use Windows XP.

The reason is that different cygwin1.dll files are installed with GNUARM and WinAVR. To solve this:

- Run Windows Search and look for cygwin1.dll file.
- Find the most recent cygwin1.dll file and copy it to %WIN%\System32\ folder where %WIN% is the folder where Windows is installed ( for example: \windows\System32 )

- Delete all other cygwin1.dll files. The only cygwin1.dll file should exist in %WIN%\System32\ folder.

- Reboot the PC. After this both compilers should work well.

[5] How can I download to MINI-MAX/AVR-C from within Flowcode ?

In Flowcode for AVR ( Version 4 and above ), select Chip->Compiler Options. Under Programmer section, the Location field can be left as is ( typically: C:\Program Files\Matrix Multimedia\Flowcode AVR V4\Tools\MX_bats\avrc.bat ).Parameters field should be changed to the following line:STK500 %a %t "%D\%f.hex" "%f.hex" %cfg %c0 %c1 %c2 %c3If you are using a COM port other than COM1, edit avrc.bat and change the line:@SET STKPort=COM1to your COM port. For example, if you are using COM8, change to:@SET STKPort=COM8Also, STK500.EXE should be installed on the computer. STK500.EXE is part of ATMEL's AVR Studio. When AVR Studio is installed, STK500.EXE becomes available to Flowcode. Please download the latest AVR Studio from ATMEL web site.After the above changes, put the MINI-MAX/AVR-C in Boot mode by installing jumper JP1, cycle power, select Chip->Compile to Chip in Flowcode and you should be able to download to MINI-MAX/AVR-C.

[6] Why is the download slow ?

If you are using a USB to COM converter such as CBL-USB-COM-1 from BiPOM, please change the latency timer settings of the USB to COM converter. See the document: CBL-USB-COM-1 Speed Improvements