We’ve been working on an open source logic analyzer prototype with Jack Gassett of the Gadget Factory. The project is currently known by the code name ‘SUMP-PUMP’, but you can help suggest a name. The design incorporates elements of the Butterfly platform, which is available now at the Gadget Factory.

Update: Michal Demin completed this challenge in less than 24hours. Congratulations!

Here’s your chance to get a SUMP PUMP for free, maybe even a preview unit. We need command line utilities to update the SUMP PUMP FPGA image from Windows, Mac, and Linux. We’re currently using a Perl script, but this is too much hassle for end users. If you develop the best console update utility, we’ll send you the SUMP PUMP hardware.

The update is done over a virtual serial port using a simple protocol. Ideally, the utility would load Intel HEX files directly, but we have raw binary blobs too. The utility must compile on all major platforms (Windows, MacOSX, and Linux). Piotr’s Pirate-Loader utility source code should have everything you need to get started. Here’s a development thread in the forum.

The winning entry should:

• Run as a native console application (not scripted, no .Net/Mono)
• Compile on Windows, Linux, Mac, and include these compiles
• Be released under an open source license, preferably CC-BY-SA or GPL
• Work in our tests

C code is preferred by not required. We’ll leave this open until a satisfactory solution is submitted. In the case of multiple entries, we’ll choose one based on compliance with the criteria and possibly a vote.

[Image by Jack Gassett]

ds30 Loader is the new bootloader we’ve chosen to replace the broken AN1157 bootloader currently in the Bus Pirate. It has a bunch of benefits:

• Takes less than 10 seconds to update the firmware
• Fixes the ’slow’ bootloader problem effecting some PICs
• Opens 6KB of program space for more features
• Applications for Windows, Linux, and MAC are available
• Single bootloader for v2go/v3
• Released under the GPL
• Safer than the AN1157 bootloader
• Can be installed with the existing bootloader

Before the new bootloader can be deployed, we need to fix an error in the loader applications and do a lot of testing. We’re offering our next monthly project as a bounty on the software modifications. If you’re interested in testing the new bootloader, or can help patch the loader apps, we’ve got a lot of details for you below.

Testers

PLEASE, DO NOT UPGRADE TO THE TEST BOOTLOADER UNLESS YOU HAVE A PIC PROGRAMMER!!! YOU WILL HAVE TO RESTORE OR UPGRADE THE BOOTLOADER TO UNDO THESE CHANGES. THERE ARE KNOWN BUGS IN THE SYSTEM, THIS ISN’T READY YET!!!

Grab the ds30 loader and compatible Bus Pirate firmware for V2go/v3. Also get a ds30 Loader app for your platform.

Don’t use it unless you have a programmer to undo it, this is not final at all!!!!!!

To upgrade bootloaders:

1. Upload ds30Loader-v01.hex with the existing bootloader. Follow the normal upgrade procedure.
2. Remove the jumper and reset the PIC (unplug/plug in).
3. After resetting, place the programing jumper on the PIC pin. The MODE LED should light.
4. Flash buspirate.hex with the ds 30 Loader app. The old bootloader is now erased.
5. The Bus Pirate should now work as normal with firmware version 3.4.

You can probably still abort the upgrade after step 2 by loading a normal PIC firmware by the usual method. There’s no going back after step 4.

Bootloader app bugs, improvements

The bootloader is (erroneously?) located in the fourth-to-last page of program memory. The bootloader is located in the next-to-last page of PIC memory. We’d like it to be in the last page. (Each address counter unit takes two words, which explains the discrepancy, we were wrong about the incorrect placement, apologies to Mikael Gustafsson).

Changing the location of the firmware in the PIC is no problem, unfortunately the fourth-to-last next-to-last page location is also hard-coded into the PC upgrade applications. This creates two problems. First, the upgrade app protects what it thinks is the bootloader page, but allows erase/writes to new bootloader location. Second, the post-bootloader jump instruction is written to the wrong location. The upgrade app writes a goto instruction so the bootloader knows where to find the actual firmware, it currently writes to the final instruction of the fifth third-to-last page, but we’d need to move it to the next-to-last page.

The ideal solution would extend the configuration file of ds30 Loader to accept a few optional parameters. First, the starting page (or starting instruction) and length of the  bootloader. This way we can locate it where ever we want. Second, a setting to configure where it relocates the goto jump instruction.

We’ll send a free IR Toy to the author who implements these changes first.

The source is C# written in MS Visual studio with Linux and Mac support via Mono. The relevant code is located here. ds30Loader-v01-0xaa00.hex ds30Loader-v01-0xa800.hex is a test firmware located in the last page of memory. Read the evolution of this project in this forum thread.

We’re looking for a C programmer who can add serial port output to usbpicprog. It’s all that stands in the way of bringing PIC 12F/16F/18F/ds30 programming to the Bus Pirate*.

usbpicprog is an open source multi-platform programmer that uses wxWidgets toolkit and libusb. It currently sends byte commands to a USB HID driver. Your goal, should you accept it, is to send output to a serial port instead.

We’ll send the author a PIC programming charge pump accessory board, and another Bus Pirate goodie that’s not yet public.

*You’ll need a 13volt supply and simple switch too, we’ll release a few simple circuits that will work.

We’re offering a bounty on the most-requested Bus Pirate features. The developer of each feature can have their choice of a Bus Pirate probe cable kit or our next monthly project.

Today we’re highlighting JTAG. It would be ideal to have Bus Pirate support in the popular open source JTAG programmer OpenOCD, but other solutions are also fine. It should be possible to adapt an existing parallel port or FTDI232 JTAG wiggler mode to flip bits in a byte and send it to the Bus Pirate bitbang binary mode. We could also develop a separate binary JTAG library if requested.

A JTAG programmer that supports the Bus Pirate is currently the most-requested feature addition. Early firmwares had a terminal-based XSFV programmer from Xilinx, but it required specially compiled XSFV programming files and funky flow control.

Firmware v2.x removed the XSFV programmer, but added a new binary access mode that can be used with PC-based JTAG programmers. This is a much better solution because it lets the PC do any heavy lifting, the Bus Pirate simply twiddles pins.

Thanks to bluesign2k for the unboxing picture.

Here’s a list of high-priority Bus Pirate features based on your feedback. We’re putting a bounty on these items to encourage new developers to get involved. The developer of each feature can have their choice of a Bus Pirate probe cable kit or our next monthly project.

1. JTAG programming with OpenOCD. It should be possible to adapt an existing parallel port or FTDI232 JTAG wiggler, preferably OpenOCD, to flip bits in a byte and send it to the bitbang binary mode. We could also develop a separate binary JTAG library if requested.
2. UART baud rate detect. A new macro for the UART library that detects baud rate using something like this.
3. Binary mode access to the I2C sniffer for better speed. This should incorporate a simple escape sequence for control characters like start, stop, ACK, and NACK. Solution submitted, that was fast!
4. Stepper motor driver and servo driver. The stepper motor driver will be easy, and we have a driver board in development. The servo driver will be harder simple because we don’t have any servos to test. Not sure where to put these, perhaps in an ‘extras’ library.

Some rules, so there’s no hard feelings later:

• Limited to one bounty per feature.
• It’s a good idea to coordinate development in the forum.
• The offer is valid though the end of November 2009, but we’ll try to be flexible.