I'm programming on a PIC18F258 and have gotten my code to a mostly-finished state. I have to design a prototype board that gets rid of all the superfluous hardware on my HP488 development board (i.e. the LCD, the LEDs, the extra connectors) and leaves just what I need for this particular application. In the interest of further development, I'm going to need some kind of programming ability, but I'm not sure what. I've been using the PPP setup, but that requires a lot of extra on-board hardware that I'd rather not use if I don't have to. I've also got an MPLAB ICD2 debugger, but according to the HP488 documentation, that doesn't run above 5MHz. I'm running the board on a 20MHz crystal (changing that is not an option).
What are my options as far as programming the chip? I need a low-hardware solution that works at 20MHz - in-circuit debugging isn't necessary. Ideally, I'd like the programming to be mostly software-based, with a standard USB or serial cable, and minimal hardware on the board. Do you know of anything like this?
Programming Options
Programming Options
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Steve
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Re: Programming Options
If you already have an HP488, you can create your own cable to use this to program your own circuit. You just need to expose RB6, RB7, Vcc, GND and MCLR and make a cable that connects these to the molex pin headers on the HP488 - there are a few articles about this on this forum.
Alternatively, you could buy a PICkit2 to reprogram your device (but again, you will need to expose those pins listed above).
Another alternative is to look at out ECIO modules - these are essentially USB-reprogrammable 18F chips that can be used within your own circuits. This would necessitate moving from the 18F258 to the 18F2455, but this should not be a problem using Flowcode.
Alternatively, you could buy a PICkit2 to reprogram your device (but again, you will need to expose those pins listed above).
Another alternative is to look at out ECIO modules - these are essentially USB-reprogrammable 18F chips that can be used within your own circuits. This would necessitate moving from the 18F258 to the 18F2455, but this should not be a problem using Flowcode.