If you are new to Microcontrollers one of the arguments
you are going to hear bantered about is Harvard Architecture versus the Von Neumann Architecture.
THE VON NEUMANN ARCHITECTURE
Most computers we are familiar with use an architecture called
Von Neumann. The term arose out of Neumann's 1945 draft report on the ADVAC computer. He was not, however the original
inventor of it.
+---------+
| RAM |
|
- - - - |
BottleNeck | PROGRAM
|
[CPU]
<==========> | - - - - |
| DATA |
+---------+
A Von Neumann machine has one large monolithic RAM structure
that contains both program memory and data memory mixed together. Since both program steps and data must be loaded from the
same place, it can create a problem called the Von Neumann Bottle-Neck.
THE HARVARD ARCHITECTURE
Most microcontrollers use a different system called Harvard
architecture. The larger program storage and the smaller data memory are separated. The first such machine, the Harvard
Mark I had it's programs hard-coded on paper-tape and the volatile data was loaded into electric relays.
+----------+
+------+
|
PROGRAM | | DATA
|
| ROM |
<----> [CPU] <----> | RAM |
+----------+
+------+
Harvard style machines allow program steps to be fetched at
the same time as data, thereby creating potentially faster through-put and less of a bottle-neck. They also have
the benefit that run away processes can't damage the program stored in the non-volatile program area so they're more
stable. Many C programs lack proper boundary checking and a null pointer or an over-run buffer can overwrite and crash a program
that shares RAM with data.
If you are new to this architecture you need to keep this in mind. When creating a routine that needs
a few bytes of storage, I would normally create that space within the routine itself. On a Harvard machine, those bytes would
not be in volatile RAM but part of the hard coded program memory stored in ROM (or FlashRAM).
AVR BUTTERFLY PROGRAM SPACE (FLASH)
The AVR Butterfly (Atmega169) program space is 16K long and
is divided into two main areas. The top 1-2K and is usually loaded with a bootloader that is protected from an overwrite and
the rest is available for your programs. At the beginning of each program space is an area for interupt vectors. The first
such vector is the Power-Up/Reset Vector and should contain an RJMP to the first line of your program.
The data space on the AVRs is a little unusual. The 32 internal
accumulators are memory mapped as the first 32 bytes of data memory, followed by all the I/O ports which are mapped into memory
space followed by the 1K of actual SRAM starting at $100.
The AVR Butterfly is a credit-card sized demo board from Atmel that is feature-packed and retails for under $20 US.
The AVR Butterfly is a self-contained, battery-powered demonstration board running theATMEL AVR ATmega169v Microcontroller.
The Butterfly board includes an LCD display screen, joystick, speaker, RS232 serial/modem/terminal port, flash RAM chip, temperature,
light, voltage & Anolog-to-Digital sensors, serial EEPROM chip and internal EEPROM for data storage.
The board has a shirt pin on its back and can be worn as a portable electronic scrolling name badge after you enter your own
name.
The AVR Butterfly comes preloaded with software to demonstrate the capabilities of the microcontroller. The factory firmware
can scroll your name, display the sensor readings like tempurature or light levels. It can show the time.
The AVR Butterfly has a piezo speaker that can reproduce music and sounds.
The AVRButterfly demonstrates LCD driving by running a 14-segment, 6 alpha-numeric character display.
The Butterfly's ATmega 169v CPU is capable of speeds up to 8Mhz. it is factory set by software to 2Mhz to preserve the button
battery life. A pre-installed bootloader program allows the board to be re-programmed with a standard RS-232 serial plug.
Just look at what it has to offer:
Atmega169 MCU
32 x 8-Bit Registers
16K Flash (Program) RAM
512 Byte EEPROM
1K SRAM for Data
2 x B-Bit Timers
1 x 16-Bit Timer
4 PMW Channels
UART
100 Segment LCD Display
4 MegaBit (512K Byte) DataFash
32KHz OScillator for RTC
4 Way Joystick
Light Sensor (LDR)
Tempurature Sensor (NTC)
Speaker for Sound Generation
Multiple Header Connectors
JTAG Port
2 x 8-Bit General I/O Ports
ISP Port
USI Port
RS-232 Level Converter
Voltage Level Reading
Sony CR2450 3V Lithium Battery
Self Programming Bootloader
No need to Purchase a Programmer
Temperature & Light Level Programs
Music/Sound Demo
Upload Name for Use as Name-Tag with Pin
Write & Upload your own Programs
The AVR Butterfly is a credit-card sized demo board from Atmel that is feature-packed and retails for under $20 US.
The AVR Butterfly is a self-contained, battery-powered demonstration board running theATMEL AVR ATmega169v Microcontroller.
The Butterfly board includes an LCD display screen, joystick, speaker, RS232 serial/modem/terminal port, flash RAM chip, temperature,
light, voltage & Anolog-to-Digital sensors, serial EEPROM chip and internal EEPROM for data storage.
The board has a shirt pin on its back and can be worn as a portable electronic scrolling name badge after you enter your own
name.
The AVR Butterfly comes preloaded with software to demonstrate the capabilities of the microcontroller. The factory firmware
can scroll your name, display the sensor readings like tempurature or light levels. It can show the time.
The AVR Butterfly has a piezo speaker that can reproduce music and sounds.
The AVRButterfly demonstrates LCD driving by running a 14-segment, 6 alpha-numeric character display.
The Butterfly's ATmega 169v CPU is capable of speeds up to 8Mhz. it is factory set by software to 2Mhz to preserve the button
battery life. A pre-installed bootloader program allows the board to be re-programmed with a standard RS-232 serial plug.
Just look at what it has to offer:
Atmega169 MCU
32 x 8-Bit Registers
16K Flash (Program) RAM
512 Byte EEPROM
1K SRAM for Data
2 x B-Bit Timers
1 x 16-Bit Timer
4 PMW Channels
UART
100 Segment LCD Display
4 MegaBit (512K Byte) DataFash
32KHz OScillator for RTC
4 Way Joystick
Light Sensor (LDR)
Tempurature Sensor (NTC)
Speaker for Sound Generation
Multiple Header Connectors
JTAG Port
2 x 8-Bit General I/O Ports
ISP Port
USI Port
RS-232 Level Converter
Voltage Level Reading
Sony CR2450 3V Lithium Battery
Self Programming Bootloader
No need to Purchase a Programmer
Temperature & Light Level Programs
Music/Sound Demo
Upload Name for Use as Name-Tag with Pin
Write & Upload your own Programs
The AVR Butterfly is a credit-card sized demo board from Atmel that is feature-packed and retails for under $20 US.
The AVR Butterfly is a self-contained, battery-powered demonstration board running theATMEL AVR ATmega169v Microcontroller.
The Butterfly board includes an LCD display screen, joystick, speaker, RS232 serial/modem/terminal port, flash RAM chip, temperature,
light, voltage & Anolog-to-Digital sensors, serial EEPROM chip and internal EEPROM for data storage.
The board has a shirt pin on its back and can be worn as a portable electronic scrolling name badge after you enter your own
name.
The AVR Butterfly comes preloaded with software to demonstrate the capabilities of the microcontroller. The factory firmware
can scroll your name, display the sensor readings like tempurature or light levels. It can show the time.
The AVR Butterfly has a piezo speaker that can reproduce music and sounds.
The AVRButterfly demonstrates LCD driving by running a 14-segment, 6 alpha-numeric character display.
The Butterfly's ATmega 169v CPU is capable of speeds up to 8Mhz. it is factory set by software to 2Mhz to preserve the button
battery life. A pre-installed bootloader program allows the board to be re-programmed with a standard RS-232 serial plug.
Just look at what it has to offer:
Atmega169 MCU
32 x 8-Bit Registers
16K Flash (Program) RAM
512 Byte EEPROM
1K SRAM for Data
2 x B-Bit Timers
1 x 16-Bit Timer
4 PMW Channels
UART
100 Segment LCD Display
4 MegaBit (512K Byte) DataFash
32KHz OScillator for RTC
4 Way Joystick
Light Sensor (LDR)
Tempurature Sensor (NTC)
Speaker for Sound Generation
Multiple Header Connectors
JTAG Port
2 x 8-Bit General I/O Ports
ISP Port
USI Port
RS-232 Level Converter
Voltage Level Reading
Sony CR2450 3V Lithium Battery
Self Programming Bootloader
No need to Purchase a Programmer
Temperature & Light Level Programs
Music/Sound Demo
Upload Name for Use as Name-Tag with Pin
Write & Upload your own Programs
The AVR Butterfly is a credit-card sized demo board from Atmel that is feature-packed and retails for under $20 US.
The AVR Butterfly is a self-contained, battery-powered demonstration board running theATMEL AVR ATmega169v Microcontroller.
The Butterfly board includes an LCD display screen, joystick, speaker, RS232 serial/modem/terminal port, flash RAM chip, temperature,
light, voltage & Anolog-to-Digital sensors, serial EEPROM chip and internal EEPROM for data storage.
The board has a shirt pin on its back and can be worn as a portable electronic scrolling name badge after you enter your own
name.
The AVR Butterfly comes preloaded with software to demonstrate the capabilities of the microcontroller. The factory firmware
can scroll your name, display the sensor readings like tempurature or light levels. It can show the time.
The AVR Butterfly has a piezo speaker that can reproduce music and sounds.
The AVRButterfly demonstrates LCD driving by running a 14-segment, 6 alpha-numeric character display.
The Butterfly's ATmega 169v CPU is capable of speeds up to 8Mhz. it is factory set by software to 2Mhz to preserve the button
battery life. A pre-installed bootloader program allows the board to be re-programmed with a standard RS-232 serial plug.
Just look at what it has to offer:
Atmega169 MCU
32 x 8-Bit Registers
16K Flash (Program) RAM
512 Byte EEPROM
1K SRAM for Data
2 x B-Bit Timers
1 x 16-Bit Timer
4 PMW Channels
UART
100 Segment LCD Display
4 MegaBit (512K Byte) DataFash
32KHz OScillator for RTC
4 Way Joystick
Light Sensor (LDR)
Tempurature Sensor (NTC)
Speaker for Sound Generation
Multiple Header Connectors
JTAG Port
2 x 8-Bit General I/O Ports
ISP Port
USI Port
RS-232 Level Converter
Voltage Level Reading
Sony CR2450 3V Lithium Battery
Self Programming Bootloader
No need to Purchase a Programmer
Temperature & Light Level Programs
Music/Sound Demo
Upload Name for Use as Name-Tag with Pin
Write & Upload your own Programs
