Articles and news - Microcontrollers - 4

By using this simple capacitor-network circuit and software, designs using the Arduino Uno need only two I/O pins to read a hex-switch decoder, leaving the remaining pins for other functions...

Traditional control-system designs use separate switches to control power and various system functions, but adding a few components to a small, microprocessor-based system can combine a control function with the system's on/off switch. For example, you can design a system to display relative humidity and temperature...

Holtek now announces the release of a new addition to its small package Flash MCU range, the HT68F001. Special features of the device include an excellent price/performance ratio, low voltage operation, low power consumption as well as an internal high accuracy Timer...

Holtek announces the release of its low power, high sensitivity RF OOK receiver A/D type SoC flash MCU, the BC66F2430. The device operates in both the 315 MHz and 433 MHz ISM frequency bands, frequencies which are suitable for wireless receiver products such as wireless ceiling fans, wireless doorbells and smart home wireless control applications...

Nuvoton Technology Corporation announced its brand new NuMicro® M0564 series microcontrollers based on the ARM® Cortex®-M0 core, operating up to 72 MHz with 256 KB Flash and 20 KB SRAM. The M0564 series is pin to pin compatible with the M051 series and brings more competitive features to customers...

The connections on the Raspberry Pi can be converted into inputs under software control. The example here is about the simplest; a push button switch is wired up to the 40-pin connector...

The Raspberry Pi is a computer, and from a connections point of view it doesn’t look much different to a normal desktop computer. It has USB ports for connecting a keyboard and mouse, and a video output port for connecting up a display. Because it is more compact and lower cost than a large desktop PC, it becomes possible to use the Raspberry Pi or other small single board computers as they are known, for many scenarios where a desktop or laptop PC would not be feasible...

STMicroelectronics is extending choice and freedom for budget-conscious designers by introducing its new 8-bit STM8S001 microcontroller in the economical SO-8 package. Unlike most rivals, the STM8S001 has I2C, UART, and SPI interfaces, giving unusually versatile connectivity options...

Following the successful previous release of its four-electrode AC body fat scale, HT45F75/77 devices, Holtek is now delighted to announce the release of its new eight-electrode AC body fat scale Flash MCUs, the BH66F2650/60. Eight-electrode body fat scales are used to measure body fat including legs, arms and torsos measurements which can reflect the body condition...

A microcontroller's internal ADC was inadequate to measure its own supply rail, so a circuit using standard discrete components was devised to do this with just one pin of the IC. This circuit solved a problem encountered in developing a portable device with an ARM Cortex-M0 processor. The power supply consisted of two AA batteries...