This page (revision-8) was last changed on 2021-01-10 03:27 by Murray Altheim

This page was created on 2021-01-09 22:21 by Murray Altheim

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At line 1 removed 8 lines
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See also ''[Big Things in Small Packages|https://robots.org.nz/2021/01/10/big-things-in-small-packages/]'' on the NZPRG blog.
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[{Image src='attach/NuvotonMS51/IoExpander.png' link='attach/NuvotonMS51/IoExpander.png' width='250' caption='The Pimoroni IO Expander uses an MS51' align='right' class='imgFloatRight'}]
The [MS51/8051|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_MCS-51] is a 1980s-era 8 bit microcontroller series. Nuvoton is a Taiwanese manufacturer.
At line 10 added 2 lines
The [MS51/8051|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_MCS-51] is a 1980s-era 8 bit microcontroller series. Nuvoton is a Taiwanese manufacturer.
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My exposure to the __Nuvoton MS51 microcontroller__ came about due to its use in a number of Pimoroni Breakout Garden products, initially their [IO Expander|https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/io-expander] board, which provides 6 PWM/digital and 8 analog IO pins, and programmed via Python on a Raspberry Pi using a single I2C connection. Very handy.
Back in October 2020 I sent a [message|https://forums.pimoroni.com/t/development-using-the-nuvoton-ms51/15182/2] into the Pimoroni forum regarding the use of the [Nuvoton MS51 microcontroller|https://www.nuvoton.com/export/resource-files/TRM_MS51_16KBFlash_Series_EN_Rev1.03.pdf] on their [IO Expander Breakout Garden board|https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/io-expander]. The MS51 is an [MCS-51/8051-compatible|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_MCS-51] microcontroller, using the same 1980s-era 8 bit architecture.
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[{Image src='attach/NuvotonMS51/RotaryEnc.png' link='attach/NuvotonMS51/RotaryEnc.png' width='200' caption='Pimoroni RGB Encoder board' align='right' class='imgFloatRight'}]
A bit later Pimoroni released a pair of RGB LED knob controllers, a [RGB Encoder|https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/rgb-encoder-breakout] and [RGB Potentiometer|https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/rgb-potentiometer-breakout] that internally use the MS51. Recently they even added a tiny [Super Dinky Blinky|https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/super-dinky-blinky] LED blinker board that uses it, even providing github links and instructions on how to hack/reprogram the device. So it's clear Pimoroni have some engineers on staff who like the MS51 as a general-purpose controller.
Back in October 2020 I sent a [message|https://forums.pimoroni.com/t/development-using-the-nuvoton-ms51/15182/2] into the Pimoroni forum regarding the use of the [Nuvoton MS51 microcontroller|https://www.nuvoton.com/export/resource-files/TRM_MS51_16KBFlash_Series_EN_Rev1.03.pdf] on their [IO Expander Breakout Garden board|https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/io-expander], asking if they might help me figure out how to hack it. The MS51 is an [MCS-51/8051-compatible|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_MCS-51] microcontroller, using the same 1980s-era 8 bit architecture.
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[{Image src='attach/NuvotonMS51/SuperDinkyBlinky.png' link='attach/NuvotonMS51/SuperDinkyBlinky.png' width='150' caption='Pimoroni Super Dinky Blinky' align='right' class='imgFloatRight'}]
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I've also contacted their sales department to see about the price for purchase of the IAR IDE for a quantity of one. The installer included a "dongle driver" so I'm hoping they don't use dongle-based license management (yuck). At least for the trial license there's no dongle. If the commercial price of the KEIL IDE ($395) is any indication, the IAR one might be rather expensive. I hope to get a quote from their sales rep, otherwise I'll be limited to 4K code files.
I've also contacted their sales department to see about the price for
purchase of the IAR IDE for a quantity of one. The installer included a
"dongle driver" so I'm hoping they don't use dongle-based license management
(yuck). At least for the trial license there's no dongle. If the commercial
price of the KEIL IDE ($395) is any indication, the IAR one might be rather
expensive. I hope to get a quote from their sales rep, otherwise I'll be
limited to 4K code files.