Talk:FOSS Programmer: Difference between revisions
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The basic idea I've seen thrown around for a FOSS programmer (from talking with davidc__ on siliconpr0n IRC channel) is thus: | The basic idea I've seen thrown around for a FOSS programmer (from talking with davidc__ on siliconpr0n IRC channel) is thus: | ||
* Use an FPGA with a custom I2C core, possibly an FPGA | * Use an FPGA with a custom I2C core, possibly an FPGA USB core as well. If we can tolerate HDL to provide a base that's rarely modified, this reduces part count while maximizing flexibility. | ||
* The I2C interface talks to a number of Silego Greenpak 4s, which control both the pass transistors for the power lines and also provide lines of I/O for the target device. | * The I2C interface talks to a number of Silego Greenpak 4s, which control both the pass transistors for the power lines and also provide lines of I/O for the target device. | ||
* Greenpak 4 interfacing gives us "free 5V support", they are also incredibly cheap and small. | * Greenpak 4 interfacing gives us "free 5V support", they are also incredibly cheap and small. | ||
* FPGA can be put to other use? My proposal is a softcore (RISC-V? lm32? Something else?) running from SPIflash and using block RAM and RAM. This would give a superior development environment in terms of resources 'and' toolchain support compared to PIC. | * FPGA can be put to other use? My proposal is a softcore (RISC-V? lm32? Something else?) running from SPIflash and using block RAM and RAM. This would give a superior development environment in terms of resources 'and' toolchain support compared to PIC. | ||
Revision as of 22:43, 26 September 2018
mcmaster
While I'm not opposed to such a project, I'm skeptical of the time that it will take to develop such a device and the availability of it vs a COTS solution. In particular, with a TL866 costing $50 and still readily available, effort is much better spent focusing on these.
cr1901
While the TL866 is ending production, the TL866-II is still available/produced. In case TL866-II stops production and both variants become difficult to obtain easily, doing our own design has been proposed before. The short version is we have a lot of good/doable ideas for a FOSS programmer, but it would be a time commitment and would not be as cheap as a TL866. I suspect in principle an open design would attract more contributors in the long run; while Elemecca has done a great job on this front, PIC isn't exactly known to be pleasant to work with.
The basic idea I've seen thrown around for a FOSS programmer (from talking with davidc__ on siliconpr0n IRC channel) is thus:
- Use an FPGA with a custom I2C core, possibly an FPGA USB core as well. If we can tolerate HDL to provide a base that's rarely modified, this reduces part count while maximizing flexibility.
- The I2C interface talks to a number of Silego Greenpak 4s, which control both the pass transistors for the power lines and also provide lines of I/O for the target device.
- Greenpak 4 interfacing gives us "free 5V support", they are also incredibly cheap and small.
- FPGA can be put to other use? My proposal is a softcore (RISC-V? lm32? Something else?) running from SPIflash and using block RAM and RAM. This would give a superior development environment in terms of resources 'and' toolchain support compared to PIC.