Last in my #drone controller history:
Restarted the fully DIY project in 2020 with a new board based on the STM32H723. More features, new radio, and down facing camera and ToF as well as coreless motor controller!
This went further, but never passed hovering a micro drone (2021).
#hardware #diy
Continuing my controller board history:
After my self made PCB version, with the Arduino, I made one with an STM32 using my first manufactured PCB (also in 2016)! It had some addressable RGB LEDs as well.
Didn't go far either, major power distribution issues and reboots.
#drone #arduino #stm32 #pcb
Going through my old Project box and found one of my first PCBs I ever made! Completely self made, was my first attempt at a drone controller board as well, back in 2016.
This has come a long way, to now my newest attempt with the #PlumaN6 with the #stm32n6
#drones #robotics #hardware
Got the bare-metal driver for USB of the #stm32n6 on my #pluman6 board working WITH DMA and in USB 2.0 HS mode!
After learning the RIF/Security stuff with the SDMMC, the USB DMA was more of the same to get it working.
With the virtual COM ready, next will implement UVC class!
Project Update on #PlumaN6:
The basic USB driver is now working! With a CDC class (virtual COM) registered and recognized on Windows!
Next is to polish the driver a bit and get the DMA working as well.
#stm32n6 #embedded #drone #robotics
Progress Update on #PlumaN6:
The new soldered board now passes all the same tests as the previous board. This is:
HyperFlash ✅
HyperRAM ✅
uSD Card ✅
So picking up where I left off, the USB driver development!
#embedded #cv #drone #robotics
Power supply (hand) soldered and tested, all working on the second board as well!
MCU also gets picked up by debugger so good progress!
#pluman6 #stm32n6 #mcu #embedded #drone
Here goes round 2!
New MCU and Memories arrived to make a new board after killing the previous ones MCU...
Safer to make a whole new board then to try to replace the broken BGA MCU.
#stm32n6 #pluman6 #hardware #debug
Taking on a new side project: Together with my SO we are creating custom 3D printed embroidery hoops under Tiny Project.iles!
If you know someone that does embroidery or cross-stitch share it with them:
STLs: makerworld.com/en/@tiny_projects
First casualty of the #PlumaN6 project..
Had a power wire touch something that it shouldn't, killing the MCU.. Almost all power rails were reading short until MCU was removed so it is confirmed dead... RIP
Time for a break until I can solder a new board
#embedded #debug #stm32n6
The next driver development focus for the #PlumaN6:
The USB-HS interface, yes the #STM32N6 has a full 480 Mbps HS interface! A major improvement over there previous series and invaluable for streaming high data rate video frames or similar!
#robotics #drones #uav
Base SD Card driver is now complete:
Reads full specs from SD card and configures the SDMMC peripheral appropriately (max 4-bit and 50 MHz). IDMA (SDMMC specific DMA) also working!
On a C10 class uSD card I'm getting:
Read: 5 MByte/s
Write: 19 MByte/s
#PlumaN6 #stm32n6 #embedded
Progress Update on #PlumaN6:
SD card driver is coming together, I can now connect and read all essential SD card information and change the SDMMC peripheral to match the specs of the SD card (up to 4-bit width and sadly 50MHz speed). Read and write is also progressing.
#stm32n6
It's a very cheap AliExpress one, so not unexpected just first time 😁
Button failure analysis:
Had two SMD buttons fail on the #PlumaN6, next to each other. De-soldering and opening them up showed the likely cause. Solder flux on the contact pads. Very likely due to reworks and hand soldering next to them.
Interesting find for sure!
#embedded #diy
Short update, the SDMMC driver skeleton is mostly implemented and working. Can read basic registers from a uSD card. This in standard single wire mode for now.
Next to implement the SD card driver level!
Doing the whole firmware and drivers in low level (no HAL) and using C++.
With the HyperBus devices working at 100MHz, moving to the next peripheral to implement for the #PlumaN6 controller: uSD Card (SDMMC)!
In theory it should support UHS-I but due to a hardware mistake will be limited to standard speed (50 MHz and 4-bit width).
Finally have both the HyperBus external Memories working error free at 100MHz. Was an issue with drive strengths configurations, I had to lower them on the Memory side (reflection issues?).
Stable and error free 350 MB/s reads from PSRAM (DMA).
Next figuring out limits (200MHz?)
So getting some issues with the HyperBus, although it is working at 100MHz, there are occasional data corruption... At 50MHz it works flawlessly.
Need further investigation, but that's the challenge when pushing speed closer to the limit (limit is 200MHz)!
#embedded #stm32n6
More improvements, testing both the HyperRAM and HyperFlash with DMA reads I'm reaching there limits:
HyperRAM at 351 MB/s
HyperFlash at 190 MB/s
Both using HyperBus at 100 MHz but the PSRAM with 16-bits bus width.
#stm32n6 #pulman6 #drone #robotics #embedded
Configured the RIF and doing some basic SRAM to SRAM data movement using the HPDMA, getting just about 500MByte/s in this test. Theoretically the AXI bus can deliver 3200 MByte/s at 400 Hz and 64-Bit width.
The lower number is due to Read then Write I guess
Started to work and test the DMA of the #STM32N6, specifically to test performance with the HyperBus devices for my #PlumaN6 board.
The safety features are really a pain point here... Can't just use the DMA, you have to setup the RIF (resource isolation framework) stuff...
Some further development on the #PlumaN6. Improving the HyperBus driver and now also started to develop the HyperFlash part.
Both HyperRAM and HyperFlash now working!
Interestingly both have the same read performance in memory mapped mode: 125 MByte/s.
#stm32n6 #drone #robotics
Updates from weekend development of my custom #STM32N6 robotics focused board #PlumaN6:
- Implemented bare-metal (no HAL) HyperBus
- Implemented and tested HyperRAM driver
Currently running it at 100MHz DDR and reaching 125 MByte/s sequential read speeds in Memory Mapped mode.
Progress on the #PlumaN6 board, UART is now working. Starting to work on a simple Logger and Console/Shell functionality over it as the basis for debugging and developing.
Progress during weekdays is slow but still going!
After comes the HyperBus for the external flash and PSRAM!
Over the weekend I got the #PlumaN6 with its STM32N6 powered up! Simple LED showing code running.
In debug mode from SRAM, which was already a challenge to get working! Significantly more then other MCU I have used, which didn't have all this security and external flash stuff...
Minimal assembly of the #PlumaN6 board. Just the MCU (and external memory due to also being BGA), the decoupling capacitors, debug interface and power supplies.
Ready for first power ups and connecting to see if the MCU is alive!
#Embedded #Robotics #Engineering #STM32
Step 2: The Placement.
Placing fine-pitch BGAs by hand with quality tweezers and a, somewhat, steady hand.
Dropping the STM32N6 and the memory chips onto their pads. You have to trust the alignment.
Next up: Reflow on the hot plate. 🔥
#PCBAssembly #STM32N6 #PickAndPlace
Oh yes, I only did it now because the 6L boards from JLC are much cheaper now! Below 100€ with ENIG and capped vias, where before it was in the 100's.
