Electronics

by Dost Muhammad Shah on Electronics

SIMCOM SIM800H change in hardware. S2-105HG / S2-10651 , S2-1065N / S2-1065Q

SIMCOM has updated the hardware of SIM800H modules with hardware versions (S2-105HG / S2-10651) due to the fact that the power amplifier chip that these modules used (RF7176) is discontinued from production line. The Firmware also had to be changed due to modifications necessary for operation of the new power amplifier chips.

All the new modules ( with hardware versions(S2-1065N / S2-1065Q) ) will be having the new power amplifier chips namely RF7198. According to SIMCOM this change in hardware wont affect the properties and characteristics of the module.

Please note that:

  • firmware for the new hardware version of module differs from the old version of the firmware. Therefore, a new hardware version module can not be flashed with the firmware for the old hardware version module.
  • firmware image files for the old and new hardware versions will be with different names. Firmware for the old version is designated “1308B06SIM800H32_BT” while the firmware for the new version is designated “1309B06SIM800H32_BT”.

sim800H

Firmware files for SIM800H

All the firmware files can be found at the firmware collection page of this blog. If you want to contribute the files you have you can do so by uploading your files to user uploads section or by emailing me the files you have.

 

 

 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Electronics, Embedded LInux

USB OTG as an Extra USB Host in Allwinner A10, A20 etc

USB OTG port on Allwinner SoC based boards is a very useful tool. It can be used to flash an image to the flash memory or connect to a Host PC and making the board to act as a device.

Although there are many scenarios where USB OTG is useful, at times it is more useful to have an extra USB HOST on the board. All the settings of hardware configurations of allwinner SoCs are stored in a file named ` script.bin` that is compiled from a text file called fex file.We can learn more about the fex file from Sunxi Wiki in the Fex Guide.

A FEX file defines various aspects of how the SoC works. It configures the GPIO pins and sets up DRAM, Display, etc parameters.

Each line consists of a key = value pair combination under a [sectionheader]. All three, [sectionheader], key and value are case-sensitive. For comments a semi-colon (;) is used and everything following a semi-colon is ignored. The chip does not parse a textual version of a fex file, it gets cleaned and compiled by a fex-compiler. A reverse engineerd open source version exists in the sunxi-tools repository. Also a de-compiler which takes a binary script.bin and creates a textual script.fex. Usually, script.bin can be found on the nanda boot partition on A10 devices.

Changing script.bin file without removing the microSD card

The tools for script.bin changing are located in /opt/sunxi-tools directory:

  # cd /opt/sunxi-tools
  # ./chscr.sh

This will convert script.bin file from sdcard to script.fex file and the file will be opened using nano editor. Now you can change the board modules and parameters, save the changes (“CTRL”+”X”; confirm with “Y”) and exit (“CTRL”+”X” again) from nano editor.

  # ./wrscr.sh

this will convert script.fex to script.bin and the script.bin file will be written to sdcard.

  reboot

Reboot the board and the new settings would be enabled.

Changing script.bin file by removing the microSD card

The biggest part of the board configuration might be edited, changed or improved in a file called script.bin

The script.bin file can usually be found in the main directory of a microSD card prepared with official Debian image. The folder containing the script can be inspected under both Windows, Linux or Mac.

You can’t directly edit binary file so you would need to convert it to text format (it is called fex in this case), then edit the parameters via a text editor and finally switch it back to binary format.

IMPORTANT! ADJUSTING SCRIPT.BIN WITH IMPROPER VALUES MIGHT BREAK YOUR DEBIAN IMAGE AND IT IS ALWAYS RECOMMENDED TO KEEP A BACK-UP OF YOUR DEFAULT SCRIPT.BIN

To convert back and forth the script.bin you might use different tools. You can find Windows tools here: SUNXI TOOLS FOR WINDOWS . For Linux convertors please check the sunxi tools here: SUNXI TOOLS

Editing Fex File for USB OTG

Now open the Fex file and locate the USB section.

;——————————————————————————- 
;[usbc0]:  The configuration of controller 0 
;usb_used: Enable bit. If USB is enabled or not. 1: enable; 0: disable. 
;usb_port_type: Type of USB port. 0：device only;1：host only;2:OTG 
;usb_detect_type: Detect type. 0: Not detect; 1: detect vbus/id; 2: Detect id/dpdm
;——————————————————————————- 
;——————————————————————————- 

;——————————————————————————-
[usbc0]
usb_used = 1 
usb_port_type = 0 
usb_detect_type = 0 
usb_id_gpio = port:PH04<0><1><default><default> 
usb_det_vbus_gpio = “axp_ctrl” 
usb_drv_vbus_gpio = port:PB09<1><0><default><0> 
;usb_restrict_gpio = port:PH00<1><0><default><0> 
usb_host_init_state = 0 
usb_restric_flag = 0 
usb_restric_voltage = 3550000 
usb_restric_capacity= 5

We just need to change usb_port_type from 0 to 1 to make it a USB host.

Converting fex to script.bin:

The following commands are executed at sunxi-tools directory:

$./fex2bin script.fex >script.bin
$sudo cp script.bin /boot/script.bin
$sudo umount /boot
Now restart the board and you can use USB OTG as USB host.
 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Eagle, Electronics

Eagle footprint library for Allwinner A10 SoC.

The Allwinner A10 is a family of single-core SoC devices designed by Allwinner Technology from Zhuhai, China. Currently the family consists of the A10, A13, A10s and A12. The SoCs incorporate the ARM Cortex-A8 as their main processor and the Mali 400 as the GPU.

The Allwinner A10 is known for its ability to boot Linux distributions such as Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, and other ARM architecture-capable distributions from an SD card, in addition to the Android OS usually installed on the flash memory of the device.

Here I am sharing the footprint for Allwinner A10 Soc chip taken from Olimex design.

Capture

 

 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Electronics, Embedded LInux, Microcontrollers

Raspberry pi Zero launched , SBC priced at $5

This is awesome. The only thing I miss is the LAN interface but at $5 its still amazing. It has Broadcom BCM2835 processor and that also 40% faster than the pi 1 with 512 MB of Ram.

Today, I’m pleased to be able to announce the immediate availability of Raspberry Pi Zero, made in Wales and priced at just $5. Zero is a full-fledged member of the Raspberry Pi family, featuring:

  • A Broadcom BCM2835 application processor
    • 1GHz ARM11 core (40% faster than Raspberry Pi 1)
  • 512MB of LPDDR2 SDRAM
  • A micro-SD card slot
  • A mini-HDMI socket for 1080p60 video output
  • Micro-USB sockets for data and power
  • An unpopulated 40-pin GPIO header
    • Identical pinout to Model A+/B+/2B
  • An unpopulated composite video header
  • Our smallest ever form factor, at 65mm x 30mm x 5mm

Raspberry Pi Zero runs Raspbian and all your favourite applications, including Scratch, Minecraft and Sonic Pi.

RaspberryPi BLOG

 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Android, Coding, Electronics

Android: How to get MAC address of Ethernet port (not WiFi)

There are some android devices that have an ethernet (LAN) port for example Android STB, Android powered door-phone monitors, etc. The regular way of getting MAC address is as follows

WifiManager manager = (WifiManager) getSystemService(Context.WIFI_SERVICE);
WifiInfo info = manager.getConnectionInfo();
String address = info.getMacAddress();

Not to forget adding the following permission in the AndroidManifest.xml 

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_WIFI_STATE"/>

The above method will give us the MAC address of WiFi. Assuming your Ethernet interface is eth0, to get the MAC address of Ethernet port we have to try opening and reading the file /sys/class/net/eth0/address. This can be Implemented as below.

public static String loadFileAsString(String filePath) throws java.io.IOException{
    StringBuffer data = new StringBuffer(1000);
    BufferedReader reader = new BufferedReader(new FileReader(filePath));
    char[] buf = new char[1024];
    int numRead=0;
    while((numRead=reader.read(buf)) != -1){
        String readData = String.valueOf(buf, 0, numRead);
        data.append(readData);
    }
    reader.close();
    return data.toString();
}

public String getMacAddress(){
    try {
        return loadFileAsString("/sys/class/net/eth0/address")
                .toUpperCase().substring(0, 17);
    } catch (IOException e) {
        e.printStackTrace();
        return null;
    }
}
 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Electronics, Embedded LInux

Getting power and battery info from AXP209

Here is a script that gives some info about battery (when one is plugged)

I think that this page has mistakes (http://linux-sunxi.org/AXP209#Spec_Sheets) because discharging and charging current are inverted.

#!/bin/sh
# This program gets the battery info from PMU
# Voltage and current charging/discharging
#
# Nota : temperature can be more than real because of self heating
#######################################################################
# Copyright (c) 2014 by RzBo, Bellesserre, France
#
# Permission is granted to use the source code within this
# file in whole or in part for any use, personal or commercial,
# without restriction or limitation.
#
# No warranties, either explicit or implied, are made as to the
# suitability of this code for any purpose. Use at your own risk.
#######################################################################

# force ADC enable for battery voltage and current
i2cset -y -f 0 0x34 0x82 0xC3

################################
#read Power status register @00h
POWER_STATUS=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x00)
#echo $POWER_STATUS

BAT_STATUS=$(($(($POWER_STATUS&0x02))/2))  # divide by 2 is like shifting rigth 1 times
#echo $(($POWER_STATUS&0x02))
echo "BAT_STATUS="$BAT_STATUS
# echo $BAT_STATUS

################################
#read Power OPERATING MODE register @01h
POWER_OP_MODE=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x01)
#echo $POWER_OP_MODE

CHARG_IND=$(($(($POWER_OP_MODE&0x40))/64))  # divide by 64 is like shifting rigth 6 times
#echo $(($POWER_OP_MODE&0x40))
echo "CHARG_IND="$CHARG_IND
# echo $CHARG_IND

BAT_EXIST=$(($(($POWER_OP_MODE&0x20))/32))  # divide by 32 is like shifting rigth 5 times
#echo $(($POWER_OP_MODE&0x20))
echo "BAT_EXIST="$BAT_EXIST
# echo $BAT_EXIST

################################
#read Charge control register @33h
CHARGE_CTL=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x33)
echo "CHARGE_CTL="$CHARGE_CTL
# echo $CHARGE_CTL


################################
#read Charge control register @34h
CHARGE_CTL2=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x34)
echo "CHARGE_CTL2="$CHARGE_CTL2
# echo $CHARGE_CTL2


################################
#read battery voltage	79h, 78h	0 mV -> 000h,	1.1 mV/bit	FFFh -> 4.5045 V
BAT_VOLT_LSB=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x79)
BAT_VOLT_MSB=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x78)

#echo $BAT_VOLT_MSB $BAT_VOLT_LSB

BAT_BIN=$(( $(($BAT_VOLT_MSB << 4)) | $(($(($BAT_VOLT_LSB & 0xF0)) >> 4)) ))

BAT_VOLT=$(echo "($BAT_BIN*1.1)"|bc)
echo "Battery voltage = "$BAT_VOLT"mV"

###################
#read Battery Discharge Current	7Ah, 7Bh	0 mV -> 000h,	0.5 mA/bit	FFFh -> 4.095 V
BAT_IDISCHG_LSB=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x7B)
BAT_IDISCHG_MSB=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x7A)

#echo $BAT_IDISCHG_MSB $BAT_IDISCHG_LSB

BAT_IDISCHG_BIN=$(( $(($BAT_IDISCHG_MSB << 4)) | $(($(($BAT_IDISCHG_LSB & 0xF0)) >> 4)) ))

BAT_IDISCHG=$(echo "($BAT_IDISCHG_BIN*0.5)"|bc)
echo "Battery discharge current = "$BAT_IDISCHG"mA"

###################
#read Battery Charge Current	7Ch, 7Dh	0 mV -> 000h,	0.5 mA/bit	FFFh -> 4.095 V
BAT_ICHG_LSB=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x7D)
BAT_ICHG_MSB=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x7C)

#echo $BAT_ICHG_MSB $BAT_ICHG_LSB

BAT_ICHG_BIN=$(( $(($BAT_ICHG_MSB << 4)) | $(($(($BAT_ICHG_LSB & 0xF0)) >> 4)) ))

BAT_ICHG=$(echo "($BAT_ICHG_BIN*0.5)"|bc)
echo "Battery charge current = "$BAT_ICHG"mA"

this script gives the AC power status :

#!/bin/sh
# This program gets the power status (AC IN or BAT) for pcDuino3
# I2C interface with AXP209
#
#######################################################################
# Copyright (c) 2014 by RzBo, Bellesserre, France
#
# Permission is granted to use the source code within this
# file in whole or in part for any use, personal or commercial,
# without restriction or limitation.
#
# No warranties, either explicit or implied, are made as to the
# suitability of this code for any purpose. Use at your own risk.
#######################################################################

#read Power status register @00h
POWER_STATUS=$(i2cget -y -f 0 0x34 0x00)
#echo $POWER_STATUS

# bit 7 : Indicates ACIN presence 0: ACIN does not exist; 1: ACIN present
#echo "bit 7 : Indicates ACIN presence 0: ACIN does not exist; 1: ACIN present"
#echo "bit 2 : Indicates that the battery current direction 0: battery discharge; 1: The battery is charged"

AC_STATUS=$(($(($POWER_STATUS&0x80))/128))  # divide by 128 is like shifting rigth 8 times
#echo $(($POWER_STATUS&0x80))
echo "AC_STATUS="$AC_STATUS
# echo $AC_STATUS

Example :

battery charging

rzbo@ubuntu:~$ ./battery_info.sh
BAT_STATUS=0
CHARG_IND=1
BAT_EXIST=1
CHARGE_CTL=0xd0
CHARGE_CTL2=0x47
Battery voltage = 3895.1mV
Battery discharge current = 304.0mA
Battery charge current = 0mA

rzbo@ubuntu:~$ ./power_status.sh
AC_STATUS=1

Battery discharging (USB power unplugged)

rzbo@ubuntu:~$ ./battery_info.sh
BAT_STATUS=0
CHARG_IND=0
BAT_EXIST=1
CHARGE_CTL=0xd0
CHARGE_CTL2=0x47
Battery voltage = 3678.4mV
Battery discharge current = 0mA
Battery charge current = 176.0mA

rzbo@ubuntu:~$ ./power_status.sh
AC_STATUS=0

IMG_20140916_183651 IMG_20140916_183625

 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Coding, Electronics

How to Turn a Raspberry Pi into NVR or DVR With Motion

Raspberry Pi is a low-cost micro-computer that is able to run Linux and has endless extension possibilities then can be also used for network video recorder (NVR) is a software program that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other mass storage device.

This post will guide you through the process of setting up your Raspberry Pi as a Network video recorder (NVR)

Requirements

You are going to need the following:

  • A Raspberry Pi
  • An Internet connection
  • An SD Card flashed with Raspbian OS (> 8 Gb)
  • IP or Analog camera with mjpeg streaming support or USB Camera (If you want record from Raspberry’s camera module, Please visit “Raspberry Pi as low-cost HD surveillance camera“)

Continue Reading …

 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Electronics

NEED TIMING DIAGRAMS? TRY WAVEDROM

When working with anything digital, you’re going to end up reading or writing a timing diagram before long. For us, that’s meant keeping (text) notes, drawing something on a napkin, or using a tool like Inkscape. None of these are ideal.

An afternoon’s search for a better tool ended up with Wavedrom.

Just so you know where we’re coming from, here’s our list of desiderata for a timing diagram drawing solution:

  • Diagrams have a text-based representation, so their generation can be easily scripted and the results versioned and tracked throughout project development
  • Command-line rendering of images, because we like to automate everything
  • Looks good
  • Simple to use for common cases, but flexible enough to do some strange stuff when needed
  • Output modifiable when absolutely necessary: SVG would be nice

Basically, what we want is graphviz for timing diagrams.

Wavedrom nails four out of these five at the moment, and has promise to cover all of the bases. Give the online editor demo a try. We found it intuitive enough that we could make simple diagrams without even reading the fine manual. The tutorial has got you covered for more esoteric use cases.

foo

Clearly, some good thought has been put into the waveform description language, WaveJSON; it’s mostly readable and makes the essentials quick and easy. Because you can also enter straight SVG, it leaves the door open for full-fledged lunacy.

Wavedrom is written in JavaScript, and built for embedding in webpages; that’s the way they intend us to use it. On the other hand, if you want to run your own local version of the online editor, you can download it and install it locally if you’d like.

Our only quibble is that the standalone, command-line application wouldn’t generate images without the GUI on our Arch system. (Looks like there are some Google Chrome dependencies?) Otherwise, we think we’ve found our solution.

There are other applications out there. Drawtiming looks good, but we can’t quite get our head around the file format and the graphic output isn’t as flexible as we’d like: it only outputs GIF and we’re more into SVG because it can be edited easily after the fact.

There are font-based solutions that let you “type” the timing diagrams. We found Xwave and “Timing Diagram Font“. These work but aren’t particularly flexible; if you want something to happen at odd times, you’re out of luck. Plus, it just feels like a dirty hack, as if that were a bad thing.

Latex users can use tikz-timing, which makes sketching out your timing diagrams as much fun as laying out a very complex table in Latex (that is: not fun at all). On the other hand, it looks good, is ultimately flexible, outputs PDF, and would be scriptable if someone put the time in to write a nice frontend.

So for the next little while, we’re trying out Wavedrom.

What do you use for making timing diagrams?

VIA: HACKADAY

 
by Dost Muhammad Shah on Electronics, Microcontrollers

Chocometer :an open source near infrared sensor aiming glucose measurements without pain.

marcelclaro’s project for The Hackaday Prize aims to do just that. Instead of measuring blood directly, his project will measure blood glucose by shining light through a finger or an earlobe. Using light to detect blood glucose is something that has been studied in the lab, but so far, there aren’t any products on the market that use this technique.

There are two major problems marcel needs to overcome to turn this project into reality. The first is simply raw data for calibration. For [marcel], this is easy; he has Type 1 diabetes, and takes four glucose measurements a day. Patient heal thyself, or something.

The second problem is getting a photosensor that’s sensitive enough. By using an InGaAs PIN diode, a current-controlled oscillator, and a digital counter, [marcel] should have a sensor that’s good enough, with electronics that are cheap enough, to create some tech that is truly game changing for a few hundred million people around the world.