Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
32k flash far below the minimum required I guess.
Tiny Core Linux (piCore) developer
HAM radio call: HA5DI (Béla)
HAM radio call: HA5DI (Béla)
Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
A version with more RAM and onboard Bluetooth 4.1 (BLE) would be fantastic. It seems to me that all the best embedded/microcontroller projects are wireless and/or portable these days, and BLE seems like the way to go since it's relatively powerful but has low power draw.
Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
i want to upvote for JimTal001's suggestion:
" A way to deploy protected pyboard code..".
i think this is almost mandatory if we want to see the pyboard being used in commercial or industrial applications and not just hobby projects and such.
" A way to deploy protected pyboard code..".
i think this is almost mandatory if we want to see the pyboard being used in commercial or industrial applications and not just hobby projects and such.
- pythoncoder
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Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
Persistent bytecode goes some way towards addressing these concerns.
Peter Hinch
Index to my micropython libraries.
Index to my micropython libraries.
Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
hi.
persistent bytecode?
i dont remember to have read about that in the docs..
i'll search here in the forum..
persistent bytecode?
i dont remember to have read about that in the docs..
i'll search here in the forum..
- pythoncoder
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Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
It's only recently been released http://forum.micropython.org/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1776.
Peter Hinch
Index to my micropython libraries.
Index to my micropython libraries.
Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
I just found this post. Hopefully I'm not too late to chime in.
Let me provide my input by means of a story.
First, my background. I have been an embedded developer for the past 15+ years using about a half-dozen different architectures at the C, assembly, and HDL level. My passion is to make things work and to control and interface to the real world without sucking. I discovered MicroPython during the ESP8266 kickstarter. I was instantly intrigued as I have been using Python to solve problems on the PC side of things for many years. When the opportunity presented itself I purchased a half-dozen pyboards for a rapid development project at work. I estimate the pyboard cut my development time to a tenth of what I would have expended with a traditional microcontroller development; nevermind the fact that I had never used it before (Hats off to the pyboard and MicroPython!).
Shortly after this experience I was talking with one of my employer’s most senior engineers. He is an idea man. He would like to build controllers for his home solar hot water system. He would like to automate his PV hybrid battery charging system. These are just the start of his ideas. He has the knowledge and the desire but he doesn’t have the time for the boring and painful parts of embedded development. He certainly doesn’t have time to read the datasheet to see how to setup the ADC, SPI or the PWM modules--nor should he have to.
I told him what I had discovered with the pyboard--and how it had made microcontrollers more fun and not tedious as they so often are. The highlights are that the common microcontroller peripherals (and everything on the board) are fully supported, built-in, and easy. Plug-Import-Play, so to speak.
After I had pitched the merits of the pyboard and MicroPython he asked the simple question:
At first I thought the answer was a micropython board with the ability to use Arduino sheilds. The problem with this approach is that there are so many options for shields that the support complexity increases quickly. It would be near impossible to support more than a small combination of shields from a few vendors (and, as others have noted, certainly not economical).
My current wishful thinking is for a board or an expansion board with real-world (industrial/scientific) interfaces that are fully supported by MicroPython so that the plug-import-play ease of the pyboard remains. I asked my senior engineer friend about what he would like to see and this is the summary of our brainstorming for an outdoor, data logging and controller application board:
Yes, wishful thinking I know. My take is that MicroPython could be today's Basic or Forth once we can easily hook it up to the world around us.
-syrekron
Let me provide my input by means of a story.
First, my background. I have been an embedded developer for the past 15+ years using about a half-dozen different architectures at the C, assembly, and HDL level. My passion is to make things work and to control and interface to the real world without sucking. I discovered MicroPython during the ESP8266 kickstarter. I was instantly intrigued as I have been using Python to solve problems on the PC side of things for many years. When the opportunity presented itself I purchased a half-dozen pyboards for a rapid development project at work. I estimate the pyboard cut my development time to a tenth of what I would have expended with a traditional microcontroller development; nevermind the fact that I had never used it before (Hats off to the pyboard and MicroPython!).
Shortly after this experience I was talking with one of my employer’s most senior engineers. He is an idea man. He would like to build controllers for his home solar hot water system. He would like to automate his PV hybrid battery charging system. These are just the start of his ideas. He has the knowledge and the desire but he doesn’t have the time for the boring and painful parts of embedded development. He certainly doesn’t have time to read the datasheet to see how to setup the ADC, SPI or the PWM modules--nor should he have to.
I told him what I had discovered with the pyboard--and how it had made microcontrollers more fun and not tedious as they so often are. The highlights are that the common microcontroller peripherals (and everything on the board) are fully supported, built-in, and easy. Plug-Import-Play, so to speak.
After I had pitched the merits of the pyboard and MicroPython he asked the simple question:
That, I realized is what the pyboard lacks. There are no relays. There are no thermistor/thermocouple inputs. There is no high-endurance FRAM or EEPROM. There are no analog buffers on the ADC inputs that can handle outdoor/industrial voltages. There is no 16x2 LCD interface. The only button is TINY. There are no stepper motor controllers. If you want real-world interface for the pyboard you have to design your own board or deal with a rat's nest of proto boards stitched together--which moves the project back to tedious, un-fun, and impractical for those of us with lots of ideas and very little time.How do I hook it up to the world?
At first I thought the answer was a micropython board with the ability to use Arduino sheilds. The problem with this approach is that there are so many options for shields that the support complexity increases quickly. It would be near impossible to support more than a small combination of shields from a few vendors (and, as others have noted, certainly not economical).
My current wishful thinking is for a board or an expansion board with real-world (industrial/scientific) interfaces that are fully supported by MicroPython so that the plug-import-play ease of the pyboard remains. I asked my senior engineer friend about what he would like to see and this is the summary of our brainstorming for an outdoor, data logging and controller application board:
- First, keep the basic pyboard features!
- MicroSD
USB UART and mass storage
- Buffered analog inputs to support wider input voltage ranges (+/- 10V or 0-28V)
“Open collector” digital outputs
“Ground-open” or “volt-open” digital inputs
2 or 3 relays suitable for AC/DC circuit switching
- Battery or supercap backed, temperature stable RTC
Lithium battery charger/fuel gauge
High write endurance NVM
- 10/100 (wired) Ethernet
RS422 or RS485 serial port(s)
- 16x2 character LCD module
Small key matrix (either on-board or external)
- MicroSD
Yes, wishful thinking I know. My take is that MicroPython could be today's Basic or Forth once we can easily hook it up to the world around us.
-syrekron
- pythoncoder
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Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
@syrekron Software drivers already exist for many of the things you want. An industrial control board with a Pyboard daughterboard could be designed today.
Peter Hinch
Index to my micropython libraries.
Index to my micropython libraries.
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Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
Also note that several STM NUCLEO boards are supported, which include Arduino pin-compatible headers and make it possible to use many Arduino shields - if not out-of-the-box, at least with very small effort, since the principal drivers (e.g. LCD, motors, etc.) already exist (as pythoncoder already pointed out) and just need to be configured for the pin layout.
Re: Ideas for next evolution of pyboard
Correct.SpotlightKid wrote:Also note that several STM NUCLEO boards are supported, which include Arduino pin-compatible headers and make it possible to use many Arduino shields
I could purchase STM32 boards and Arduino shields and make things work.
Though my purchases wouldn't contribute to MicroPython's continued development.
My point was to suggest a variant of the pyboard rich in industrial/scientific interfaces and peripherals.