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The development of an 8051 micro-controller evaluation and training board
Author(s)
De Beer, Daniel Nel
Date Issued
1996
Type
Thesis
Publisher
Cape Technikon
Abstract
The development of the 8051 Evaluation and Training Board was in response to fulfill a
need to have a training board available for students at the start of a micro-controller
course. This board must be used to get hands-on experience in the internal architecture,
programming and operation of the controller through the testing of sample programs and
exercises. It can act as an example of a practical micro-controller application board, and
also as part of, or as an aid in the design and application of own projects.
The board had to be cheap enough so that each student can be issued with a personal
board for the duration of the course. It had to be adequately selfsufficient to be portable
and to operate independent of a host PC. In addition, it had to contain adequate
"intelligence" to guide the student in the use of the board: have a quick re-programming
turn-around cycle; and it must be possible to use the board for user program testing and
debugging.
After drawing up an initial set of objectives and investigating the economic viability of
similar systems in industry, an outline of the required design was made. This included
the selection of suitable communication between the onboard Operating System and a user;
the easiest way to load user programs into the board memory; and methods to test and
debug this program.
All the normal support circuitry required by a micro-controller to accommodate a
minimum system for operation was included into a single Field Programmable Gate Array.
The execution of the project was therefore divided into three distinct sections, the
hardware, the firmware (Programmable Array configuration) and the software. In the
design, the harmony between these sections had to be consolidated to yield a successful
final product. The simplicity and ergonomics of the operation and application from a
user's point of view, had to be accentuated and kept in mind throughout.
In a design of the complexity such as this, careful planning and the investigation of various
methods of approach were essential. The use of many computer-aided design and other
relevant computer packages was incorporated.
Interaction between the user and the Operating System on the board was done through a
standard 16-character by 1-line LCD Display Module and a 32-key keyboard. The main
feature of the Operating System was to enable the inspection and editing of all the memory
locations on the micro-processor.
need to have a training board available for students at the start of a micro-controller
course. This board must be used to get hands-on experience in the internal architecture,
programming and operation of the controller through the testing of sample programs and
exercises. It can act as an example of a practical micro-controller application board, and
also as part of, or as an aid in the design and application of own projects.
The board had to be cheap enough so that each student can be issued with a personal
board for the duration of the course. It had to be adequately selfsufficient to be portable
and to operate independent of a host PC. In addition, it had to contain adequate
"intelligence" to guide the student in the use of the board: have a quick re-programming
turn-around cycle; and it must be possible to use the board for user program testing and
debugging.
After drawing up an initial set of objectives and investigating the economic viability of
similar systems in industry, an outline of the required design was made. This included
the selection of suitable communication between the onboard Operating System and a user;
the easiest way to load user programs into the board memory; and methods to test and
debug this program.
All the normal support circuitry required by a micro-controller to accommodate a
minimum system for operation was included into a single Field Programmable Gate Array.
The execution of the project was therefore divided into three distinct sections, the
hardware, the firmware (Programmable Array configuration) and the software. In the
design, the harmony between these sections had to be consolidated to yield a successful
final product. The simplicity and ergonomics of the operation and application from a
user's point of view, had to be accentuated and kept in mind throughout.
In a design of the complexity such as this, careful planning and the investigation of various
methods of approach were essential. The use of many computer-aided design and other
relevant computer packages was incorporated.
Interaction between the user and the Operating System on the board was done through a
standard 16-character by 1-line LCD Display Module and a 32-key keyboard. The main
feature of the Operating System was to enable the inspection and editing of all the memory
locations on the micro-processor.
Additional information
Thesis MTech(Electrical Engineering)--Cape Technikon, Cape Town, 1996
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The Development of an 8051 Micro-Controller Evaluation and Training Board.pdf
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