3

M

PICKING

THE Perfect

FEATURE

Picking the perfect microcontroller

about the hardware you might need to use them. USB

boards simply require an appropriate cable (watch out

here, you may find a few with the now uncommon

mini-USB), but serial boards will require some form of

serial interface. This is most often a USB-to-serial board

or cable that can be had for a few pounds, but in some

cases it can be a proprietary interface that may carry a

more significant cost. It is worth investigating this

before making your choice.

So, you’ve got your eye on a

processor and you know what

hardware you’ll need to

program it. Now it’s worth

turning to their software

environments. This may

influence your choice of

platform more than the

processor architecture or the

manufacturer, because you may have a familiarity with

a particular language or IDE.

Traditionally a microcontroller will come with an

associated software toolchain from its manufacturer,

with an IDE in which you write your code, and a

compiler which turns it into a binary file and sends it to

your board. These are typically proprietary packages, and

the language in question will often be some dialect of C

or C++. Using these environments gives you the

maximum access to the capabilities of the chip, but will

often require a detailed knowledge of the chip

architecture for tasks such as configuring the functions

of each pin.

The Arduino IDE and bootloader combo is another

C-based environment, but one that simplifies this by

abstracting many of the difficult tasks associated with

microcontroller configuration. Instead of having to

consult the data sheet and write code to set a particular

pin as a PWM output or an analogue input, a standard

pin configuration is set up and provided through an

easy-to-use software library. The Arduino IDE is now

supported by a vast number of boards, including many

that aren’t made by Arduino. Because it is an open-

source platform, there are many plug-ins to allow it to be

used with other non-Arduino boards. It is often a

sensible choice to use the Arduino IDE, even if you don’t

have prior knowledge of it, because there is a huge body

of online code as well as help and advice about it, and it

is a skill transferable to other platforms.

CHEAP AND CHEERFUL:

THE CAPABLE ESP

The ESP8266 made a significant splash

when it arrived without warning and with

very little documentation in 2014. It offers a

powerful processor and WiFi connectivity

for a fraction of the cost of other options,

but it is available in such a wide variety of

form factors that choosing the one for you

can be challenging. Thankfully, help is at

hand to ease the confusion, as a variety

of manufacturers have integrated it for

more friendly development boards with all

associated components. Adafruit’s Huzzah

and SparkFun’s ESP8266 Thing are both

very similar modules for example, designed

to bring the ESP’s connections out to a

familiar dual in-line footprint.

On the development front, the ESP is

an extremely versatile device, having

a variety of language, development

environment, and firmware choices for the

would-be coder. As well as C++ through an

Arduino IDE add-on and firmware, there is

MicroPython, as well as other firmwares

supporting BASIC and JavaScript.

However, many people choose the Arduino

IDE route for this platform due to its

familiarity and community support.

Below

The ESP-01, a

popular module

featuring the

ESP8266 processor

NOT JUST A TOY:

THE BBC MICRO:BIT

THE ARDUINO IDE IS NOW SUPPORTED BY A

VAST NUMBER OF BOARDS, INCLUDING

MANY THAT AREN’T MADE BY ARDUINO...

IT IS OFTEN A SENSIBLE CHOICE TO USE IT