MBED ARM
*Hey folks,*
*Has anyone had any experience with MBED ARM microcontrollers?*
*Here is their link:* http://mbed.org/
*Mbed* appears to be a website that allows you to write and compile C/C++ code *online* and dump it straight onto a target board without installing anything on your PC. Looks intriguing.
Sparkfun is selling the *mbed NXP LPC1768* development board for $60:
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9564
Digikey appears to have a similar board for $30. It may have fewer features:
http://search.digikey.com/us/en/products/EA-XPR-003/EA-XPR-003-ND/2410099
I am interested in getting my feet wet in *ARM* processors and *C++* and this looks like a pretty inexpensive way to go about it. I purchased a BeagleBoard a while back but feel a little overwhelmed by the complicated software that you have to set up before you can do a simple “Hello World”. Beagle development seems to require installing a Linux virtual machine on your PC.
I would like to avoid dealing with Linux for the time being, hence my interest in easy ARMs. If anyone has had good experiences with eval boards for other ARM type processors, I would appreciate your suggestions.
Thanks – Jimbo
"Gui Cavalcanti" , and 
Michael Dewberry are discussing.
"Gui Cavalcanti" 9:45 pm on May 9, 2012 Permalink |
Jim,
The first Robotics Intensive used the MBED LPC1768 built into a 3pi line following robot, called the m3pi. The ease of use of the board allowed my students to all contribute to control system design efforts even if they had no robotics background, and allowed the advanced students to really take off and experiment. Everyone could participate regardless of what type of laptop they were using, and because the code is automatically saved in an online repository, everyone could access their code from anywhere.
There are certainly going to be those who worry about the toolchain being proprietary and dependent on the company continuing to exist (and, by extension, continuing to host the compiler environment), but if you’re looking for a solid and easy to use introductory platform, the MBED is great.
- – - Gui Cavalcanti, President Artisan’s Asylum, Inc. http://www.artisansasylum.com Cell: (857) 389-7669
Michael Dewberry 10:23 pm on May 9, 2012 Permalink |
Hey Jim, if you’re interested in taking another swing at the Beagleboard you may want to check out the OS updates that they’ve made for the newer/smaller Beaglebone. Like the Mbed, it now includes a web IDE (hosted on the hardware) and doesn’t require any fiddling with a Linux host. It’s oriented around Javascript/Node.js but I’ve successfully used it to write Python and C++ programs as well.
I believe you can use the Beaglebone images on the Beagleboard without alteration, but I’m not 100% sure; I have several SD cards with the stock OS you are welcome to borrow if you want to try it.
Dewb
PS. I was not previously familiar with the Mbed, it does look slick!