[Quick61]

Like so many before me, I found the threads on here concerning the cheap Chi-Com controllers and their troubles only to late. (mine is somewhere between there and here)

Concerned before the board even shows up that is it junk and won't work right, I went looking for alternatives and found this DIY - The Mechanical Vivarium of Dr. Iguana where the guy uses a dsPIC33FJ12MC202 to drive a L298N.

Looking at the schematics (.pdf file) it all looks straight forward enough for the most part, but leaves me with a few questions that I am hoping someone here with more experience than my own self can answer. I haven't messed with PIC's sense the BASIC Stamp was new.

First question - From the looks of things, it appears to me that this board can be driven by any decent breakout board that would supply the step and direction signals to it. Is this correct?

Second question - On the schematic, there is a ICSP header shown for the dsPIC33. Forgive my newibe question here, but can that header be connected directly to a serial port for programming the chip or does there need to be a programming board in between it and the PC?

Third question - If there is a need for a programming interface between the chip and PC, what is the least expensive, down and dirty thing to use? I really am not looking forward to having to buy a $75 - $100+ programming board to program a few $4.50 chips and very well might only be used the one time.

So, anyone care to help out someone that, for all practical purposes, a newbie at this PIC stuff?

Mark

Oh, BTW - First post here. Hello everyone, name is Mark. I'm building my first CNC machine sense ~'96 or so when I built one using a glorified HP plotter type circuit built from an article out of Nuts & Volts mag. Sure has come a long way from that and the old DanCAD/DanCAM running under DOS. (I still have a copy of that on 5 1/4" floppies somewhere but havent had a 5 1/4" drive in a coons age)

[Quick61]

Looks like I just may of answered part of one of my questions. Looking further into the dsPIC33, I found that Microchip puts out this Microstick for programming / debugging / prototyping. Sense it lists the chip I would use in the circuit, (my soldering skills are excellent, my eyes are not, so no surface mounting for me), and the price is reasonable, if a programmer is needed to get the code into the chip, this looks like the way to go.

Mark

[Horsedorf]

The ICSP is for in cricuit serial programming. THe cheapest such device you can get from microchip is the pickit 3. It's not JUST a programmer though, as it includes the ability to set break points and debug.

The microsticks use a usb port that has the programmer pretty much built in. You get a microstick, you are then ready to just go. Plug it in, hook up your USB port, get the latest MPLABx ide vs. 1.60 and the needed compilers for the part you are using and start in on it. The only cost out of pocket you will have is the microstick.

have fun!