Difference between revisions of "Arduino"

Revision as of 18:57, 13 July 2014

Summary:	Adapter for the Arduino electronics prototyping platform
Author:	Nico Stuurman
License:	LGPL
Platforms:	Linux, Mac, and Windows
Since version:	1.3.18
Automated Serial Port Setup:	Yes
Peripheral device discovery:	No
Wiki page:	Nico Stuurman Pariksheet Nanda Roy Wollman

The Arduino is a low cost programmable digital IO board. It has some digital inputs and digital outputs and can communicate with the computer through a serial interface (that is hidden in a USB connection). A very nice and simple programming language makes the Arduino very simple to program. The Micro-Manager interface to the Arduino consists of an Arduino program (the 'firmware') that you need to upload to the Arduino first. The current version of the Micro-Manager has facilities to use the Arduino as a shutter, and as a shutter that only opens when a TTL is set high (for instance, when the camera is exposing). Also, timed sequences of TTL output can be setup. There are also facilities for programmable analogue out, however, those need connection of a DA chip and requires constructions of a 'daughterboard'/'shield'.

Figure: Functional pinout set by firmware version 2

(Image source .svg file)

Installation

Arduino Software

Download and install the Arduino Software for your platform. Establish a connection with your Arduino using the instructions that come with the Arduino software (this includes installing a driver for the USB to serial adapter built into the Arduino.

Firmware

Then download the firmware source code and copy into the Arduino editor. Send to the Arduino, and your Arduino is programmed to work with Micro-Manager.

Hardware Configuration Wizard

Hub

Add the Arduino-Hub. You may want to set the "Verbose" property of the port to 0 to avoid extensive logging of the communcation with the device, especially if you are using the input functionality (which queries the Arduino every second).

Pre-Initialization Properties	Description
Logic	Inverted causes digital inputs and outputs to be considered HIGH when 0 Volts and LOW when +5 Volts.

Serial Setting	Value
AnswerTimeout	500
BaudRate	57600
DelayBetweenCharsMs	0
Handshaking	Off
Parity	None
StopBits	1
Verbose	0

Peripheral Devices Setup

Name	Description
Arduino-Switch	Digital output pattern set across pins 8 to 13. See usage in #Digital IO
Arduino-Shutter	Toggles the digital outputs pattern across pins 8 to 13. Set all pins off when the shutter is closed, and restores the value set in `Switch-State` when the shutter is opened.
Arduino-Input	Reports, both, the digital and analog (0-1023) state of the analog input pins 0 to 5.
Arduino-DAC{1,2}	(Not usually used) Reserved for TLV5618 AOTF Peripheral. There does not appear to be any documentation of this peripheral and seems to be a bespoke AOTF control board built for UCSF.

Initialization Properties	Description
Pin	Reads all 6 input pins when set to All, otherwise reads the individual 0-5 Pin number.
Pull-Up-Resistor	Choose whether the Arduino should use its internal 20 kOhm internal pull-up resistor. If not sure, choose On.

Test Communication

Arduino boards Duemilanove and newer feature an LED attached to pin 13. One can verify the Arduino is communicating by changing the state of pin 13 and verifying the LED changes. Setting pin 13 HIGH requires setting the Arduino-Switch-State to 32 (i.e. 2^5) in the Device/Property Browser. If you added the Arduino-Shutter peripheral to the Arduino-Hub toggle the Arduino-Shutter in the main MM window, or if you don't have it change the Arduino-Switch-State back to 0 to see the LED go off.

Usage Notes

Digital IO

All possible combinations of digital outputs that can be set across pins 8 to 13 can be set by a single number from from 0 to 63, with 0 turning off all pins and 63 turning all pins on.

To choose the set of pins to be on for your Arduino-Switch-State pattern, simply add all the decimal values for the pin from the table below; so for pins 8 and 10 to be on, needs a decimal value of 1 + 4 = 5 to be set in Arduino-Switch-State.

Pin	Bit	Decimal Value when On
8	0	1
9	1	2
10	2	4
11	3	8
12	4	16
13	5	32

The reason one has to do this is MM encodes the pins as bits in binary. Pin 13 to open corresponds to the most significant bit 5, whose decimal value is 2^5 = 32. Similarly pin 10 will be bit 2 which is 2^2=4.

Device Properties

Properties	Description
Switch-Blank On	Allows Low or High.
Switch-Blanking Mode	Allows On or Off.
Switch-HubID
Switch-Label	Set the digital output pattern across pins 8 to 13. Allows values 0-63. See usage in #Digital IO
Switch-Sequence	Off operates the Arduino in normal "switching" mode. On enables triggered "sequencing" mode. One defines and upload multiple pattern states to the Arduino using a Beanshell script. Then the digital input signal to pin 2 switches between the sets of patterns. Typically, one would connect the camera exposure signal to pin 2.
Switch-State	Set the digital output pattern across pins 8 to 13. Allows values 0-63. See usage in #Digital IO
Input-AnalogInput{0:5}	10-bit value of ADC input.
Input-DigitalInput	Value depends on how the `Pin` initialization property was set. Shows binary state of the input pin, if a single in was selected. Shows the 5-bit value of all input pins if "All" was selected.
Input-HubID
DAC{1,2}-HubID	(Not usually used) Reserved for TLV5618 AOTF Peripheral.
DAC(1,2}-Volts	(Not usually used) Reserved for TLV5618 AOTF Peripheral.