October 23, 2013

Use Arduino to program non-Arduino AVR microcontrollers

It is possible to add the Arduino bootloader to some other Atmel microcontrollers for various reasons, including the ATtiny series or the larger ATmega1284P (as used in the Goldilocks board). However to upload the firmware requires a dedicated programmer, or an existing Arduino Uno or compatible board with the right circuitry. This process has been documented over at the "Hardwarefun" blog and with their example you can upload code to an ATmega16 microcontroller. 

Furthermore they've provided a separate tutorial about using Arduino code in non-Arduino microcontrollers - all very interesting reading. To get started, check out their interesting website. And for more, we're on twitter and Google+, so follow us for news and product updates as well.

If you find yourself flashing Arduino bootloaders onto various boards, working with AVR-based projects or uploading firmware to various projects - then you'll need our new USBasp - the USB in-circuit programmer for Atmel AVR controllers. Based on the original design by Thomas Fischel, it's fully compatible with the Arduino IDE and all three major operating systems, using the USBasp is a cinch.

You can select 3.3V or 5V target voltages, supply power to your project via theUSBasp and even update the firmware on board yourself.  Furthermore we've included the ICSP cable and microUSB cable to it's ready to use out of the box. 

 For more information including our Getting Started guide, design information and to order - please visit the USBasp product page. And to keep up with product announcements, we're on twitter and Google+ - so follow us for news and product updates as well. 

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