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Alternative software for the HV Rescue Shield
Dennis writes…
I thought I’d share with other users of the HV Rescue shield an enhanced Arduino script I have written, based on Jeff’s original software v212.
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The new software retains the look and feel of the original, it can still be run in interactive and non interactive mode and starts by requesting the AVR family as before. The existing fuse settings are then printed along with the device signature and lock bits. After this the user is presented with a menu of functions.
The E command allows the user to erase the AVR.
The F command allows the fuses to be set as before. OK or fail will be printed depending on the success of the operation.
The R command allows a block of the flash memory to be dumped to screen. The user has to input the required start address in hex.
The P command is similar to the R command but operates on the EEPROM
The W command performs a simple test of the flash by writing a small block of data to it and checking it programs correctly. The user has to input the required start address in hex, which must be the first byte of a page (see device datasheet for details about page size). The user can view the test pattern written by using the R command to read it back.
The T command performs a similar test on the EEPROM but with a different shorter 4 byte pattern as EEPROM page sizes are smaller.
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Dennis posted a link to his alternative software in the HV Rescue Shield support forum.
Thanks, Dennis!
AVR HV Rescue Shield works with Arduino Uno
I’m happy to report that the AVR HV Rescue Shield has been tested and works with the new Arduino Uno.
This isn’t too much of a surprise, but it’s always good to check that seemingly innocent changes to a hardware platform don’t cause unexpected problems in existing applications. (That is the voice of experience talking, can you tell?)
AVR HV Rescue Shield Out of Stock
This week I sold the last AVR HV Rescue Shield kit in stock! This is a significant milestone as it means I have finally sold off all of the kits from the original PCB fab run. At the time I wasn’t sure if anyone would actually buy such a thing, so pulling the trigger on what seemed like a huge number of boards was a leap of faith!
I want to thank everyone who bought kits and PCBs. Thank you for supporting me and the site!
Rather than reorder new boards of the existing design, I am taking this opportunity to re-evaluate my approach to a couple things, with the goal of reducing the BOM cost and lowering the overall cost of the kit.
The bad news is that this means there won’t be any more kits in stock in the short term. I’m planning to release a new PCB design within the next couple weeks, which means kits would be in stock within about a month. Because this is a busy time for me, I can’t promise specific dates, but I will do my best to keep the process moving because I know there are people waiting for the new kits.
If you need a kit right now, I believe Solarbotics still has some in stock.
Otherwise, stay tuned for updates.
And again, if you bought a kit, or even if you built the DIY version with spare parts and helped spread the word, thank you!
– Jeff
AVR HV Rescue Shield Code Update 1.2
Version 1.2 of the Arduino sketch that powers the AVR HV Rescue Shield is now available for download.
The revised sketch now displays the target AVR’s existing fuse settings before asking you for new ones.
I also cleaned up and reworked the code in a couple places, but these changes shouldn’t affect the existing functionality.
If you have any issues or questions about the new code, post them in the support forum or contact me directly.