Cypress PSoC® 5LP Prototyping Kit - Review

Table of contents

RoadTest: Cypress PSoC® 5LP Prototyping Kit

Author: najath

Creation date: 4 Jul 2015

Evaluation Type: Independent Products

Did you receive all parts the manufacturer stated would be included in the package?: True

What other parts do you consider comparable to this product?: null

What were the biggest problems encountered?: No major show stoppers. But still.... 1. Software had to be downloaded 2. USB Amale-Afemale cable to connect PC to board would have been great to have 3. Connector headers for accessing I/O could have been provided soldered to the board

Detailed Review:

I'm doing my review as bullet points, as I'm not a good blogger . I can add any detail on request.

Edit1: It seems bullet points does not work for reviews. Had to manually insert some space in start of each line

Edit2: Added some images

• # First Impression - Unboxing
  •     * Standard outer packaging from element14. The actual packaging from cypress was minimal - no wastage

•     * It was nice to see a friendly note from element14

•     * "Peel here" did not work perfectly
•     * No software CD/DVD in the box. Has to be downloaded from website
•     * Summary of the board and getting started guide on the back side of the packaged card
  •         - Would have been nice if it was a removable sticker, so that we can retain the information and discard the 'box'

•     * Lack of USB cable makes it difficult to use with a PC. More suited to use with laptop.
•     * Soldering is required to get any meaningful project done.
  •         - Female receptacle/socket for I/O would have been better

• # Working in VirtualBox (windows inside Linux)
  •     * How to use existing windows partition (Advantage is you can dual-boot if required)
    •         - Linux installed in separate hard disk
    •         - Create virtual disk from the actual (Windows) disk, using following command
      •             VBoxManage internalcommands createrawvmdk -filename ~/path/to/Your_fullDisk.vmdk -rawdisk /dev/sda
    •         - Add Linux user to 'disk' group for raw access to hard disks
  •     * KitProg does not work with VirtualBox packaged in openSUSE. rpm from virtualbox website has to be installed.
  •     * Unable to upgrade KitProg firmware through VirtualBox
  •     * Programming works fine, debugging is problematic
• # Software
  •     * Link to kit web page provided in "Quick Start Guide" on rear of package. - http://www.cypress.com/CY8CKIT-059
    •         - Gives product info
    •         - List of downloadable documents
      •             Board design files
      •             Prototyping kit guide
      •             KitProg user guide
      •             Prototyping kit release notes
      •             Prototyping kit Quick start guide (same as the one on backside of package)
    •         - S/W available for download
      •             Kit setup (design files, creator, programmer, documentation, examples) ~600MB
      •             CD ISO ~1.2GB (
      •             Kit only (design files, documentation, examples) - useful if PSoC creator and Programmer are already installed
  •     * Impression
    •         - Significant download size
    •         - Would have been good to receive a CD/DVD
    •         - More than 15min to install
    •         - After installation option to view "Release Notes" and "Kit guide". Later is a good read for newbies.
    •         - PSoC creator is a wonderfully designed IDE
      •             Start page with easy access to recent projects, examples, product info & news
      •             Initially could be overwhelming to use, due to excess of information available
    •         - Only three example projects specifically for the kit
    •         - Lot of good generic examples
      •             Covers a wide range of peripheral and usage scenarios. But no 'complete' project.
      •             Could have included a complete project, instead of having to download application note from website
    •         - Easy access to documentation
    •         - Configure peripheral in the schematic editor (no code to be written)
      •             Just need to call the init()/start() function in main code
    •         - Resource usage report not easily visible
      •             Have to open '*.rpt' file in "Results" tab in Workspace explorer
    •         - Large number of excellent application notes
      •             But difficult to locate what you want.
      •             Stumbled upon a library for a specialized PWM block I was planning to implement myself - Phase Shift Full bridge modulation
• # Snapping the KitProg
  •     * Snapping the two 'halves' by using the edge of a table worked out perfect. Just some minor filing required to remove the rough edges
  •     * Trouble choosing connecting cable for linking the two halves, after snapping them apart
    •         - Long ribbon cable results in crosstalk and software fails to detect the PSoC 5LP Prototyping Board
    •         - Shielded cable might help to connect over larger distances. Yet to try.
      •             Large distance between PC and hardware required for our experiments as it involves high power
      •             Would ideally like to have only prototyping board near hardware. The KitProg required to be close to PC
      •             Using long USB cables for the time being.
• # Projects
  •     * Plan was to use for LED lighting project, but hardware was not ready in time
  •     * Tried breathing LED example
  •     * Also tried a project in which PWM triggers ADC soc. ADC eoc ISR is used to run some control routine
    •         - Had difficulty to locate how to write ISR for ADC_SAR_Seq (The component I used). Finally found the API template from documentation of another ADC component (ADC_SAR)
      •             Could have connected an "Interrupt" component to ADC eoc signal. But wanted to use the interrupt internal to ADC

•     * Planning to use PSoC for implementing controllers for wireless power transfer (WPT) and LED lighting
• # Conclusion
  •     * A very good board for getting introduced to the world of PSoC
  •     * Good value for money
  •     * Cannot be directly used in project
    •         - Requires soldering of at least connector headers for accessing the I/O pins
  •     * PSoC could be overwhelming to newbies. But once you invest some time, it will improve productivity and efficiency in doing projects, due to the analog & digital peripheral integration
  •     * Ended up buying a couple of additional boards for use in our lab projects
• # Suggestions
  •     * Value added model - Optionally provide the following for an additional price
    •         - Software CD (Large download for a person starting fresh, could be a problem in countries with slow internet access)
    •         - Pre-soldered connector headers (option for either male or female headers)
    •         - USB A male to USB A female cable (Not common to find with individuals, but required for doing any live debugging)
  •     * A repositories for add-on libraries would be nice to have
    •         - Cypress and users can create custom components that can be shared with other people
    •         - Include full documentation for each component
• # To try in Future
  •     * Complete implementation of controllers for WPT and LED lighting
  •     * Developing custom components using verilog