Advice on using netburner, specific I/O requirements

[ScottM]

This is probably a question for sales, but people here will have had experience with this sort of thing.

I need a platform for realtime, but not very computationally demanding, programming. I'll be porting a C++ application from WinCE (which I use only for networking and serial port work, so there isn't much WinCE system call to redo) to the new platform.

I need a lot of I/O:

24 digital inputs, able to handle 3-24 volts, optoisolated.
24 digital outputs, driving high current sinks (capable of controlling relays and LEDs; 4 relays built in)
4 channels of D/A, 0-10v (driving commercial dimmers). 8 bit is plenty.
4 RS-232 ports, standard voltages and jacks, up to 115k.
1 ethernet port, 10/100 (or just 100), capable of TCP and UDP
power failure handling (on a power flicker/fail I want a couple of seconds of runtime so I can shut devices down)

I don't need USB, keyboard, mouse, screen. I do need to be able to reload the software easily, ideally over ethernet.

Multithreaded code is not needed (as long as I can do non-blocking network connect/accept/read/write/close), but I'd consider it a plus. I don't need much memory and I don't need to store data between power cycles, other than the application itself. The application is not demanding: it cycles at 40Hz (so I need a timer of some kind), picking which inputs and outputs to talk to at and making fairly simple decisions based on what it sees.

I'm a software guy. My ideal solution involves no soldering, wirewrap, etc. I want to hook up my unregulated power supply (12-24v), connect up my cables, attach wires to screw terminals, flip a switch, load my software and get down to it.

I know no one is going to sell exactly that combination of I/O and I realize I'm looking at (low volume) custom board development. So, my questions are:

1. Does netburner sell something that can support all this and
2. what's a reasonable way to get a custom board built, that will do all the I/O handling I need?

My current solution involves an Arcom Viper and custom I/O. It works, but it was expensive, had stuff I didn't need (audio, touchpanel), was miserable to reload software into and required a PC104 custom board development project. And now it's out of production. I am looking for better/cheaper/easier.

Advice welcome. If I'm on the wrong planet, let me know.

[Chris Ruff]

You really don't want much, do you?

The one thing that jumps out at me is 4 115200 serial ports. That is (in my experience) hard to do. If you can go with, like, 38400 then this doesn't sound too hard. You will need to build up a bunch of stuff in hardware to do this. If I were you I would use this as an opportunity to learn a bunch of stuff about hardware. There is plenty of talent here on the list to help you along.

Of course a few of us can design your project and/or your PCB and/or your prototype and/or your production, etc. etc.

The netburner is a *fine* platform for what you want to do.


Chris

[ScottM]

You really don't want much, do you?
Chris

If it helps, I expect to pay for what I need. That sound you hear is a wallet, whimpering in terror.

I used to fiddle with hardware. My first cut at this project (room automation involving a home theater) used a pair of parallax javelins, a serial to ethernet board, and a breadboard with a LOT of wires and components on it. It worked, eventually, but the experience convinced me that I want someone to build a nice, solid board, test it, and do in a few days what would take me months. I am a C++ software god, but the only hardware I ever want to touch again, is the On switch. Ideally once.

I don't need all 4 serial ports at 115k. For the current project I only actually need 3 (I want the 4th for expansion and debugging) and I think the fastest I need to talk is 57.6k. And the data volumes are very low in all cases, even on the ethernet connection. I know my Viper handles the load easily enough.

[Ridgeglider]

The 5234 can probably handle the add'l serial ports fairly easily due to the eTPU. In additon to the 3 built-in ports common to all the NB modules, the eTPU can run 8 add'l full duplex ports. I have a current app supporting 7 ports total (4 on the eTPU). That said, I agree with Chris that running at slower baud rates makes sense for at least some of the ports.

The add'l port IO could be handled with some simple memory-mapped latched logic selected via the 3 CS pins pins, particularly if you don't need it to trigger IRQs when the inputs change. There is an app somewhere in the downloads section about adding these simple latches.

You might also try an FPGA. See the NB FPGA blade board running in combination w/ the PK70 module: That combo could perhaps support all the extra serial uart logic, and the port IO w/o designing much new HW (except perhaps for the serial RS-xxx level shifters)? Then again, there may not be enough pins...

[ScottM]

Luckily, my needs involve very little I/O, just a lot of I/O devices. The serial ports talk to things like preamps, DVD players, projectors... short, infrequent messages are the rule, and the baud rates are not high. Most of my traffic is ethernet and even that is less than 1K bytes/sec. My current processor comes nowhere near to being swamped by the load.

If it was cheaper, I could consider one of those units that puts 4 serial ports on the ethernet, and then my card wouldn't need serial ports at all, just the ethernet connection. But for reasons unclear to me, these devices aren't $19.99 at my local Wal-mart. I never have figured out hardware pricing. Why isn't all this stuff just about free? Because only software is hard. *Nods*


(warning, post may contain humor or irony).

[Forrest]

If it was cheaper, I could consider one of those units that puts 4 serial ports on the ethernet, and then my card wouldn't need serial ports at all, just the ethernet connection. But for reasons unclear to me, these devices aren't $19.99 at my local Wal-mart. I never have figured out hardware pricing. Why isn't all this stuff just about free? Because only software is hard. *Nods*

The SBL2E is only $30 and does exactly this. The SBL2e is a compact low cost multifunction network module that network-enables your product with 10/100 Ethernet, two serial channels, analog to digital inputs and general purpose I/O.

Network-Enable Existing Applications
The main function of the SBL2e is for Serial-To-Ethernet connectivity. Simply connect your serial device to one of the two provided TTL level serial ports, select any custom options through the web page interface, and your device will be able to send and receive data through a network connection.

Check out the products at http://www.netburnerstore.com/serial_to ... et_s/4.htm. The L2E is at the bottom

[ScottM]

>he SBL2E is only $30 and does exactly this.

Well... no.

I guess I wasn't clear. I'm seriously not a hardware guy. When the description says "just add level shifters", I know it's not a solution for me. I need everything, up to and including the DB-9 connectors, prebuilt and ready to go. I guess what I want is a PC104 style stack, where I push cards together, and the cards come with all the connectors - DB-9, screw terminals, etc. If fact, if someone sold a Netburner-to-PC104 adapter, I'd probably be all set.

The reason I'm still looking at Netburner is because I've played with the development kit, and now that I'm used to the small quirks, I like what I see. After years of fussing with a WinCE toolchain which broke under Vista, I am completely done with WinCE, and I don't want to fuss with writing linux device drivers. I'm sold on the netburner development environment and OS. Once I got straight on the eclipse environment I really did have UDP networkng up and running in a few minutes. Reloading the board is almost effortless. Bottom line, I like the software environment here.

But the quote I've gotten to interface with a MOD5270 puts the project completely out of reach. So I guess this is a last ditch question, asking if anyone sells the connective hardware that will let me *plug in* my 4 serial cables, my various D and A lines, and maybe a 1-wire interface, for a few hundred dollars, delivered. If not, I'll move on and start looking for something like uCOS on a PC104 stack.

Thanks.

[bbracken]

Did you consider the PK70? It has a 4 channel UART board.

bb