Overview
The BIGAVR2 is MikroElektronika's development board for Atmel's
64 and 100-pin AVR microcontrollers. The BIGAVR2 includes a
high-speed USB programmer plus many useful built-in I/O features.
The BIGAVR2 is supplied with a removable ATmega128 MCU board and provides everything you
need to start developing for, experimenting with or learning about this
microcontroller. Additional MCU boards may be ordered separately for the
ATmega128, ATmega1280 and ATmega2560 as can empty MCU boards for users wanting to
add their own 64 or 100-pin AVRs where surface mount soldering facilities are
available.
By including the programmer, AVR MCU board and useful I/O devices on one board, the
BIGAVR2 will save you having to waste time trying to set up individual
programmers, prototyping boards and I/O devices. Use of one of MikroElektronika's compilers with their included library routines and example
programs also makes developing faster and avoids the need to struggle with
hardware and software from different manufacturers.
The BIGAVR2's low cost,
ease of use, reliability and wealth of built-in features also make it an
excellent platform for the teaching of microcontrollers in colleges and
universities.
Using the BIGAVR2
The BIGAVR2 is incredibly easy to set up and use. On first connecting it to
the USB port of your PC using the lead provided, Windows will prompt you to
install a driver from the supplied CD-ROM. The ATmega128 that comes fitted to
the BIGAVR2 is pre-programmed with a demonstration program that runs
immediately. You can then install the AVRprog programming software, also on
the CD-ROM, and reprogram the AVR with any of the included pre-compiled example
programs to try out the board's I/O features and get a taste of the sort of
projects that you can develop.
To write your own programs, you can use the assembler in Atmel's freely
available AVRStudio software or any make of AVR assembler or compiler that generate
HEX files. However use of MikroElektronika's mikroBASIC, mikroC PRO 2008 and
mikroPascal
compilers is recommended as these come with library routines that support all
the BIGAVR2's built-in I/O devices and MikroElektronika's optional
interface boards. Demonstration versions of these three compilers are included, which
enable you to write programs up to 2K in size, or you can save money on the
individual prices and buy one of our starter packs that also include full
versions of the compilers.
Your programs can make full use of the BIGAVR2's I/O devices and any that
are not required can be disabled by way of clearly labelled jumpers and DIP
switches. MikroElektronika's range of optional interface boards can be fitted to
the BIGAVR2 and it is also straightforward to connect your own circuits as all
of the AVR's I/O lines are available on five 10-way IDC headers. The
supplied ATmega128 MCU board can easily be removed and replaced with
the optional ATmega1280 and ATmega2560 boards.
Specifications
Supported
AVRs
The following list gives the AVRs currently supported by
the BIGAVR2 in numerical order.
ATmega128, ATmega1280, ATmega2560
