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1.1 Microcontrollers

John-Paul Chouery edited this page Aug 24, 2024 · 1 revision

What is a Microcontroller?

A microcontroller is a compact integrated circuit designed to govern a specific operation in an embedded system. It contains a CPU, memory, and input/output (I/O) peripherals on a single chip. You can think of it as a very powerful calculator that processes your code and communicates with other components in your system.

What is Arduino?

Arduino is an open-source electronics platform based on easy-to-use hardware and software. The Arduino Uno, in particular, is a widely used microcontroller board featuring an Atmel microcontroller. It’s popular for prototyping because it provides easy access to the microcontroller’s pins, allowing for quick and straightforward development.

Why Teensy?

In our project, we use Teensy 4.0 microcontrollers instead of Arduino because they are very similar to Arduinos but are more powerful and provide more PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) pins, which is crucial for controlling multiple components like thrusters. Future changes in the software architecture from the software team might also necessitate the continued use of Teensy.

Why STM32?

The STM32 microcontroller is a high-performance microcontroller used in our hydrophone board. We opted for STM32 due to its enhanced processing capabilities, which are essential for the specific tasks this board handles.

What do we do?

In our projects we utilize 3 Teensy 4.0 microcontrollers and 1 STM32L433RC microcontroller organized in the following manner:

  • Teensy 4.0: Power Board
  • Teensy 4.0: Actuator Board
  • Teensy 4.0: Display Board and Pressure Sensor Board
  • STM32L433RC: Hydrophone Board
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