PIC-WEB-BOX

Introduction and purpose of the board

PIC-WEB-BOX is an entry level development board that has a Microchip PIC18 inside. You are free to open the box and to access the GPIOs and the programming ICSP interface. The board comes with a modified software stack that fully demonstrates its capabilities.

PIC-WEB-BOX is a fine choice for beginners in PIC development or students.

Board features

PIC-WEB-BOX has the following set of features:

• PIC18F67J60 microcontroller
• Convenient plastic box that provides protection and aesthetic look
• MicroSD card connector
• Built-in 2GB microSD card
• Ethernet connector and functionality
• Mini ICSP/ICD connector for programming with PIC-compatible tool (like PIC-KIT3)
• Reset button
• 2 user-programmable buttons
• User programmable LED
• Power LED
• Thermistor for temperature monitoring
• RS232 driver and DB9 female connector
• UEXT connector
• Complete web server and TCP-IP stack support as per Microchip's open source TCP-IP stack
• Custom bootloader that allows programming the board via Ethernet
• Power plug-in jack for 9 to 30 VDC power supply
• 2 extension headers for easier access of microcontroller pins
• Outer dimensions of the board 65x65 mm (2.55"x2.55")

Documents

Complete video guide on how to use the default software: PIC-WEB-BOX demonstration

Connector view and pinout table of the extension connectors of the board: document in PDF format

Alternative table of the extension connectors of the board: document in PDF format

Hardware

Schematic of PIC-WEB-BOX, board revision C

IMPORTANT: If the board has a quartz crystal rotated at 45 degrees do not panic. This is normal. We have two types of such crystals – one of them requires 4 pads, the other only 2 pads. That is why we have provided 4 pads to be able to fit both crystals. All boards Olimex manufactures pass automatized optical inspection after assembly and obvious misplacements like these are impossible to occur.

Power and consumption

The board is powered by supplying between 9V and 30V of voltage to the power jack. The standard consumption during operation the default demo operation at 12V is 65mA.

The current consumption at some different input voltages is as follows:

• at 6V supply - 0.12A
• at 15V supply - 0.05A
• at 30V supply - 0.02A

The board consumes 600mW to 750mW, depending on the input voltage.

Software

Bootloader demo

Description of the demo software:

• The bootloader allows you to upload binary code (*.hex) files to the PIC-WEB-BOX via Ethernet using tftp (e.g. you don't need a programmer or debugger to download software to the board). It is based on the Internet Bootloader application released by Microchip.

• This demo is downloaded to all boards by default during manufacturing.

Version of tools used in the bootloader demo:

• Microchip TCP/IP Stack 5.42 example from Microchip Library for Applications released on 2013/06/15

General purpose demo

Description of the demo software:

• Demo project that implements web server with web page for Olimex PIC-WEB-BOX rev.C based on

Version of tools used in the general purpose demo:

• Microchip TCP/IP Stack 5.42 example from Microchip library for Applications released on 2013/06/15.

• It was programmed using OLIMEX PIC-KIT3 programmer/debugger and PIC-ICSP adapter, TFTP.exe v6.1.7600.16385 on Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64bit.

• Project is built and tested with MPLAB 8.92 or MPLABX 1.95 and PIC18 C Compiler 3.44. It is highly recommended to use the exact same compiler.

FAQ

Q: I downloaded the examples available at your product's web page. I tried to compile the examples but numerous errors occur during compilation. I used MPLAB X and XC8 compiler. How do I fix the error messages during compilation?

A: It is highly recommended to use the exact same compiler as suggested in the project's documentation (README.txt). Adapting the code for other compilers (for instance XC8) may be possible but Olimex provides no support for adjusting the code for compilers and IDEs different than the ones suggested.