Programming the MiniBee with Arduino
Introduction 1 - Connecting the MiniBee and coordinator board 2 - Prepare the Arduino IDE 3 - Uploading firmware 4 - Programming the bootloader

Programming the bootloader

In very rare cases, you may want to reprogram the bootloader of the MiniBee, or bypass the bootloader alltogether. With an AVR programmer you can use the pins that are broken out in the middle of the board (RX, TX, GND, 3v3, D11, D12, D13).

There is a special programming board available upon request for this purpose.

Programmer board for the MiniBee

MiniBee revision A

Before the firmware can be uploaded to the board, a bootloader needs to be present on the board. This section describes how the bootloader can be programmed onto the board. This only needs to be done once; depending on how you obtained your board, the bootloader may already have been programmed onto the board.

  • Soldering
    • 2 pin female header to RX/TX
    • 2 pin female header to 3.3V / GND
    • female headers to pin D11, D12, D13
  • You need:
    • A programmer board to fit the board on
    • A USB adapter
    • AVR mkII – avr programmer
  • While programming the bootloader, you must hold a wire to the reset pin. This is to work around an omission in the revA design.
  • Use the Arduino programming software
    • Set the board type to LilyPad Arduino w/ ATmega 168.
    • Choose “Program Bootloader” with “AVR ISP mkII”

TODO

  • add images of AVR programmer, connections to current MiniBee revisions, pogopin boards