Task 1

The MPLAB Xpress Development Board should be connected from the micro USB connector on the board to an available USB port on the host computer through a USB cable. Drivers should install successfully the first time the board is connected and may take a minute or so. The connection is shown in the image.

Task 2: Create A New Project

Create a new project in MPLAB Xpress for a PIC16F1855 using the MPLAB Xpress Development Board. Instructions are below if this is your first project.

Create A New Project Instructions ►

Create A New Project Instructions ▼

1

Launch the new project wizard

Launch the New Project Wizard using one of the following methods:

• From the Toolbar: Click on the New Project icon , or
• From the Menu: Select File > New Project, or

The project wizard will walk you through the process and prompt you for all the required information. Your selections may be changed after the project has been created by modifying the project's properties.

2

Choose Project

a

Choose 'Microchip Embedded' from the Categories column (center).

b

Choose 'Standalone Project' from the Projects column (right).

c

Click the Next button.

Click image to enlarge.

3

Select Device

a

Choose the device family from the Family drop-down box.

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If you have used MPLAB^® X IDE previously, choosing 'Recently Used' from the Family drop-down box will filter the 'Device' list to the 3 devices you have used most recently.

b

Choose your device's part number from the Device drop-down box. You may also type in the part number directly, and the list will adjust to the characters you enter.

Click image to enlarge.

4

Select Project Name and Folder

a

Input a project name. This will be your project's name that the IDE will create.

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Note: The name cannot have any empty spaces!

Click image to enlarge.

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 How To Create A Project Video

This video shows how to 'Create a Project' in MPLAB Xpress.

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Task 3: Open MPLAB Code Configurator

Open MCC under the Tools > Embedded > MPLAB Xpress Code Configurator menu of MPLAB Xpress.

A window will appear showing three steps. If you need the latest version of Java you can click on step one. Otherwise, click on the step two button to open MCC.

A file will automatically download in your browser similar to the image shown. Click on that file to open it. This is a java application that will launch the MCC.

The process can take several seconds depending on your internet connection speed. Several windows may appear asking if you want to run the program. When the process is complete you will see a new screen appear, separate from the MPLAB Xpress IDE, that is the MCC control screen. In this screen, you can select:

• peripherals for your project,
• system setup for the oscillator and other configuration settings,
• and input/output selections for your device.

When all of these are completed you can generate project code including a main.c file by clicking on the Generate button near the center top of the screen. All these generated files will be included in your MPLAB Xpress project.

Task 4: Import LightRanger Library

In the open MCC window, navigate to 'Device Resources'. The LightRanger library will be found under Mikro-E clicks > Sensors > LightRanger. Double-click on 'LightRanger' to add the module to the 'Project Resources'. If done correctly, your project window should look something like this.

We will be using the generated example for this tutorial. Navigate to this 'Configuration' tab to verify that the 'Generate Example' checkbox is checked.

Task 5: Import EUSART

For this example, the microcontroller will be printing sensor readings from the LightRanger through use of printf statements. Any time printf statements are used, the command prints across a serial communication protocol called UART. On the PIC16F18855, the peripheral is an enhanced UART called EUSART. This peripheral will need to be imported into the project. Navigate to the Device Resources window and expand the 'EUSART' tab. Double-click the EUSART peripheral to add it to the 'Project Resources'.

Additionally, the 'Redirect STDIO to USART' box will need to be checked to allow printf statements to be used in the code. This is necessary in order to allow the compiler to use the standard I/O library. Without this box checked, printf statements will not compile correctly.

Task 6: Configure Pin Manager

There are labels on each pin for every click board. These labels can be matched to the corresponding pins on the Xpress board. Use this matching technique to configure the correct pins in your pin manager for any click or development board that you are using.

The LightRanger Sensor uses EN, INT, SCL, and SDA to operate. These labels can be seen on the pins of the click board. On the Xpress board, these pins are RB2, RC2, RC4, and RC3 respectively. In the Pin Manager, lock the corresponding labels to their respective pins. Additionally, RC0 is used for TX-USB communication on the PIC microcontroller. Therefore through locking RC0 to TX, EUSART output data from the PIC microcontroller will be sent over the USB connection to the computer. This data output can be viewed by using a terminal emulator. The Pin Manager should look like this when finished.

Task 7: Generate

Click on the Generate button in MCC to create the appropriate header and source files.

Upon successful code generation, the Generation Completed notification should appear. Select OK to close window

New MCC generated source and header files should now be present in the Project window of the MPLAB Xpress IDE including a new main.c source file.

Task 8: Explore The Example Function

Click on the LightRanger_Example.c file under the MCC 'Generated Files' tab. Scrolling to the bottom of this example, you should see an Example_ReadRange function which prints out the data from the LightRanger sensor.

#include "LightRanger_Example.h"
#include "LightRanger.h"
#include "mcc.h"
 
void Example_ReadRange(void){
     while(1){
         LR_StartRange(SINGLE_SHOT);
         __delay_ms(105);
         uint16_t als = LR_ReadRange();
         printf("Range is %d\r\n", als);
      }
}

Task 9: Include Header File

Navigate to your main.c file in your Project window and import your example header file.

#include "mcc_generated_files/mcc.h"
#include "mcc_generated_files/LightRanger_Example.h"

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Note: As a rule of thumb, any time an MCC generated example is being run, the appropriate example.h file will need to be included in your main.c file to compile the project correctly. If the correct header file is not imported, you may receive an error mentioning "conflicting definitions for variable". Similar to the output shown below.

Task 10: Call Example Function

Task 11: Compile and Download

Compile and download the project HEX file by clicking the Make and Program Device button at the top of the MPLAB Xpress IDE.

Program the MPLAB Xpress board by dragging the project HEX file from the downloads section of the browser and dropping the file onto the XPRESS drive.

Task 12: Set Up Terminal Emulator

Open a terminal emulator program on the host computer and select the COM port associated with the MPLAB Xpress board. In this example, a free program called CoolTerm is used. The correct COM port for the USB connection between your Xpress board and computer will need to be selected. Verify that the 'Baudrate' is set to 9600.