Seeeduino Issues

[wwtolman]

Greetings! this is not really a bug or problem but more of an FYI

I’ve come to notice that the Video Expermenter Shield has problems working with the Seeeduino v1.1 and the Seeeduino Mega v.1.22. The code downloads without any error but the projects just don’t work.

After rechecked my construction and everything looked ok, I tried again with a RBBB clone and everything worked just fine.

This is a great little sheild!

-wes

[Michael]

Thanks for the heads-up. The mega is not supported at all, as the processor’s features are not brought out to the pins. See http://nootropicdesign.com/ve/whynotmega.html

What kind of microcontroller is in the Seeeduino 1.1?

[wwtolman]

The Seeeduino 1.1 is an ATmega168. It’s listed as an Arduino compatable but I’ve had other issues with it in the past as well.

[Michael]

Oh, I see. The ATmega168 has half the memory of the ATmega328. So you have to lower the resolution down to maybe 144×64. That will use 768 bytes of memory for the frame buffer. Maybe you could try that? For experiments like the Overlay Demo, you’d have to adjust the coordinates of the drawing to fit on the smaller grid. The Frame Capture project should work unmodified (except change resolution).

[cyberteque]

I’ve been using my VE shield on a SeeedStudio Mega clone since day one
This hook up diagram works really well
http://nootropicdesign.com/projectlab/2011/07/13/ve-on-the-seeeduino-mega/

I haven’t tried it on a SeeedStudio 328 clone yet, I’ll give it a go and see what happens.

The extra RAM on the Mega is WAY worth the effort!

[john.k]

I have a VE connected on top of a Seeedunio Mega with the added wiring you have posted. No other wiring except a camera.

When I try to download the OverlayDemo program, the download hangs and never completes. However, when I disconnect the VE and its wiring, the download to the bare Seeeduino completes, and when I reconnect the VE and the wiring, the video with the code’s overlay is displayed as expected, and seems to be working fine. So, I do not seem to be able to download code to the Seeedunino Mega with the VE wired to it but I can download to the bare Seeedunino. I think the download does not even get started, because the previously loaded code is still on the Seeeduino and is able to run when I reconnect the VE and wiring.

I can download and run the OverlayDemo program to an UNO attached to the VE (no extra wiring), and everything seems to work as expected.

Any suggestions?

[john.k]

With further work on the “upload to Seeeduino with the VE” I believe that there is a fault with the Seeeduino Mega. Uploading is inconsistent with sometimes completing in minutes. Sometimes the bare Seeeduino Mega will not complete the upload, regardless of the VE and any or all of its jumpers. Seeeduino LEDs seem to indicate that uploading does not even start most times. On the other hand, I can complete an upload of the same code to an Arduino Mega very quickly.

So, I need to withdraw my previous posting. The problem seems to mine and my Seeeduino Mega, not with the VE.

By the way, when a download of the OverlayDemo code does complete, it works great and looks good. Nice product.

[Michael]

I’m glad it’s working for you, john.k. I’m not sure what to think about the problems uploading a sketch to the board when the wiring is in place. I don’t think I ran into that problem.

[john.k]

I believe I have solved my problem of the upload hang of the OverlayDemo code to the seeeduino mega with the VE. I seems to have been due to an uploader problem. In the seeeduino forum I found a reference to a uploader protocol issue that sounded like the one I had. See:

http://www.seeedstudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=5107

for details. In the Arduino IDE directory, edit the file boards.txt, so that the key mega2560.upload.protocol value is changed from stk500v2 to wiring.

When I made the change, the download completed successfully and the demo code performed as expected. This download protocol change seems to have solved the problem.

[Author]

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