Microchip Programmers

UK (SANEPR.com) August 1, 2008 -- Microchip Technology is a US based manufacturer of microcontroller and memory semiconductors founded in 1989. Its products include, among others, microcontrollers (PICmicro, dsPIC / PIC24) and Serial EEPROM devices.

PIC devices are part of a family of microcontrollers made by Microchip Technology. The name PIC initially stood for "Programmable Interface Controller", but was quickly renamed "Programmable Intelligent Computer". “Peripheral Interface Controller” is the more widely used acronym now.

PICs have found popularity with both developers and hobbyists, which is mainly down to their low cost, wide availability, large number of application notes that can be found on the web, availability of development tools, and their serial programming capabilities.

The PIC range is comprised of the base line PIC10 series, mid range products like the PIC12, PIC16, and on to the high end PIC17 and most recently PIC18 series of devices. The PIC24 and dsPIC are the first inherently 16-bit microcontrollers form Microchip, the previous families being 8-bit. The PIC24s are general purpose 16-bit microcontrollers and the dsPICs (dsPIC30 and dsPIC33) include digital signal processing capabilities.

Getting your code into these microcontrollers requires some sort of programming equipment or device. Robust programming solutions from long established third party programmer manufacturer exist and are the best bet especially if you have any significant volume of these devices to program. These are available as universal programming solutions that support every type and kind of programmable device or offer specialized microchip programmer that specifically support Microchips range of PICmicro devices. These provide full programming support for all families of PIC devices but being specialized in this area they are relatively low cost compared to the “universal” programming solutions that aim to program “everything”.

The growing trend is for in circuit programming of these PICs which is achieved via a flying IDC lead that connects to the microchip programmer on one side and takes the power and data lines out to the device while it is mounted in the end application. The traditional ZIF socket method of programming is also supported by the specialized programmers where the PIC device is physically placed into the ZIF socket of the programmer; it would then be removed and mounted or soldered into the end application.

Specialized microchip programmer connect to a host PC to provide a graphical user interface and for easy setup and control. A USB 2.0 interface is the most common method of connection to a PC. The control software contains all the programming algorithms needed to program different devices and is updated regularly both with new devices and bug fixes if needed. If you should find yourself with a device that is not supported on the programmer then the programmer manufacturer should be more than willing to look into the case and get the support added as rapidly as possible, this service is usually free of charge. Along with ever growing device support the programmer manufacturers will offer a technical support service, again usually free of charge. You can call them with your questions or problems and speak directly to knowledgeable support staff or you can email your questions to them and can usually expect a response within 24 hours.

A warranty comes as standard these days, usually offering a minimum of 1 year return to base warranty against failure.