Pseudonymous maker “Negimeister” is engaged on constructing a customized DJ controller, however discovered themselves in want of a debug probe for its Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller — so constructed their very own, designed to take a seat inline on a USB Sort-C port.
“I am within the technique of constructing a customized DJ controller with the [Raspberry Pi] RP2040 and alongside the best way I constructed myself a debug probe,” Negimeister explains of the mission. “It makes use of the SBU [Sideband Use] pins on the USB [Type-]C connector for SWD [Serial Wire Debug]. It additionally has a USB hub on board, so I can join every little thing with only one cable.”
The thought behind the probe is easy: an on-board RP2040 microcontroller serves because the debugger, whereas a USB hub permits the gadget to attach each the on-board RP2040 and the gadget to be debugged to the host system alongside a single cable — making good use of the Sideband Use (SBU) pins for the SWD debug site visitors, which will be carried alongside the USB indicators.
This intelligent little dongle can debug RP2040-based initiatives over SWD utilizing only a single USB Sort-C cable, no headers needed. (📷: Negimeister)
“That is already making growth an absolute breeze,” Negimeister says of the probe. “I not want to incorporate debug headers on boards and attempt to attain them in an assembled gadget. As a substitute I can simply plug into the common USB port and it simply works (assuming I obtained the orientation proper.) I am certain this entire factor would not completely adjust to USB requirements, however up to now it is working nice!”
Each the probe and the DJ controller board are powered by the low-cost dual-core Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller, which is included of their designs in a time-saving trend: utilizing a customized “compute module” board. “It principally simply has an RP2040 and the required parts on it,” Negimeister explains, “and plugs into initiatives. Saves me from having to redo the circuit each time and paying for meeting.”
Extra data on the debug probe is offered on Negimeister’s Reddit put up.
