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 sit down 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 venture. “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 concept behind the probe is straightforward: an on-board RP2040 microcontroller serves because the debugger, whereas a USB hub permits the machine to attach each the on-board RP2040 and the machine 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 alerts.
This intelligent little dongle can debug RP2040-based tasks over SWD utilizing only a single USB Sort-C cable, no headers obligatory. (📷: Negimeister)
“That is already making growth an absolute breeze,” Negimeister says of the probe. “I now not want to incorporate debug headers on boards and attempt to attain them in an assembled machine. As a substitute I can simply plug into the common USB port and it simply works (assuming I received the orientation proper.) I am positive this entire factor does 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 tasks. Saves me from having to redo the circuit each time and paying for meeting.”
Extra info on the debug probe is obtainable on Negimeister’s Reddit publish.