An Arduino Debugging Tool

[rgsparber]

If I am debugging C++ code on an Arduino with USB access to my PC, I use print statements to tell me what is going on. These statements contain information that lets me know where the print came from and when it came. Most of this is done using a macro program so I hit a few keys and get the desired result.

If you are interested, please, click here.


Your comments are welcome. All of us are smarter than any one of us.


Thanks,

Rick

[DIYer]

Thanks rgsparber! We've added your Arduino Debugging Tool to our Electronics category,
as well as to your builder page: rgsparber's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Arduino Debugging Tool by rgsparber

tags: Arduino

[BuffaloJohn]

What is old is new...

Back in the 70's we did the same thing - in Assembly or Fortran on the Cyber 74 or the Univac 1108 - and we didn't have any kind of fancy development environment, unless you count getting a chair with arms in the room where we punched cards - ah those were the days, submitting a card deck and going away for hours while we waited our turn for the deck to be run and the results printed or plotted and then waiting for the display light to indicate our job was done.

Also did that on every other computer I worked on - micros, minis, controllers, and on. Why? Shouldn't these fancy IDEs do all that? Well, no, sometimes you were trying to debug a highly sensitive to time code bit, interrupt or driver or whatever. When working on something that is broke, you sometimes need to figure out where it is broken at speed. The old print statement worked well, but sometimes you needed to send the place code off to a port so you could get back to running the real code - a quick write to a port and back to work.

And then you found out that it worked differently with the debugging statements and it was back to the drawing board trying to figure how to measure without changing the result... all hail Heisenberg!!!

Ok, that reference might be obscure for some, Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle states there is a limit to the simultaneous measurement of position and momentum. That same principle applies to the examination of a working machine or code.

[hemmjo]

Ok so maybe a bit off topic, but maybe not. I have been fascinated with the Arduino and what is can do for sometime now. I have a need for a controller that will measure temperatures analyze trends then turn various pumps and blowers off and on as required.

This is related to the geothermal heat pump heating and cooling and domestic hot water system I assembled in my home back in the 80's when it was not a thing around here. People then told me I was crazy. I know it is working well, because one winter when it failed, the back up resistance heating system more than tripled our electric bill for the month it took me to parts to get it back online. I think I can make it better.

The system has always been controlled with mechanical devices, temp sensors, relays, etc, controlling each function. Currently the controller on one of the heat pumps is going bad. The controller is no available for replacement.

I would like to integrate all of the functions into one integrated control system. In order to do this I need something that can monitor temperatures at 18-20 locations, process that data and switch off and on 12-14 various devices as required. While displaying status of sections of the system.

I have been investigating the possibilities and would like to get started trying so thing to see if my old brain can learn what it needs to to attempt this project. From what I have read, it seems the Arduino may be able to handle this task. I have been looking at starter kits that contain various components. Can any of you Arduino veterans suggest a way to jump into this investigation.

As I have mentioned, I have been called crazy, so I am not unaware of that possibility. But sometimes, my ideas do work out.

[rgsparber]

Ok so maybe a bit off topic, but maybe not. I have been fascinated with the Arduino and what is can do for sometime now. I have a need for a controller that will measure temperatures analyze trends then turn various pumps and blowers off and on as required.

This is related to the geothermal heat pump heating and cooling and domestic hot water system I assembled in my home back in the 80's when it was not a thing around here. People then told me I was crazy. I know it is working well, because one winter when it failed, the back up resistance heating system more than tripled our electric bill for the month it took me to parts to get it back online. I think I can make it better.

The system has always been controlled with mechanical devices, temp sensors, relays, etc, controlling each function. Currently, the controller on one of the heat pumps is going bad. The controller is no available for replacement.

I would like to integrate all of the functions into one integrated control system. In order to do this I need something that can monitor temperatures at 18-20 locations, process that data and switch off and on 12-14 various devices as required. While displaying status of sections of the system.

I have been investigating the possibilities and would like to get started trying so thing to see if my old brain can learn what it needs to to attempt this project. From what I have read, it seems the Arduino may be able to handle this task. I have been looking at starter kits that contain various components. Can any of you Arduino veterans suggest a way to jump into this investigation.

As I have mentioned, I have been called crazy, so I am not unaware of that possibility. But sometimes, my ideas do work out.

Your project is an excellent application of an Arduino.

I have developed a Flight Data Recorder that records 8 channels of analog voltages. You wouldn't need to record, just process this data. It uses a Sparkfun Pro Mico. A minor challenge is getting enough analog ports.

I have also developed a Flow Management and Control system that uses a Pro Micro. It monitors the water flow on 6 irrigation zones and does logic with the data.

If you like, contact me privately and I can help you figure out how to use an Arduino to control your system. The hard part has been done by you - figuring out what you want done. Recasting this logic into an Arduino is easy, by comparison.

Rick