PIC 16F916.Kindly guide is it the right processor and how to use it efficiently

[manojanand]

I am new to microcontrollers. I read a tutorial over interenet on Microcontroller PIC 16F84. The link to that tutorial is given here **broken link removed** I have written few small programs on PIC 16F84 which worked well on MPLAB SIM. Now I thaught i should move on with better Microcontroller rather than doing practical with PIC 16F84. So i am studying PIC 16F916. Kindly guide me is the the right processor to move on. And second while studying it , i realize that it has too many control registers and it is seems difficult to manage all setting and configuration. Is the any more smart way to work with PIC 16F916. Presently i am studying it and writing program in assembly. Also guide me about the configuration and fuse settings which is defined at the start of the program. I know there are too many questions in this post , next time i will try to be more specific and more systematic.

 

[Tahmid]

Hi,
If you feel uncomfortable with the large number of registers, maybe you can use another controller like 16F628A or 16F873A. However, you may be able to get accustomed to it with a little bit of practice. I don't know how proficient in assembly you are, but maybe moving on to C or BASIC will make coding easier for you. Before explaining the configuration bits, you have to know what each of those do. That is, do you understand the different oscillator options? etc. If you have not done so yet, download the datasheet for 16F916 and read it carefully, along with the reference manual.

Hope this helps.
Tahmid.

 

[ckshivaram]

Once you go ahead learning higher processors there will be lot of registers as there will be lot of features that the higher processors will offer.. so it is not the issue of the controller you are learning.. its there in all controllers.. why dont you go for 16 or 32 bit PIC controllers.

 

[JayantD]

You can start by downloading sample projects, build in MPLAB and use the simulator to single step through the programs.
Variables can be displayed in watch windows, and I/Os can be visualised in the simulator logic analyzer. you dont even need external hardware for this.

 

[manojanand]

[/COLOR]@Tahmid : I have downloaded the datasheet of PIC 16F916 and studying it. Read approx 100 pages. I read about oscilator options too. But that sounds somewhat complex , so i decide that at initial stage i would prefer internal oscilator as using external oscilator will involve numerous setting in registers. So using internal oscilator what should be the configuration in starting?

@ckshivaram : I would like to work with 16 bit and 32 bit processors. But i think first i should learn one 8 bit high end processor then i should move to 16 bit and 32 bit processor. One more thing sir , is this processor is good one. Good one means is this processor is being used in industry. Is it widely used or is it being used by hobbyists only.

@JayantD : I will work on your suggestion.

Thanks all.

 

[ckshivaram]

you can go for PIC16F877A. or PIC18F4550 or the ones adviced by tahmid.. these are few popular controllers used in market....

if you are learning then there is a thread in which we are all participating.. you can also join the thread
https://www.edaboard.com/threads/215581/#post930132

it covers PIC18F4550

 

[Tahmid]

This should clear it up:

So, let's take this (it should work fine for you):
ICDE disabled,
FCMEN disabled,
IESO disabled,
BOR disabled,
CPD disabled,
CP disabled,
RB3 configured for digital IO,
PWRT disabled,
WDT disabled,
FOSC set for INTOSCIO - internal RC oscillator, RA6 and RA7 set as digital IO

So, your configuration bits setting is (in binary):

01000011010100

I hope you understood the settings.

Hope this helps.
Tahmid.

 

[manojanand]

@Tahmid : It is really very helpful.