ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016

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Lab 2 – Interfacing to switches and LED’s

Objectives

 To learn to configure PIC18F4550’s I/O ports as inputs or outputs.

 To learn to read status of switches – open or closed.

 To learn to turn on / off a number of LED’s, in various sequences.

 To learn to use the delay functions.

Introduction / Briefing

Switches at Port A

 In this experiment, you will be reading the status of the dip switches
connected to Port A.

Below are the ways in which the switches are named and used in software.
Switch at RA3 has the name PORTAbits.RA3
Switch at RA4 has the name PORTAbits.RA4
Switch at RA5 has the name PORTAbits.RA5
PORTA on its own refers to all 8 bits and not individual bits.

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ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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 Study the above diagram and answer the following questions:

Q1: How many dip switches are there? __________

Q2: How many are connected to Port A? __________

Q3: What is the purpose of the 470 ohm resistors?

_______________________________________________________

(The above is a tough question. Hint: imagine someone making the mistake
of configuring Port A as output AND producing a logic ‘1’ at one of
RA3:RA5 AND the corresponding dip switch is closed.)

Q4: Are the switches connected in the “active high” or “active low” manner?
(An “active high” switch gives a logic ‘1’ when closed.)
____________________

Q5: What will a Port A pin read (logic ‘1’ or ‘0’) when a corresponding dip
switch is closed? __________

 To allow Port A to read the dip switches, it must be configured as a

digital input port. However, Port A is a partially analogue/partially digital
input port by default (after power on reset):

[ Refer to the “insert” on the next page to understand the last column. ]

Port Available Not available as general After power on reset

pins purpose I/O ( - reasons )

A RA6-0 RA6 ( – oscillator ) RA5, 3-0: Analogue inputs (*).

RA4: Digital input.

Q6: Give the C-command to configure Port A as a digital input port (hint:
ADCON1):

______________________________ // configure Port A as digital inp.

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ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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 When a dip switch is closed, the corresponding Port A pin will read a logic
‘0’.

Q7: Give the C-command to check if the dip switch connected to RA3 is
closed (hint: PORTA):

if ____________________ // if dip switch @ RA3 is closed

{
// do something

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ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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LED bar at Port D

 In this experiment, you will also be turning on and off an LED bar
connected to Port D.

 Study the above diagram and answer the following questions:

Q8: How many LED’s are there in the LED bar? __________

Q9: How many are connected to Port D? __________

Q10: What is the purpose of the 470 ohm resistors in the SIP (Single-In-Line
package)? ______________________________

Q11: Are the LED’s connected in the “common anode” or “common cathode”
manner? ____________________

Q12: What must a Port D pin produce (logic ‘1’ or ‘0’) to turn on a corresponding
LED? __________

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ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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 To allow Port D to control the LED bar, it must be configured as a digital

output port. However, Port D is a digital input port by default (after
power on reset):

Port Available Not available as general After power on reset

pins purpose I/O ( - reasons )

D RD7-0 RD7-0: Digital inputs.

Q13: Give the C-command to configure Port D as a digital output port (hint:
TRISD):

_____________________________ // configure Port D as digital outp.

 To turn on a particular LED, the corresponding Port D pin must produce a

logic ‘1’.

Q14: Give the C-command to turn on the LED’s as follows (hint: PORTD):

ON

______________________________ // turn alternate LED’s on

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ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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Activities:

Using LEDs to indicate switch status

Create a New Project – Lab2

1. Launch the MPLABX IDE and create a new project called Lab2.
Below is a summary of the steps needed or you can refer to Lab1.

6d. Codeoffset
1000

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2. Use “Add Existing Item” to add the file OnOffLeds.c to the Lab2
project Source File folder, as follows. Make sure Copy is ticked
before you click Select.

3. Double click on Source Files – OnOffLeds.c to look at the program.

// OnOffLeds.c
// Program to use switches to control 8 leds on General I/O Board

#include <xc.h>

void main(void) {
ADCON1 = 0x0F; //make Port A digital

TRISA = 0b11111111; //RA5 to RA3 are connected to On/Off switches

TRISD = 0b00000000; //RD7 to RD0 are connected to LEDs

while (1) //repeat

{
if (PORTAbits.RA3 == 0) //_____________________
{
PORTD = 0xF0; // PORTD = 0b______________________
}
else
{
PORTD = 0x0F; // PORTD = 0b______________________
}
}
}

4. Describe what this program will do:

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

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 ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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5. Build, download and execute the program. Observe the result and see if it
is as expected.

6. Change the program to use the switch at RA5, such that if RA5 is on, all
the LEDs should be on and if RA5 is off, all the LEDs should be off.

7. Build, download and execute the program. Observe the result and see if it
is as expected.

LED’s blinking / ”scanning”

Use
delays,
toggle
LED’s.
 8. Right click on OnOffLeds.c and click “Remove From Project”. Then add
the file BlinkLeds.c to the project. (“Remove From Project” only removes
the file from the project, it is not deleted.)

9. Study the code and describe what this program will do:

__________________________________________________

10. Note that the program uses the delay function delay_ms() and contains
#include “delays.h”. The file delays.h needs to be added to Header Files
while the file delays_utilities.c needs to be added to Source Files.

11. Build, download and execute the program. Observe the result and see if it
is as expected.

Pause an
action  12. Add the following line to the while(1) loop:

while(1)
{
while (PORTAbits.RA3 == 0); // loop here when switch is on

PORTD=0b10101010;
……. // other existing lines – don’t touch
}

13. Describe what this NEW program will do:

__________________________________________________

14. Build, download and execute the program. Observe the result and see if it
is as expected.

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 ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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Right to
left
“scan”
 15. Modify the program to do “scanning”, such that one LED light repeatedly
moves from right to left (after a short delay).

Pause the
“scan”  16. Add in a switch control line such that when the switch connected to RA3
is closed, the “scanning” is paused.

17. Debug until the program can work.

2-way
“scan”  18. Modify the program to do a “right to left scan”, followed by a “left to
right scan” repeatedly. Include the switch control line to pause the
scanning with a closed switch at RA3.

19. Debug until the program can work.

 20.
Slow down
the “scan”
Modify the program such that a closed switch at RA4 slows down the
scanning (while a closed switch at RA3 pauses the scanning). (Hint: add
delay if switch at RA4 is closed.)

21. Debug until the program can work.

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 ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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LED’s “counting”

Counting
 22. Replace BlinkLeds.c with CountLeds.c.

23. Study the code and describe what this program will do:

__________________________________________________

24. Build, download and execute the program. Observe the result and see if it
is as expected.

Counting
Up/down  25. Modify the program such that a closed switch at RA5 causes counting up
while an opened switch causes counting down. Here are some hints:

while (1)
{
….. // other lines unchanged
if (PORTAbits.RA5 == 0) // if switch is closed
____________________ // count up
else
____________________ // count down
}

Slow down
the
counting
 26. Add in a line such that a closed switch at RA4 slows down the counting.

 27. Add in another line such that a closed switch at RA3 pauses the counting.
Pause the
counting

28. Debug until the program can work.

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 ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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Extra Exercise

29. A left-shift is equivalent to multiplication by 2 while a right-shift is

equivalent to division by 2.
2-way
scan, with
pausing &
slowing
 30. If you still have time at the end of this Lab, try to write a LED scanning
program (you can modify any existing file – OnOffLeds.c or BlinkLeds.c or
down
CountLeds.c) such that the scanning is normally from right to left, but

A closed switch at RA5 causes a left to right scan.

A closed switch at RA4 causes scanning to slow down.
A closed switch at RA3 causes scanning to pause.

31. Debug until the program can work.

// OnOffLeds.c
// Program to use 1 switch to control 8 leds on General I/O Board

#include <xc.h>

void main(void) {
ADCON1 = 0x0F; //make Port A digital

TRISA = 0b11111111; //RA5 to RA3 are connected to On/Off switches

TRISD = 0b00000000; //RD7 to RD0 are connected to LEDs

while (1) //repeat

{
if (PORTAbits.RA3 == 0) //_____________________
{
PORTD = 0xF0; // PORTD = 0b______________________
}
else
{
PORTD = 0x0F; // PORTD = 0b______________________
}
}
}

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ET1010 MAPP / ET1216 EDBP II ©Singapore Poly 2016
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// BlinkLeds.c
// Program to light up alternate leds on General I/O Board

#include <xc.h>
#include "delays.h"

void main(void) {
ADCON1 = 0x0F; //make Port A digital

TRISA = 0b11111111; //RA5 to RA3 are connected to On/Off switches

TRISD = 0b00000000; //RD7 to RD0 are connected to LEDs

while (1) //repeat

{
PORTD = 0b10101010;
delay_ms(1000);

PORTD = 0b01010101;
delay_ms(1000);

}
}

// CountLeds.c
// Program to make 8 leds on General I/O Board do binary up counting

#include <xc.h>
#include "delays.h"

unsigned char j; // 8 bit data type, range 0 to 255

void main(void)
{
ADCON1 = 0x0F; //make Port A digital

TRISA=0b11111111; //RA5 to RA3 are connected to On/Off switches

TRISD=0b00000000; //RD7 to RD0 are connected to LEDs

j=0; //beginning

while(1) //repeat
{

PORTD = j; // Output value of j to PORTD

delay_ms(500);

j++; // Increment j
}
}

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