Interfacing
controllers:
Modern mechatronic systems comprise a number of
subsystems, which rely heavily on digital data
communications. Different levels of complexity of these
systems means that the requirement for data
communications range from a simple communication
between two devices to systems with a large number of
subsystems, where each subsystem communicates
directly or indirectly with other subsystems using a
communication network.
Terminology and Definitions
• Interface:
• The common boundary between two subsystems is called an interface, and a number of
interfaces can be involved even in a simple communication system.
• Bit:
• The simplest form of data is one bit, which can take one of the two values 0 or 1, and hence is
called binary data. All information in modern digital computers is stored in binary form.
• Byte:
• A fixed number of bits (usually 8), which can be treated by a computer as a unit.
• Character:
• Historically, the information is expressed in terms of characters. A character is a member of a
character set. An example of a character set is the set of characters in the English language.
• Character code:
• Individual characters from the selected character set are encoded in digital computers as binary
numbers. One of the most widely used character set codes is the American Standard Code for
Information Interchange (ASCII).
Serial vs. Parallel
• The basic unit of information to be transferred between subsystems is
usually a character. For short distances, multiple parallel lines can be
used to carry out simultaneous transmission of all the bits of a
character.
• For the transmission of data over long distances, the cost of multiple
data lines is often prohibitive and it is normal to serialize the data so
that it can be passed over a single data path as a stream of bits.
Parallel transmission
Crosstalk
Electrical interferences
Synchronous and Asynchronous
data transfer
Handshaking
• In order to ensure efficient transmission of data without errors, the
sending system will use a separate signal to indicate that valid data
has been presented to the interface. Because the instant at which the
receiving device can process the data is not known, the sending
device must wait for an acknowledgment signal before presenting
new data to the interface. The handshaking can be implemented in
either hardware or software.
Darlington pair
• A Darlington transistor (also known as a Darlington pair) is an electronics
component made via the combination of two BJTs (Bipolar Junction Transistor)
connected in such a way that it allows a very high amount of current gain. This is
achieved through a compounding amplification, whereby the current is amplified
by the first transistor and then further amplified by the second transistor.
• Since the increasing of base current is not possible due to the supply source, the
only way to increase the load current capability is to increase the gain of the
transistor. But it is also fixed for each transistor. However we can increase the
gain by the using combination of two transistors. This configuration is called as
Darlington transistor configuration.
• Transistor gain or Current gain (β) = load or collector current/ input or base
current
• Load current = Current gain (β) × base current
• For a normal transistor β value is 100.
• The above relation tells that the current available to drive the load is 100 times
that of the input current of the transistor.
Example of Darlington
Transistor Circuit
• Consider the following circuit where Darlington pair is used to switch the load that is rated at 12V and 80W.
The current gains of first and second transistors are given as 50 and 60 respectively. So, the base current
required to make the lamp fully ON is calculated as follows.
The collector current is equal to the load current,
IC = 80/12 = 6.67 A
Darlington transistor output current is given as Ic = I B (β1 +
β2 + β1 β2),
IB= IC / (β1 + β2 + β1 β2)
Current gains, β1 = 50 and β2 = 60
So, IB= 6.67 / (50 + 60 + (60 × 50))
IB = 2.2 mA
From the above calculation, it is clear that with small base
current we can switch the larger lamp loads. This small base
input voltage can be applied from any microcontroller output
or any digital logic circuits.
Adapters
• In general, an adapter refers to any circuitry or device that enables
one type of device to communicate with another.
• In your computer, hardware adapters may be "onboard" (soldered
directly onto the motherboard). Or, they may be "discrete" (separate
hardware, attached to a port on the motherboard, so that they can
be removed or replaced).
• A SATA controller is an example of an onboard adapter, which allows
your motherboard to communicate with SATA devices such as an HDD
or SSD.
• An example of a discrete adapter is a video card connected to your
motherboard's PCI slot, which allows your motherboard to
communicate with your monitor. A discrete adapter is sometimes
also called an expansion card..
Serial Peripheral Interface
• Serial Peripheral Interface or SPI is a synchronous serial
communication protocol that provides full – duplex communication at
very high speeds. Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) is a master – slave
type protocol that provides a simple and low cost interface between a
microcontroller and its peripherals.
• SPI Interface bus is commonly used for interfacing microprocessor or
microcontroller with memory like ADC (Analog – to – Digital
Converters), DAC (Digital – to – Analog Converters), displays like LCDs,
Audio ICs, sensors like temperature and pressure, memory cards like
MMC or SD Cards or even other microcontrollers.