In-system programming: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 20:19, 1 May 2023

Revision as of 20:05, 20 December 2023

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The second method uses [[test point]]s on the board. These are specific areas placed on the printed board, or [[Printed circuit board|PCB]], that are electrically connected to some of the electronic components on the board. Test points are used to perform functional tests for components mounted on board and, since they are connected directly to some microcontroller pins, they are very effective for ISP. For medium and high production volumes using test points is the best solution since it allows to integrate the programming phase in an assembly line.

In production lines, boards are placed on a bed of nails called [[Test fixture|fixture]]. The latter are integrated, based on the production volumes, in semiautomatic or automatic test systems called [[Automatic test equipment|ATE –(automatic Automatictest Test Equipmentequipment)]]. Fixtures are specifically designed for each board - or at most for few models similar to the board they were designed for – therefore these are interchangeable in the system environment where they are integrated. The test system, once the board and the fixture are placed in position, has a mechanism to put in contact the needles of the fixture with the Test Points on the board to test. The system it’s connected to, or has directly integrated inside, an ISP programmer. This one has to program the device or devices mounted on the board: for example, a microcontroller and/or a serial memory.

== Microchip ICSP ==