MSP430 Launchpad

8 December 2018 - 0 Comments

MSP430 Launchpad

MSP430 Pinout

MSP430 Launchpad is a hardware development tool for the MSP430 Value Line series of microcontrollers and is popular among hobbyists for its low cost and features. It is an easy way to start developing on the MSP430 MCUs, with on-board emulation for programming and debugging as well as buttons and LEDs for a simple user interface.

MSP430 Pinout Configuration

There are few ports present on the board as shown in the MSP430 pinout and the functions of these ports are described below:

Name	Pin	Function
GPIO pins	P1.0 to P1.7 & P2.0 to P2.5	These are the input/output pins of the microcontroller (placed in the socket) given out of the board for interfacing.
Button	P1.3	Can be used for general purpose interfacing during operation.
LEDs	P1.0 & P1.6	Can be used for general purpose indication during operation.
Reset	Connected to RESET pin of microcontroller	If pressed, the microcontroller will reset.
Power Connected	Three pin jack at the bottom	Can be used to connect eternal power sources after programming.
Crystal pads	Solder joints adjacent to controller	A crystal oscillator can be soldered here for providing more accurate clock source.
eZ430 connector	Six pin connector	Provides a bridge between Emulator board and Microcontroller breakout board. Can be disconnected to isolate both sections of the PCB.
Programming port	USB connector at the top	The device will be connected to PC (For programming and power) using this port.

Features and Electrical Characteristics

Dip socket for easy plug-in or removal of microcontroller
Energy trace technology available for ultra-low-power debugging
One button and two LEDs for user interaction
USB debugging and programming interface featuring a driverless installation
Available UART serial communication with up to 9600 Baud
Supports MSP430G2xx2, MSP430G2xx3, and MSP430F20xx devices in PDIP14 or PDIP20 packages
Hardware reset button available on board
Operating voltage range: 5V

Note: More technical information can be found in the MSP430 Datasheet, linked at the bottom of this page.

The MSP430 board can be used for programming many controllers, but there will be two microcontrollers available with the development board, so we will mention features of them below:

Feature	MSP430G2553 Controller	MSP430G2452 Controller
CPU architecture	16-Bit RISC Architecture	16-Bit RISC Architecture
Frequency of Operation	Up to 16MHz	Up to 16MHz
Flash Memory	16KBytes	8KBytes
RAM	512Bytes	256Bytes
Interface	1x I2C 1x SPI 1x UART	1x I2C 1x SPI
Programmable I/O pins	16	16
ADC	8 channel of 10 bit resolution	8 Channel of 10 bit resolution
Comparator	8 input available	8 input available
Timer	2 x 16 bit	1 x 16 bit
Capacitive touch interface	Available	Available
Internal temperature sensor	Available	Available
Watchdog timer	Available	Available

Similar MCU Boards

CC1352P, CC1352R, CC26x2R, CC3200

MSP430 Launchpad Overview

MSP430 launchpad is a development board which can be used to design all Arduino based applications since both have similar capabilities and features. Similar to Arduino being developed on AVR controllers, the MSP430 launchpad is developed on TI MSP430 microcontrollers. This device can be used to develop low-end applications and not high-end applications, as it does not have high processing power like Raspberry pi.

How to use MSP430 Launchpad

Similar to Arduino, we need IDE software for interfacing the board to PC and programming the microcontroller seated in it. There are two IDE software available for the MSP430 launchpad and the link of both are given below:

In both IDE using energia is easier, as the software is developed based on arduino IDE and they share similar programming feel. So for those who are familiar with arduino will fell energia IDE similar and helpful.

Once you download the IDE software, install it in your PC and do it with administer rights for avoiding future troubles. Run the installed program and connect the development board to the PC using the cable provided along with the kit. The PC will detect the board automatically after connecting. Once detection in done, go to the example programs in the IDE and choose blinking program to execute. Once it is done, the IDE will debug the blinky program for error and after successful compilation, the program will be transferred to microcontroller in the board. Once the program is transferred, the microcontroller executes the blinky program saved in its flash memory and we will see the LED present on the board blinking.

So with that, we have successfully programmed the controller via usb interface and in the similar way, we can write the other programs in the IDE and dump these programs in the controller after compilation.