Zeus Assembly Manuals

[rrowan]

Hi Folks,

Just wanted to let you know that the assembly manuals for the Zeus 16 and Zeus 8 are in the wiki.

Many thanks to the beta team for fully testing the Zeus boards and to twooly for taking the pictures and writing up the text for the manuals.

Rick R.

[tbone321]

Thanks for the great work Rick.  Now when are you coming over to get those lights on my roof for me?

[jnealand]

Can we get the mouser BOM?  I need to order some parts for another project and I want to add a couple of spare parts for the Zeus to my order.

[tbone321]

The BOM is not normally released until the parts for the first coop are ordered but anything is possible.

[zwiller]

Thanks for the work on the manual Rick and betas!   

The build looks pretty straight forward, but I might have to take a break during the soldering of them chip sockets...   

One thing I have been anticipating is the new SS utility with all the color orders.  My gear was all over the place...   

[RJ]

You need the updated firmware which is not out yet for the ssc to be able to use the new orders. It takes more than just the utility. The Zeus firmware already supports them.

RJ

[zwiller]

I kinda expected that and moved folks towards modding older SSCs to accommodate this.  The string programming appears to be straightforward.  Very slick. 

[taybrynn]

(1) Does the Zeus have the ability to span more than one pixelnet universe?
     I'm going to assume its like a SS HUB and you just jumper the single PN universe you want to use.
     I thought there was a hint at one point that it might be able to span multiple PN universes.

(2) I just read in the wiki - assembly manual for the zeus that configuration is done via. the latest SSC utility -- see below.
     So same utility for SSC and Zeus configuration, correct?

To configure the Zeus for the color order and the start address along with other options use the updated version of the Smart String Utility.
Some of the options:
1 - Start Channel
2 - String Number (1 - 16/All)
3 - Mode (String, Hybrid, Nodes)
4 - Forward/Backwards
5 - Node Count
6 - Null Nodes (optional)
7 - Grouping
8 - Color Order

[tbone321]

(1) Does the Zeus have the ability to span more than one pixelnet universe?
     I'm going to assume its like a SS HUB and you just jumper the single PN universe you want to use.
     I thought there was a hint at one point that it might be able to span multiple PN universes.

Like the Hub, you can select the universe it is operating on, but it will only work on the one that you select.

(2) I just read in the wiki - assembly manual for the zeus that configuration is done via. the latest SSC utility -- see below.
     So same utility for SSC and Zeus configuration, correct?

I think that this is where the manual is weak and in serious need of editing.  I can see from the picture that there is no ICSP header which indicates that the chips cannot be flashed on the board and the manual makes no mention of that at all.  I see that there is a program jumper but how exactly do you configure the individual chips? 

[rrowan]

tbone is correct there is no icsp(s) connector on the Zeus family pcbs. Otherwise there would be the need for 8 or 16 icsp connectors or one with another jumper selector for each chip.
The chips come pre-programmed from microchip


Here is a snapshot of the new Smart String Utility program.

Rick R.

I forgot the second picture showing the Zeus option where you can program all the chips at once or select one at a time with the drop down

[tbone321]

If the chips will alway be coming preprogrammed then it may be a good idea to note that in the manual.  I see that the new utility has a Zeus option.  Does this indicate that the utility can select the the chip that you are working with.  If so then that is really cool.

[rrowan]

If the chips will alway be coming preprogrammed then it may be a good idea to note that in the manual.  I see that the new utility has a Zeus option.  Does this indicate that the utility can select the the chip that you are working with.  If so then that is really cool.

Yes sorry I forgot the second picture. Yeah the manual does need some work. The programming section was just a place holder until we could show the options in the utility program. Was waiting for Dad's approval LOL.

I just added the picture

Rick R.

[combustionmark]

RJ explained this at the academy. The 8 or 16 channels are programed by the new to be released utility. There will be an option for each channel or all channels, and ssc.

If you want to program 16 channels of 50 pixels with 2 null nodes starting at channel 1, then selecting all will program 16 channels with the same configuration, but each will have its own start address.

first channel starting at 1
second starting at 151
third starting at 301
etc
etc

Now if you find that channel 3 must be changed to reverse order, You simply program channel 3, the other channels will remain unchanged.

The chips will be programed with the firmware, no pickit required, so no header.

Nice work by RJ, and the beta testers.

Can't wait for my kit order to arrive. 

[taybrynn]

Thanks, this looks great !!   

[Rainlover]

If the chips will alway be coming preprogrammed then it may be a good idea to note that in the manual.  I see that the new utility has a Zeus option.  Does this indicate that the utility can select the the chip that you are working with.  If so then that is really cool.

I am glad that the chips are being preprogrammed by Microchip. I don't think I could program the 4592 chips from this coop in the next month. I am sure that RJ will provide the file to program the chips if they ever need to be replaced.

John