Arduino Compatible Pro Mini (HCARDU0059 & HCARDU0081)

[Paul Ridd]

Thanks Andrew. The calibration is stored in the EEPROM so thanks for confirming this is not erased.

As for the main problem - I, er, um, er, hadn't connected the DTR pin at all

Now it's plugged in it works so much better. Sorry.

[SATTCAT]

Hi
I am trying to connect to an Arduino Compatible Pro Mini 5v board (HCARDU0059) from my Windows XP PC via a USB Serial Port Download Adapter (HCARDU0011).

I've made the following connections, all tested OK with a multimeter:
ADAPTER -- PRO MINI
3.3v -- (Not connected)
GND -- GND
VBUS -- VCC
TXD -- RXI
RXD -- TXO
DTR -- DTR

On the PC, I downloaded and installed "CDM v2.10.00 WHQL Certified.zip" from the FTDI website and I now see "USB Serial Port (COM6)" in Device Manager. This shows as "This device is working properly" under Device Status and, as expected, disappears when I unplug the adapter.
The STA light on the adapter glows brightly as soon as it is plugged into the PC.
On the Pro Mini, there's an LED near the end connector that glows brightly and another LED at the opposite end of the board that flashes continuously.

When I try to upload my sketch (fully tested on a standard Arduino Uno) the following happens:
(1) Sketch compiles OK in IDE with the expected "Binary sketch size: 9,822 bytes (of a 32,256 byte maximum)" message;
(2) IDE says "Uploading..." and progress bar rapidly advances from approx 50% to about 90% complete;
(3) After several seconds the flashing LED on the Pro Mini turns off;
(4) The TX LED on the adapter flashes a few times (not very brightly);
(5) The LED on the Pro Mini starts flashing again - this is probably no more than a second from when it turned off;
(6) After several more seconds the progress bar in the IDE goes to 100% complete and the following error is displayed:
avrdude: stk500_getsync(): not in sync: resp=0x00
or with the shift key pressed:
avrdude: usbdev_open(): did not find any USB device "usb"

Can anyone offer any advice as to what may be wrong?
Many thanks
Rob

[andrew]

3.3v -- (Not connected)
GND -- GND
VBUS -- VCC
TXD -- RXI
RXD -- TXO
DTR -- DTR

That looks correct to me.

"CDM v2.10.00 WHQL Certified.zip" from the FTDI website and I now see "USB Serial Port (COM6)" in Device Manager.

Again this seems like the driver is installed correctly.

On the Pro Mini, there's an LED near the end connector that glows brightly and another LED at the opposite end of the board that flashes continuously.

That's a good sign as it mean that the pro mini is alive and running code.

(4) The TX LED on the adapter flashes a few times (not very brightly);

This means the Arduino IDE has correctly managed to reset the Pro Mini, which then reboots into the bootloader, which in turn should accept your new sketch.

(6) After several more seconds the progress bar in the IDE goes to 100% complete and the following error is displayed:
avrdude: stk500_getsync(): not in sync: resp=0x00

This is a generic error message and basically means the the IDE is not getting any kind of response back from the pro mini. The main causes of this is either a bad connection or the Tx and Rx pins being connected in the wrong order. However it looks like you have that bit set up right.

What are you selecting for the board type?

[SATTCAT]

Hi Andrew
Many thanks for the quick reply.
I had left the board type as Arduino Uno, which is what I developed the code on (Doh!).
Switching it to the relevant Pro Mini fixed the problem.
Thanks again for your help
Rob

[Zed Eighty]

I can't find the FTDI cable mentioned in the product page. Do you stock this item or any other cable suitable for a 5V Pro Mini?

I noticed this cable, but it seems to have a history of issues with Windows and it also doesn't appear to have a full set of pins:

https://hobbycomponents.com/usb-interfa ... face-cable

Also, I do not want to use any cable that requires a PCB module, such as this module:

https://hobbycomponents.com/usb-interfa ... rt-adapter

What are my options?

[andrew]

I'm afraid we don't currently sell an actual cable that includes the DTR line. Your options are either the cable that you linked to which I would recommend just on the basis that it doesn't include that line, or one of the following modules:

https://hobbycomponents.com/usb-interfa ... al-adaptor

https://hobbycomponents.com/usb-interfa ... rt-adapter