Author Topic: PIC18F4550 and Visual Basic 2008  (Read 8515 times)

Pulling

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PIC18F4550 and Visual Basic 2008
« on: March 24, 2011, 09:30:07 am »
Jan,
Thanks for your fast response. However I think I am not explanining myself well.

One site you sent me too had externial devices to program the PIC18F4550. That is not what I need.

I need to control the PIC directly as I did the parallel port on my old PC.

I have a OUMEX board with a PIC18F4550 on board.
The PIC has a USB cable to the PC.
I have loaded the bootloader threw this cable. It is seen as a PIC18F4550 in the divice manager.
Now using Visual Basic 2008 and no other device. How do I communicate to the PIC and turn on LEDs at pins 38,39,40 for example.
Or am I using the incorrect device.
Thanks Again
Jack

Jan Axelson

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Re: PIC18F4550 and Visual Basic 2008
« Reply #1 on: March 24, 2011, 11:22:00 am »
Please read the first questions in my FAQ here:

http://www.lvr.com/usbfaq.htm

To control LEDs on your PIC board, you need to write and compile a program for the PIC, store your firmware (program) on the board, and run the program.

To access the board via USB, your device must support USB protocols and the requirements of a USB class or other device driver. Microchip and Lvr.com have example firmware and PC software for communicating with the device. For example, my HID code sends and receives two bytes. You could use these bytes to control LEDs on your board. Take a look at some of the source code to get an idea of what's involved.

If you want the quickest possible way to communicate via USB, I recommend connecting one of ftdichip.com's FT232x series chips to a serial port on the PIC. If you know how to do serial-port communications, you can use these chips.

Jan