How-to connect body interaction and your computer using USBtinyISP

Using USBtinyISP

The body interaction vibrator development board needs a programmer to upload a script. It’s not possible to upload  a script via the USB port directly. Instead you have to connect a programmer to your computer’s USB port (the red USB cable on the picture). Then connect programmer and the body interaction board with a 2×3 pin wire (grey wire on the picture).

We use the USBtinyISP – be sure to buy one with a 2×3 (6) pin wire. Be sure to remove the “JP3” jumper (more instructions) on the USBtinyISP.

Driver installation

If you have a Windows system you have to upload and install drivers for the USBtinyISP. Here you can download drivers and you can follow a very good installation instruction. If it works you are lucky…

Windows installation Troubleshooting

Installation with Windows can be frustrating. Thanks to this solution troubleshooting is much easier.

1. Download Zadig. Install the software.
2. Plug-in the USBtinyISP. Windows tries to install a driver (and probably will fail to do so).
3. Run Zadig. Select “USBtiny” and “libusb-win32” and click “reinstall driver”.

Trouble with the installation? We try to help you. Mail to info@bodyinteraction.com

Connect to the body interaction development board

On the body interaction development board you have to insert the pins in the holes marked as “ISP”. There are 2 rows and 3 colums. You can use any male 0.1″ pin headers. The body interaction development board provides two 3 pin header. You shouldn’t solder the pins as long as uploading works without any problem.

Now you can connect the body interaction board and the USBtinyISP  with the 2×3 pin header. On one side of the header you will see a vertical rail. This rail should point away from the board. If you are not sure try to turn the header 180 degrees and plug it in again.

The advantage of using a programmer is that you don’t need a bootloader. A bootloader is a small program (1-2 kB) which allows to upload programs by the USB connection.  But the ATtiny84 microcontroller has only 8kB, with a bootloader only 6-7 kB are left for your own program. That’s why we use a programmer.

Alternative solution: Arduino as ISP programmer

I haven’t tested this option, but there are a lot of examples:

• http://www.instructables.com/id/Using-the-Arduino-Uno-to-program-ATTINY84-20PU/?lang=de
• http://playground.arduino.cc/Main/ArduinoOnOtherAtmelChips#.UzCdgoWLVtc
• http://nathan.chantrell.net/20120225/an-attiny-based-wireless-temperature-sensor/
• https://github.com/jcw/ide-hardware (for JeeNode)
• http://www.3bm.de/2013/09/17/attiny84-mit-arduino-uno-programmieren/ (German)