• State
  • Locked Locked
  • Replies 3 replies
  • Subscribers 83 subscribers
  • Views 266 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Support feedback
Options
Options
Related

This thread has been locked.

If you have a related question, please click the "Ask a related question" button in the top right corner. The newly created question will be automatically linked to this question.

TMS320F2800137: Flashing MCU via ESP32 over UART and OTA

Naveen Gupta
Prodigy 130 points
Part Number: TMS320F2800137


Tool/software:

Hi,
I am  using TMS320F2800137 as the main MCU in a system, and there will be an ESP32 connected with it over UART. Now my question is how can I flash this MCU using the ESP32 first over UART, of course? then later using the OTA?
Any kind of suggestion will be very helpful.

Thanks and Regards,
Naveen

  • 0
    TI__Expert 6445 points

    Hi Naveen,

    Please refer to the Serial Flash Programming of C2000 Microcontrollers app note for flashing the MCU over UART. Our peripheral specific ROM bootloaders can download a custom bootloader (we call them Flash kernels) into RAM. Then that custom bootloader in RAM can download a firmware image and program it to flash.

    In some cases, like FOTA, which is different from an offline firmware update, the above approach does not work. Instead, it makes sense for the custom bootloader to be present in flash. When you start up the device, the entry point is into the custom bootloader. The custom bootloader branches to the application. When the application is executing, if a FOTA command is received, the application continues to execute, but in the background control passes to the custom bootloader, which receives a new FW image and programs it to flash.

    If you are planning on doing actual FOTA update with F280013x, it is more tricky because you have only 1 flash bank, and your application needs to run during the firmware install phase.

    Are you planning on overwriting your existing firmware in flash, or do you plan on having 2 firmware images present in the same Flash bank? Either way, some application code would need to run from RAM during the FOTA install phase. This is because you cannot simultaneously read/execute from a flash bank as well as erase/program it (even if those are in different flash sectors).

    Kind regards,

    Skyler

  • 0 in reply to Skyler Baumer
    Prodigy 130 points

    Hello Skyler,
    Thanks alot for your insights I am kind of new to this, but I think I understood the general idea of how to go for it.
    I was planning to overwrite the existing firmware, but I think it won't be possible to do so.
    Is there any way I can perform FOTA for this series of MCU, or might I have to go for the different one??

    I have already purchased dev kits for this one so I can experiment either way.

    Thank you,
    Regards,
    Naveen

  • 0 in reply to Naveen Gupta
    TI__Expert 6445 points

    Hi Naveen,

    There's no A/B swapping available on this device, but you can perform FOTA with the restrictions that I laid out in my previous reply. The most difficult part will be making sure you have enough RAM to continue executing your application in RAM while writing to flash.

    Kind regards,

    Skyler