ADXL346

The iMEMS^® ADXL346 inertial sensor evaluation system is an easy-to-use evaluation tool targeting bench or desktop characterization of Analog Devices, Inc., inertial sensor products. The system consists of the inertial sensor evaluation board (ISEB), or main board, and a satellite board for any Analog Devices inertial sensor product. The ISEB connects directly to a PC via an USB cable, with the USB connection providing both communications and power to the board. The ISEB is connected to the satellite board through a ribbon cable. This cable allows the satellite to be easily manipulated for testing or separately placed into an environmental chamber for temperature or humidity testing. Separating the boards mitigates corruption of data due to the temperature and humidity effects of other components.

The ISEB is an universal main board and is intended to be used with various satellites of Analog Devices inertial sensors, including analog and digital accelerometers, as well as gyroscopes. The different products are evaluated by means of separate GUIs that are customized for performance and characterization measurements relevant to the inertial sensor being evaluated.

The EVAL-ADXL346Z-M system contains the ISEB and the EVAL-ADXL346Z-S satellite. Also included is an USB A to Mini-B cable to connect the ISEB to a PC and an 18-inch, 20-pin ribbon cable to connect the ISEB to the satellite.

The EVAL-ADXL346Z is a simple breakout board that enables easy connection of an ADXL346 into an existing system. The ADXL346 is a digital-output, 3-axis accelerometer whose low power consumption and built-in features make it ideal for use in a wide variety of applications. Due to its small size, the EVAL-ADXL346Z has minimal effect on performance of the system and of the accelerometer, and thus it is ideal for evaluation of the ADXL346 in an existing system. Note that the ADXL346 must be communicated with digitally via SPI or I²C. No processor is included with the EVAL-ADXL346Z; firmware must be supplied externally by the user. For evaluation boards that include a processor, please see the EVAL-ADXL346Z-M and the ADXL346Z-DB.

The ADXL346 Development Board is an easy-to-use tool designed to shorten application development time by providing a ready-to-use platform for data collection and firmware development.

The board is pre-configured as a datalogger that can be used to gather data for refining algorithms, tuning thresholds, and generally familiarizing oneself with accelerometer data. Powered by two AAA batteries, the board is completely untethered and integrates seamlessly into portable applications. Logged data is stored on a MicroSD memory card, providing essentially unlimited memory capacity and operating system versatility. Data is stored in a text (.txt) file, so no software installation is required to operate the board or read data. A 2GB MicroSD card and a USB MicroSD card reader are provided with the board.

Additionally, the board is fully programmable, providing a hardware platform on which firmware can be tested in parallel with development of application hardware. Communications and processing are performed by an ARM7-based ADuC7024 micro-controller, and firmware is written in C. A programming cable is provided with the board, and a development environment and header files are supplied on this page. Finally, the platform can be duplicated in the final application, having already been tested with the application firmware. Schematics and layout can be found under the Supporting Documentation tab and can be used freely in your application.

Note that this board is not configured to display real-time data. For real-time evaluation of the ADXL346, please refer to the Inertial Sensor Evaluation Board. For a simple ADXL346 Breakout Board, refer to the EVAL-ADXL346Z.

The iMEMS^® Real Time Eval System is an easy-to-use evaluation tool targeting bench or desktop characterization of Analog Devices, Inc., inertial sensor products. The system consists of the inertial sensor evaluation board (ISEB), or main board, and a satellite board for any Analog Devices inertial sensor product. The ISEB connects directly to a PC via an USB cable, with the USB connection providing both communications and power to the board. The ISEB is connected to the satellite board through a ribbon cable. This cable allows the satellite to be easily manipulated for testing or separately placed into an environmental chamber for temperature or humidity testing. Separating the boards mitigates corruption of data due to the temperature and humidity effects of other components.