cuwire: IDE for microcontrollers

This is a Brackets plugin, which provides an Arduino-like environement for editing, compiling and uploading sketches. Current version supports Arduino 3rd party hardware spec. The plugin was written by Ivan Baktsheev in 2014.

Brackets is a new generation code editor, based on HTML5 and JS. This plugin will provide same functionality as Arduino IDE to write code and upload it to the microcontroller. The plugin was written in pure javascript, and it will probably runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux (untested). A additional libraries like serialport is used in this plugin, the codes are belonging to their own authors. Precompiled versions of those libraries is included along with plugin distribution.

Requirements

1. Brackets

Developed and tested under version 1.0

2. Arduino

You need an Arduino IDE version 1.5 and later

Installation

Please install using plugin manager

After installation, coil icon will appear on sidebar

Set Arduino Install Location

Arduino default locations for hardware and libraries will be scanned automatically.

• On Mac OS X /Applications/Arduino.app

• On Windows C:\Program Files\Arduino

• User's Documents/Arduino directory

You can add non-standard Arduino IDE location using preferences.

Features

• Compilation and Upload
• Board images
• Multiple sketches in one project

TODO

Serial Monitor

Scan code for a proper baud rate.

Settings

Setting custom location for IDE

Examples

Searchable examples

Libraries

Search and add libraries without IDE reload

IDE features

Code completion, quick edit, compilation errors highlight in code

External programmer support

Bootloader burn

Additional hardware toolchain installation

Hardware supported

This project based on Arduino IDE 3rd party hardware specification.

Compilation and upload is tested without issues on:

• Atmel AVR: Arduino Uno, Arduino Mega 2560, Arduino Pro mini clone with USB-UART adapter;
• Atmel ARM: Arduino Due
• Nordic ARM: Rfduino (HOWTO)

Issues

If you meet any problems, you can leave messages at Issues.

Known Issues:

1. Build Process

The build process is almost similar to Arduino Build Process. A number of things have to happen for your Arduino code to get onto the Arduino board. First, plugin performs some small transformations to make sure that the code is correct C or C++ (two common programming languages). It then gets passed to a compiler (avr-gcc), which turns the human readable code into machine readable instructions (or object files). Then, your code gets combined with (linked against), the standard Arduino libraries that provide basic functions like digitalWrite() or Serial.print(). The result is a single hex file, which contains the specific bytes that need to be written to the program memory of the chip on the Arduino board. This file is then uploaded to the board: transmitted over the USB or serial connection via the bootloader already on the chip or with external programming hardware.

• Multi-file sketches

A sketch can contain one .ino or .pde file and multiple files with extensions of .c, .cpp and .h. Before your sketch is compiled, .ino or .pde file is transformed to form the "main sketch file". Files with .c, .cpp or extensions are compiled separately. To use files with a .h extension, you need to #include it (using "double quotes" not angle brackets).

• Transformations to the main sketch file

Plugin performs a few transformations to your main sketch file before passing it to the compiler.

First, #include "Arduino.h" is added just before first program statement. This header file (found in <ARDUINO>/hardware/cores/<CORE>/) includes all the defintions needed for the standard Arduino core.

Next, plugin searches for function definitions within your main sketch file and creates declarations (prototypes) for them. These are inserted just after Arduino.h. This means that if you want to use a custom type as a function argument, you should declare it within a separate header file. Also, this generation isn't perfect: it won't create prototypes for functions that have default argument values, or which are declared within a namespace or class.

Arduino IDE and Stino plugin for SublimeText works slightly different. Arduino IDE append every file without extension to the main sketch file, Stino does the same for all files with .ino or .pde extension. This is bad practice, cuwire doesn't support that. If you want to build a modular app, please use .c* and .h files, this behavior is supported in every IDE.

• Build process

First, plugin reads boards.txt and platform.txt within <ARDUINO_APP>/hardware and <USER_DOCUMENTS>/Arduino/hardware folders to generate recipes for build and upload.

2. Add libraries

Copy the library folder to the <USER_DOCUMENTS>/Arduino/libraries/ folder.

3. Add new hardware platforms

Copy the core folder to the <USER_DOCUMENTS>/Arduino/hardware/ folder.

License

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

About The Author

apla.me

Website

GitHub (http://github.com/apla/)

Sublime Text Plugin (https://github.com/Robot-Will/Stino)