DSBrut

[Another World]

DSBrut
NDS Hardware Prototyping Project

DS brut is an open source hardware prototyping platform for the Nintendo DS. An inexpensive cartridge for Slot-1 provides for basic UART, up to 6 GPIO lines, up to three ports for PWM, up to two ADCs and I²C bus - all accessible from within your homebrew NDS code. By connecting the Nintendo DS to the outer world with UART, GPIO, PWM, ADC, I²C, etc, the game console can be easily hooked up to a variety of sensors (e.g. GPS receivers) and can itself control all different kinds of actuators, servo motors and others.

The first batch of kits will ship sometime next week.

Spoiler

[titleev Team Comments]
The cartridge features one Atmega168 microcontroller which - like the Arduino - can be very easily programmed via the TX/RX pins. By default, the microcontroller runs a program (source code available) tailored for use with a LGPL-licensed library for devkitPro we developed that makes it possible to access the microcontroller's peripherals from within your DS code. The library transparently handles all communication with the cartridge over SPI bus, which makes it extremely easy to use for developers. As its API closely resembles those of Arduino (analogRead(), digitalRead()), you can start prototyping right away if you have some experience on that platform!

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Discuss

 

[Destructobot]

Does this require a slot 2 flashcart?


Edit:

DS brut goes into Slot-1 of the Nintendo DS, like games normally would. That said, you'll preferably have a Slot-2 homebrew solution like a SuperCard with FlashMe firmware if you don't want to switch cartridges like mad.

So I guess you could run a program from slot 1 and then swap the carts, but you would only be able to connect the thingy to the flashcart filesystem if you have a slot 2 flashcart.

 

[Osaka]

shows how much of a noob I am... I pretty much had NO idea what it was talking about the whole time I was reading about it...

can someone say what this is in noob terms? =o=;;

 

[Edgedancer]

It means that through the connectors on the outside of the cartridge, you will be able to install a wide amount of accessories.

 

[Destructobot]

It's a programmable thingy that goes in slot 1 and lets you connect the DS to all sorts of other thingies.

 

[redact]

It's a programmable thingy that goes in slot 1 and lets you connect the DS to all sorts of other thingies.

that just went way over my head

 

[Gore]

It's a programmable thingy that goes in slot 1 and lets you connect the DS to all sorts of other thingies.

OH.
Now I understand.

 

[Frog]

It's a programmable thingy that goes in slot 1 and lets you connect the DS to all sorts of other thingies.

OH.
Now I understand.

i had no idea what this did either!

 

[Toni Plutonij]

(e.g. GPS receivers)

This was enough for me!!

But I'm kinda ashamed to admit, that I didn't understand most of that post either!

 

[enarky]

It's basically a Microcontroller that can be programmed from the DS and it can use the DS for Input/Output. The developers are also supplying a library that takes care of the microcontroller part (if I understood that quote right), so all you have to care about is the DS side of programming.

PWM = Pulse Width Modulation, used to output analog signals
ADC = Analog -> Digital Converter, used to read digital [EDIT]analog (d'oh)[/EDIT] signals
I²C Bus = serial bus that can be used to interface various electronic components

UART = serial port
GPIO = general purpose Input/Output

With PWM as output and ADC as feedback controll you can, for example, controll a DC Motor. You could also build a cheapo oscilloscope with the ADC or a microphone input (if the DS didn't already have one built-in

).

All in all this seems to be a nice toy for engineering students.

 

[papyrus]

When I red that post i assume that you can turn your DS into control device that can manipulate the satellites orbiting around earth.

 

[IzzehO]

Whoa sounds like a bit of a toy for me to begin playing with when we do microcontrollers a bit more next year at Uni

 

[Kensuke]

oh god, i'm really thinking in buying something like this...

 

[Awdofgum]

"In Waves We Trust"

lol

 

[IzzehO]

I'm curious as to why this isn't a slot-2 release? does the slot-1 put out more?

This brings back the dream of someone maybe making a fully capable wifi slot-2 device for the DS... Maybe a 4 in 1.. with 128 mb mem + full capable wifi = DS ownage once again..

 

[littlestevie]

wow

 

[WildWon]

What? ANOTHER R4 Clon..... wait a minute...

 

[xalphax]

cool, now i can use my ds as a time fuse thanks to this!

 

[enarky]

cool, now i can use my ds as a time fuse thanks to this!

You could've already, anyways.

You could always abuse the Slot-2 as digital IO and there's a serial port for Slot-1 since there are PassMe devices.

 

[Arm73]

Whoa it reminds me of the good ol' days when my Sinclair Spectrum had an expansion port in the back which could be easily connected to all sort of sensors and with a little bit of homebrew ( and there were plenty of at the time since it was the easiest thing to program in the world, and had as a storage medium regular tapes ) you could virtually do anything if you knew a bit of engineering ....
I even recall a documentary about ghosts in old castles in England and those ' ghostbusters ' had some really advanced equipment and sensors to actually try to record one, and at the center of it all, there it was, a Spectrum hooked up with a bunch of cables hanging from the back.....ah the 80's....!