What is 10 divided by 3? Your Basic Stamp thinks the answer is 3! Most other
microcontrollers can't do any better because they all use integer math.
Sometimes you can get by with integer math, but sometimes you need precision
floating point results. That's where the PAK-XII can help.
AWC, a long-time leader in
producing floating point coprocessors for microcontrollers, is pleased to
introduce a simpler, more powerful math coprocessor. Our other coprocessors
(the PAK-I, II, and IX) are designed for highly efficient communications,
and for demanding applications, they are still a great choice. however,
their efficiency requires some effort to master. Sometimes you just want a
simple way to get floating point results. That's where the PAK-XII comes
into play.
The PAK-XII uses simple 9600
baud TTL-level RS232. You send ASCII digits and commands to it and it
replies in ASCII. It is like having an RPN (reverse polish notation)
calculator connected to your microcontroller.
How easy is it to use the
PAK-XII? Try this simple Basic Stamp program:
x=114 ' in real life,
this might come from a sensor
SEROUT TX,BAUD,[dec x," 3.325*="]
SERIN RX,BAUD,[dec result,WAIT("."),dec4 frac]
That's it! You just computed
3.325 * 114 and read the answer in two parts (a whole number part and a
fractional part).
NEW: The PAK-XII can now
store up to 10 macros to help make complex
expressions more efficient.
This powerful PAK not only
has all the math power you've come to expect from our high-end coprocessors,
but it also has an analog comparator and 6 A/D channels (with up to
10-bit accuracy). Suppose you want to read 4 samples from channel 0, average
them, and convert them to a voltage reading. Easy! Just write:
SEROUT TX,BAUD,["a0 a0 a0
a0+++4/5*1024/"]
The PAK uses RPN (like an HP
calculator does). It has a 15 level stack and also has 10 temporary storage
registers. This easy to use chip augments your Stamp or other
microcontroller with full 32-bit floating point math. The PAK-XII is a
standard 28-pin (.3" spacing) IC that can interface with your
microcontroller using only 2 pins (you may wish to use one additional
handshaking line).
Features include: