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Let's take your FRDM-K32L3A6 for a test drive! You have the choice of watching the sequence in a short video or following the detailed actions list below.
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When the board is flat, the RGB LED is shines yellow, and when the board is tilted, the LED turns red or green depending on whether the board is tilted horizontally or vertically.
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The alternative out of box demo starts flashing the RGB LED between red and green until the next step is executed.
When the board is flat, the RGB LED is shines yellow, and when the board is tilted, the LED turns red or green depending on whether the board is tilted horizontally or vertically.
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The MCUXpresso SDK is complimentary and includes full source code under a permissive open source license for all hardware abstraction and peripheral driver software.
Want to learn about SDK.Click below to download a preconfigured SDK release for the FRDM-K32L3A6.
You can also use the online SDK Builder to create a custom SDK package for the FRDM-K32L3A6 using the SDK builder.
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NXP offers a complimentary toolchain called MCUXpresso IDE.
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The MCUXpresso Config Tool is an integrated suite of configuration tools that guides users in creating new MCUXpresso SDK projects, and also provides pin and clock tools to generate initialization C code for custom board support.
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Many of the example applications output data over the MCU UART so you'll want to make sure that the driver for the board's virtual COM port is installed. Before you run the driver installer, you MUST have the board plugged into your PC.
With the serial port driver installed, run your favorite terminal application to view the serial output from the MCU's UART. Configure the terminal to 115,200 baud rate, 8 data bits, no parity, and 1 stop bit. To determine the port number of the FRDM-K32L3A6's virtual COM port, open the device manager and look under the "Ports" group.
Not sure how to use a terminal application? Try one of these tutorials:
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Create an Application for the FRDM-K32L3A6.
Option A: Use the MCUXpresso IDE to clone an example project.
Option B: Use the MCUXpresso Config Tool to clone an existing MCUXpresso SDK example for use with third-party IDEs.
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Now, let’s use the Pins tool that is part of the MCUXpresso Config Tool to show how to add a new GPIO pin to your project to blink an LED.
If using MCUXpresso IDE, open the pins tool by left clicking on the arrow next to the “MCUXpresso Config Tools” icon and then “Open Pins”
If using the MCUXpresso Config Tools program and if the pins tool is not already open, then select the project that you had cloned and then And open the pins tool by selecting Tools->Pins from the toolbar.
NOTE: The clocks and peripherals files may also be tagged as being updated since the header has been changed.
#define BOARD_LED_GPIO BOARD_INITPINS_MY_LED_GPIO
#define BOARD_LED_GPIO_PIN BOARD_INITPINS_MY_LED_PIN
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Next use the Clocks tool that is part of the MCUXpresso Config Tool to change the clock settings and change the rate that the LED blinks.
If using MCUXpresso IDE, open the pins tool by left clicking on the arrow next to the “MCUXpresso Config Tools” icon and then “Open Clocks”
If using the MCUXpresso Config Tools program and the pins tool is not already open, then select the project that you had cloned and then
And open the pins tool by selecting 'Tools→Clocks' from the toolbar.
NOTE: The pins and peripherals files may also be tagged as being updated since the header has been changed.
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With the application modified, you will see the FRDM-K32L3A6’s blue LED slowly blinking. You can also view terminal output using the terminal program.
If using MCUXpresso IDE, open the pins tool by left clicking on the arrow next to the “MCUXpresso Config Tools” icon and then “Open Pins”
If using the MCUXpresso Config Tools program and if the pins tool is not already open, then select the project that you had cloned and then And open the pins tool by selecting Tools->Pins from the toolbar.
NOTE
The clocks and peripherals files may also be tagged as being updated since the header has been changed.
#define BOARD_LED_GPIO BOARD_INITPINS_MY_LED_GPIO
#define BOARD_LED_GPIO_PIN BOARD_INITPINS_MY_LED_PIN
If using MCUXpresso IDE, open the pins tool by left clicking on the arrow next to the “MCUXpresso Config Tools” icon and then “Open Clocks”
If using the MCUXpresso Config Tools program and the pins tool is not already open, then select the project that you had cloned and then
And open the pins tool by selecting Tools->Clocks from the toolbar.
NOTE
The pins and peripherals files may also be tagged as being updated since the header has been changed.
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Build and Run SDK Demos on the FRDM-K32L3A6.
The MCUXpresso SDK comes with a long list of example applications code. To see what's available, browse
to the 'SDK boards folder' of your SDK installation and select your board, the
FRDM-K32L3A6
(<SDK_Install_Directory>/boards/frdmk32l3a6
).
To learn more about specific example code, open the readme.txt file in an example's directory.
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If one or more of the demo applications or driver examples sounds interesting, you're probably wanting to know how you can build and debug yourself. The Getting Started with MCUXpresso SDK guide provides easy, step-by-step instructions on how to configure, build, and debug demos for all toolchains supported by the SDK.
Use the guide below to learn how to open, build, and debug an example application using the MCUXpresso IDE.
The following steps will guide you through opening the hello_world example.
Find the Quickstart Panel in the lower left-hand corner
Then click on Import SDK examples(s)…
Click on the frdmk32l3a6 board to select that you want to import an example that can run on that board, and then click on Next.
Use the arrow button to expand the 'demo_apps' category, and then click the checkbox next to 'hello_world' to select that project. To use the UART for printing (instead of the default semihosting), select UART in the SDK Debug Console options. Then, click on 'Finish'
Now build the project by clicking on the project name and then click on the Build icon.
You can see the status of the build in the Console tab.
MCUXpresso IDE will probe for connected boards and should find the MBED CMSIS-DAP debug probe that is part of the integrated OpenSDA circuit on the FRDM-K32L3A6. Click on OK to continue.
The firmware will be downloaded to the board and the debugger started.
Open up a terminal program and connect to the COM port the board enumerated as. Use 115,200 baud 8 data bits, no parity, and 1 stop bit.
Start the application by clicking the "Resume" button:
The hello_world application is now running and a banner is displayed on the terminal. If this is not the case, check your terminal settings and connections.
Use the controls in the menu bar to pause, step into, and step over instructions, and then stop the debugging session by click on the Terminate icon:
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PuTTY is a popular terminal emulation application. This program can be used to display information sent from your NXP development platform's virtual serial port.
Learn how to build and run a simple example using IAR or Keil Third Part IDE toolchains
The following steps will guide you through opening the hello_world application. These steps may change slightly for other example applications as some of these applications may have additional layers of folders in their path.
If not already done, open the desired example application workspace. Most example application workspace files can be located using the following path:
<install_dir>/boards/<sdk_board_name>/<example_type>/<application_name>/iar
Using the hello_world demo as an example, the path is:
<install_dir>/boards/frdmk32l3a6/demo_apps/hello_world/iar
Select the desired build target from the drop-down. For this example, select the “hello_world – Debug” target.
To build the application, click the “Make” button, highlighted in red below.
The build will complete without errors.:
The FRDM-K32L3A6 board comes loaded with the mbed/CMSIS-DAP debug interface from the factory. If you have changed the debug OpenSDA application on your board, visit OpenSDA Serial and Debug Adapter for information on updating or restoring your board to the factory state.
Connect the development platform to your PC via USB cable between the "SDAUSB" USB port on the board and the PC USB connector.
Open the terminal application on the PC (such as PuTTY or TeraTerm) and connect to the debug COM port you determined earlier. Configure the terminal with these settings:
Click the "Download and Debug" button to download the application to the target.
The application is then downloaded to the target and automatically runs to the main() function.
Run the code by clicking the "Go" button to start the application.
The hello_world application is now running and a banner is displayed on the terminal. If this is not the case, check your terminal settings and connections.
After the MDK tools are installed, Keil device packs must be installed to fully support the device from a debug perspective. These packs include things such as memory map information, register definitions and flash programming algorithms. Follow these steps to install the appropriate CMSIS pack.
Open the MDK IDE, which is called µVision. In the IDE, select the "Pack Installer" icon.
In the Pack Installer window, find the K32L3A6 device pack in the Devices list on the left (they are in alphabetical order). Select the K32L3A60VPJ1A. The NXP packs start with “NXP::" and are followed by the MCU family name, for example "NXP::K32L3A60_DFP". Because this example uses the FRDM-K32L3A6 platform, the K32L3A6 family pack is selected. Click on the "Install" button next to the pack. This process requires an internet connection to successfully complete.
After the installation finishes, close the Pack Installer window and return to the µVision IDE.
The following steps will guide you through opening the hello_world application. These steps may change slightly for other example applications as some of these applications may have additional layers of folders in their path.
If not already done, open the desired demo application workspace in:
<install_dir>/boards/<sdk_board_name>/<example_type>/<application_name>/mdk
The workspace file is named <application_name>.uvmpw, so for this specific example, the actual path is:
<install_dir>/boards/frdmk32l3a6/demo_apps/hello_world/mdk/hello_world.uvmpw
To build the demo project, select the "Rebuild" button, highlighted in red.
The build will complete without errors.
The FRDM-K32L3A6 board comes loaded with the mbed/CMSIS-DAP debug interface from the factory. If you have changed the debug OpenSDA application on your board, visit OpenSDA Serial and Debug Adapter for information on updating or restoring your board to the factory state.
Connect the development platform to your PC via USB cable between the "SDAUSB" USB port on the board and the PC USB connector.
Open the terminal application on the PC (such as PuTTY or TeraTerm) and connect to the debug COM port you determined earlier. Configure the terminal with these settings:
After the application is properly built, click the "Start/Stop Debug Session" button to download the application to the target and start debugging.
Run the code by clicking the "Run" button to start the application.
The hello_world application is now running and a banner is displayed on the terminal. If this is not the case, check your terminal settings and connections.
This section contains the steps to install the necessary components required to build and run an MCUXpresso SDK demo application with the ARM GCC toolchain, as supported by the MCUXpresso SDK. There are many ways to use ARM GCC tools, but this example focuses on a Windows environment. Though not discussed here, GCC tools can also be used with both Linux OS and Mac OSX.
Download and run the installer from GNU Arm Embedded Toolchain Downloads.
This is the actual toolchain (i.e., compiler, linker, etc.). The GCC
toolchain should correspond to the latest supported version, as
described in the Kinetis SDK Release Notes.
The Minimalist GNU for Windows (MinGW) development tools provide a set of tools that are not dependent on third party C-Runtime DLLs (such as Cygwin). The build environment used by the KSDK does not utilize the MinGW build tools, but does leverage the base install of both MinGW and MSYS. MSYS provides a basic shell with a Unix-like interface and tools.
Download the latest MinGW mingw-get-setup installer from MinGW - Minimalist GNU for Windows Files.
Run the installer. The recommended installation path is C:\MinGW
,
however, you may install to any location.
NOTE: The installation path cannot contain any spaces.
Ensure that the "mingw32-base" and "msys-base" are selected under Basic Setup.
Click "Apply Changes" in the "Installation" menu and follow the remaining instructions to complete the installation.
Add the appropriate item to the Windows operating system Path
environment variable. It can be found under Control Panel →
System and Security → System → Advanced System
Settings
in the "Environment Variables..." section. The
path is:
<mingw_install_dir>\bin
Assuming the default installation path, C:\MinGW
, an
example is shown below. If the path is not set correctly, the
toolchain does not work.
NOTE:
If you have "C:\MinGW\msys\x.x\bin"
in your PATH variable (as
required by KSDK 1.0.0), remove it to ensure that the new
GCC build system works correctly.
Create a new system
environment variable and name it
ARMGCC_DIR. The value of this variable should point to the Arm GCC
Embedded tool chain installation path, which, for this example, is:
C:\Program Files (x86)\GNU Tools Arm Embedded\4.9 2015q3
Download CMake 3.0.x from Download CMake.
Install CMake, ensuring that the option "Add CMake to system PATH" is selected when installing. It's up to the user to select whether it's installed into the PATH for all users or just the current user. In this example, the assumption is that it's installed for all users.
Follow the remaining instructions of the installer.
You may need to reboot your system for the PATH changes to take effect.
To build an example application, follow these steps.
If not already running, open a GCC Arm Embedded tool chain command window. To launch the window, from the Windows operating system Start menu, go to “Programs → GNU Tools Arm Embedded <version>” and select “GCC Command Prompt”.
Change the directory to the example application project directory, which has a path like this:
<install_dir>/boards/<board_name>/<example_type>/<application_name>/armgcc
For this guide, the exact path is:
<install_dir>/boards/frdmk32l3a6/demo_apps/hello_world/armgcc
Type “build_debug.bat” on the command line or double click on the "build_debug.bat" file in Windows operating system Explorer to perform the build. The output is shown in this figure:
The GCC tools require a J-Link debug interface. To update the OpenSDA firmware on your board to the latest J-Link app, visit OpenSDA Serial and Debug Adapter. After installing the J-Link OpenSDA application, download the J-Link driver and software package from SEGGER Downloads.
Connect the development platform to your PC via USB cable between the "SDAUSB" USB port on the board and the PC USB connector.
Open the terminal application on the PC (such as PuTTY or TeraTerm) and connect to the debug COM port you determined earlier. Configure the terminal with these settings:
Open the J-Link GDB Server application. Assuming the J-Link software is installed, the application can be launched by going to the Windows operating system Start menu and selecting "Programs → SEGGER → J-Link <version> J-Link GDB Server".
Modify the settings as shown below. The target device selection chosen for this example is the “K32L3Axxxxxxxx_M4” and use the SWD interface.
After it is connected, the screen should resemble this figure:
If not already running, open a GCC Arm Embedded tool chain command window. To launch the window, from the Windows operating system Start menu, go to "Programs → GNU Tools Arm Embedded <version>" and select "GCC Command Prompt".
Change to the directory that contains the demo application output. The output can be found in using one of these paths, depending on the build target selected:
<install_dir>/boards/<board_name>/<example_type>/<application_name>/armgcc/debug
<install_dir>/boards/<board_name>/<example_type>/<application_name>/armgcc/release
For this guide, the path is:
<install_dir>/boards/frdmk32l3a6/demo_apps/hello_world/armgcc/debug
Run the command "arm-none-eabi-gdb.exe <demo_name>.elf". For this example, it is "hello_world_demo_cm4.elf".
Run these commands:
The application is now downloaded and halted at the reset vector. Execute the "monitor go" command to start the example application.
The hello_world application is now running and a banner is displayed in the terminal window.
Tera Term is a very popular open source terminal emulation application. This program can be used to display information sent from your NXP development platform's virtual serial port.
Explore beyond the FRDM-K32L3A6 by adding other NXP solutions to your project and interact with our worldwide design community.
Explore the world with a full assortment of NXP sensor solutions. From accelerometers, pressure sensors, touch sensors, and many more, NXP has a sensor solution for your project. Find out more at Sensors.
Near Field Communication is a simple, intuitive technology that lets you interact securely with the world around you with a simple touch. Learn more about NXP’s NFC solutions at NFC
Connect with other engineers and get expert advice on designing with Kinetis MCUs and MCUXpresso Software and Tools. Join the community discussion in one of our two dedicated communities: Kinetis MCU Community or MCUXpresso Software and Tools Community
No problem! Your board simply came in the old packaging and has a different out-of-box demo loaded into the flash memory.
You should be seeing the RGB LED toggling between each of the three colors; red, blue, and green. It's OK to move onto the next step when you're ready.
Try proceeding to the next steps to get other example applications running on your board. If you still have problems, try contacting us through the NXP Community.