Adafruit released a new Feather Express board based on the STM32F405 microcontroller. Adafruit will focus on CircuitPython with the new board, but with all the time we spent using STM32CubeIDE, we just had to try programming it with C!
In this tutorial, we’ll create a quick blinking LED example and upload it to the board using the built-in DFU bootloader. That will require using the dfu-util tool, and if you’re on Windows, you’ll need to install the WinUSB driver via Zadig.
From there, we’ll create a simple temperature logger. The Feather STM32F405 Express has a built-in SD card and STEMMA-QT connector, so we’ll take a reading from a PCT2075 sensor over I2C, print it out over the virtual serial port (USB), and log it to a file on the SD card.
Finally, we’ll use the test points on the back of the board to break out the SWD debug port. That will allow us to perform step-through debugging operations on the board.
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.
