The FreeSoC2 development board is SparkFun’s take on the PSoC5LP ARM Cortex. The PSoC (programmable system on a chip) brings together features of the programmable devices and microcontroller-type systems on chips into one package. By placing a programmable fabric between the peripherals and the pins, the FreeSoC2 allows any function to be routed to any pin. Moreover, the on-board PSoC includes a number of programmable blocks which allow the user to define arbitrary digital and analog circuits for their specific application.

SparkFun’s FreeSoC2 board has two processors on-board: a CY8C5868LTI-LP039 and a CY8C5888AXI-LP096. The former serves as a debugger/programmer for the latter, which is the target upon which the application code will be installed. Both parts contain a Cortex-M3 processor core, 256 kB of Flash memory, 64 kB of SRAM, and 2 kB of EEPROM. The only significant differences between the two are the package size and clock speed. The target is in a TQFP-100 package which provides 72 IO pins versus the debugger’s QFN-68 package and 48 IO pins, and the target can operate at 80 MHz versus the debugger’s 67 MHz limit. Additionally, the FreeSoC2 can support 5 V and 3.3 V IO voltages.

With a simple upload of firmware, the Arduino core has been ported to the PSoC5LP, so users can write code for the board in the standard Arduino IDE. The board duplicates the functionality of an Arduino Uno R3’s various hardware peripherals on the pins, so many examples, libraries, and shields will work on this board. However, to get the most out of the device, users will need to use the PSoC Creator IDE (which is free of charge with no code limits from Cypress Semiconductor). Please keep in mind that the PSoC Creator software is Windows-only at this time.