Serial Wombat
a general-purpose digital interface device for hobbyists, engineers and students

Did you know...

Serial Wombats are No longer for Sale!

It seems like the end of the Serial Port and the rise of the Arduino hobby platform have marginalized this product.

To fulfill the promise I made way back in 2005, here's the source code: wombatfirmware.zip

You'll need the MPLab software from microchip, and C18 compiler (Free / student version).

Start with the project file wombat4620.mcp . After compiling and programming a chip, make sure to set all eeprom bytes to 0, or the product won't work right, if you aren't using a bootloader which validates eeprom.

This code is now licensed under the FreeBSD license, so you can use it in commercial products if you like, without releasing your source code. See the FreeBSD license for details.

I am no longer supporting this project. Emails asking for tech support on this project are unlikely to be returned.

Web Hosting for SerialWombat.com is paid for through July 2012. After that, online documentation may no longer be available.

Have fun, and thanks for your support over the years.

-Jon

What's a Serial Wombat?

A Serial Wombat:

• Is a microcontroller programmed with custom firmware
• Connects to a PC, Palm-Pilot, WinCE handheld, or other "Smart" Host device through the serial port
• Acts as "Arms and Legs" by giving the host device Digital and Analog I/O capabilities
• Uses a simple 8 byte protocol
• Is designed to be attached to the host device during operation
• Provides up to 32 digial I/O pins
• Provides up to 13 Analog Inputs
• Comes pre-programmed. You don't download any program to the Wombat; you send it commands in real-time
• Includes functions to reduce the work of the host device, including servo control, stepper motor control, LCD display control, keypad scanning, filtering, averaging, rotary-encoder and many other pin-modes.
• Can be upgraded by the user when new firmware comes out

The Serial Wombat is a 40 pin, Microchip 18F4620 PIC which comes preprogrammed with firmware to solve many common interface problems. The Serial Wombat makes it easy for people to interface things to their computer without ever programming a byte of code into a microcontroller. It talks to the computer over the Serial Port, the easiest bidirectional port to program for. See the "principles" section of the Overview page for more detail on the ideas which drove the creation of the Serial Wombat.

The Serial Wombat makes it easy to write software to do more complicated things which can only be achieved with the help of embedded software:

• Control up to 12 Servos from the host computer, or set up a servo to respond to other Wombat inputs
• Scan a matrix encoded keypad, and report and remember button pushes for reporting to the PC
• Monitor a rotary encoder and report the net number of clockwise or counterclockwise turns to the PC
• Configure the Wombat to monitor for short circuits and shut off an output within milliseconds of a short condition, preventing damage

The Serial Wombat isn't just for PC's. Attach one to an old Palm Pilot to create a portable, powerful data aquisition and control system with a graphic user interface. Or use a Wombat to add tons of I/O and control options to your Basic Stamp project. See the Documentation and Protocol pages to get an idea of the power, versatility, and ease of use of the Serial Wombat.

The Serial Wombat has a built in bootloader. This means that when a new version of software comes out, you can download it into the chip yourself!

What's new?

Nov 13, 2009: Wow! It's been a while As you can see, it's been a while since I've done a site update. Since the last techincal update (July 19, 08), I've got a new baby, and gone back to school to learn Chinese. Quite busy! But have no fear, I've still been filling orders and responding to Tech-Support e-mail. I've also been working sporatically on version 3.0 of the firmware. It will add the ability to control the Wombat via SPI rather than RS232. Is there a feature you'd like to see in 3.0? Send me a note! I've taken down the Forum. Since I set it up I had like 3 threads on it. Basically, it seems that everyone would rather email me for support. The only people really using it are spammers trying to increase the page-rank of their WOW Gold Farming services. So, down it goes. I'll miss the graphic, though... I've also created a script to add the pin mode code to many pages documenting pin modes. That may help you understand details of how the code works.
November 11, 2008: I'm cutting out a middle-man! The news is always talking about how legions of sellers are bailing out on Ebay due to higher fees. As of now, I'm one of them! From now on I'll be selling using a simple PayPal shopping cart. What? Who do you say owns Pay Pal? :-) In addition, I've got some new items up, including the LED display and IRDA kits mentioned below. Just in time for the Hollidays, I'm also adding a new 3-pack of Serial Wombat chips, at a reduced price of $44.95, a 25% savings.
July 19, 2008: A Serial Wombat in Your Bathroom. See how Robbert van der Bijl uses a Serial Wombat to display how much shower water is available from his Solar Heating system. Thanks Robbert!
March 21, 2008: Connect your Wombat via IRDA A protocol chip from Microchip and a surplus physical adapter, and you're on your way. Check out the video!. A kit with all the parts will be available starting at Notacon.
March 19, 2008: I've been invited to speak at Notacon in Cleveland, OH on April 4th through 6th. I met one of their founders a couple of years at the Hamvention, and they sold Wombat kits through their desk last year. I'll be talking about how to anticipate the desires and fears of people who may want to use a tool you develop. There's lots of cool speakers, and tickets are only $50 if you get them before March 23rd. I'll have Wombat kits and other fun trinkets for sale.
March 17, 2008: Pin Mode for SPI LED Display. This SDK demonstration creates a pin mode capable of driving an st2225a based LED AlphaNumeric Display.
February 24, 2008: Python programming example created by Wombat Customer Carl Nolf. Check out the PyWombat project on Sourceforge. Thanks Carl!
February 8, 2008: SED 1330 Graphic LCD Driver. This add-on pin mode was created using the SDK. It allows you to take easy advantage of a really cheap graphic LCD sold by All Electronics.
February 6, 2008: Sample project in C. This sample application is written in C, and should work on most POSIX compatible systems, such as under Linux and Cygwin for Windows. This was the first thing I programmed with my new Linux based eee PC ultra portable notebook. It includes code for using the Wombat's generic HD44780 LCD driver.
February 2, 2008: Firmware version 2.2.0 is now available. This firmware adds pin modes for datalogging, and minimum-maximum tracking. It also fixes a lot of minor bugs I've found through a new automated testing routine. Download it here.
July 11, 2007: Wombat Panel 2.0 is now available. Lots of new features, plus much improved sample code in the Wombat.cs class.
June 18, 2007: Firmware version 2.1.0 is now available. Only one change in this firmware: The addition of a CTS hardware flow control pin (if configured). Why the sudden interest in flow control? Two hints... Download it here.
June 1, 2007: We're #4...We're #4...We're #4. Apparently Google thinks we're getting more important. Our page rank went from 3 to 4! This is based on the number of pages that link to this one, so a special thanks to everybody who's out there promoting the Serial Wombat! I couldn't do it without you!
May 30, 2007: We had a great time at the Hamvention. We did great this year, selling out of most of the items we brought to the show, including around 60 Serial Wombat chips. For those of you who bought an experimenters kit, I'm in the process of documenting the parts. Check it out in the forum. After the show we also got a nice shout out in one of ARRL's newsletters. Thanks to everyone who stopped by the booth.
May 17, 2007: Version 2.0.0 is out! With support for the new SDK, a generic HD44780 driver, SPI master mode, Remote control reading, and upgrades to a number of existing modes, this is the most important new release since We've started! Get it here! The Serial Wombat Forum is open! I'll be answering most future support requests inside of this forum. Hopefully, it will also build a great user base. Check it out at http://forum.serialwombat.com (will redirect). We're Going to the Hamvention! See you in Dayton this weekend! Look for a new release of the Wombat Panel, as demoed at the Hamvention, within a couple of weeks. The source code for controlling the Demo board will also be available.
May 8, 2007: The Wombat kicks it Old-School, with a sample programming framework for QBasic. Wow. That sounded a lot less dorky before I typed it. Still, the code is fun. Check it out.
Apri1 29, 2007: Welcome to our friends from Notacon! Thanks to everyone who bought a kit at the convention!
Apri1 21, 2007: Firmware Version 2.0.0 BETA3 is available. It turns out that the previous beta wasn't dangerous. The user reporting the problem had a power supply issue. On the bright side, I went thorugh the code looking for problems, and fixed a few I hadn't previously found! (For those who are curious, Beta 2 was only released internally). This new version of firmware has a bunch of cool new features, including a Generic HD44780 LCD driver pin mode, a Sony Remote Control reading pin mode, a software UART receive mode, and more! Look for documentation on these new modes coming soon!
March 12, 2007: Beta Temporarily Withdrawn One of my customers is reporting problems with a dead Wombat shortly after downloading the Beta. I'm taking it down until we can figure out what happened.
March 11, 2007: Firmware Version 2.0.0 BETA and Pin Mode Software Development Kit BETA are available. This new version will incoporate a lot of new features, and should perform faster than the version 1 releases. Additionally, there's support for you to write your own Pin Modes in C and download them into the Wombat! I'm still in the process of writing the documentation, but check out what's up so far. Feedback on this would be really helpful!
February 25, 2007: Support over Skype. When I'm just hanging around on my Lab PC, you can Skype me if you need help. I'm doing this on a trial basis, to see how it works. I work on Wombat stuff at night and on weekends, so that's the best time to try and catch me. The magic JavaScript button to the right should show my status.
February 10, 2007: We've got one of those fancy favicons now... I figure it's just a matter of time now before those venture capital guys come knockin'... On a more serious note, Version 2.0 of the software is coming along quite well. Experiments have shown my design for a Wombat Pin Mode Software Development Kit will work. You'll be able to write your own Pin Modes in C, and upload them to the Wombat. Your firmware will work along with mine (not replace it), so all the functionality you already know and love will still be available.
January 18, 2007: Can't figure out how to open a serial port? How about a socket? This new sample application serves up a Serial Port on your PC as a TCP/IP socket. Access it locally, or across the Internet!
January 13, 2007: New Firmware version! I know it's been a while since a site update, but boy, I've been busy improving things! Lots of pages have updates with better documentation, and firmware version 1.2.0 is available on the downloads page! This adds a few bug fixes, plus two major new pin modes, Hardware Pulse Measurement, and 2D Lookup table. Check 'em out!
July 25, 2006: Communicate with a Serial Wombat over Ethernet. Lantronix makes a product called the XPort which allows serial devices to be controlled through a Telnet connection. Hooking one of these up was a snap. Check out my quick review of the XPort.

July 23, 2006: Our Second Sample Application. The Serial Wombat iTunes Controller application written in C# can display the current playing track on an LCD, and allow you to change tracks, control volume, and play/pause using a rotary encoder, potentiometer, and button. Check out the video for a demo!

July 18, 2006: Documentation for counter mode. Counter mode allows a pin to keep track of the number of transitions that have occured since a pin was set to counter mode. Inputs can be debounced if desired. This is great for keeping track of the number of button presses between queries from the host.

July 6, 2006: Our First Sample Application. The Wombat Panel application written in C# makes it easy to test out your Wombat. Download it to check out the code, or just to use the application (an .exe is in the zip file).

June 3, 2006: Fix for BOOT> problem. Under some condititons it is possible for the Serial Wombat's EEPROM configuration to be corrupted. Firmware version 1.1.1 has been released to fix this problem.

May 23, 2006: Back from the Hamvention! We sold a bunch of Wombats and learned a lot about what people want in the next version of firmware.

May 13, 2006: The Getting Started page is up, complete with video. See how easy it is to build the Serial Wombat circuit, and turn an LED on and off from Hyperterminal.

May 8, 2006: SerialWombat.com will be exhibiting at the Hamvention in Dayton, OH, May 19-21! Come to inside booth 404 to see our various demos, and pick up a Wombat with no shipping charges!

April 22, 2006: Matrix Encoded Keypad scanner documentation online. The Serial Wombat can scan matrix encoded keypads and put the keypresses into a queue, or provide it as public data for use by other system pins.

March 23, 2006: Pulse on Public Data Change documentation online. Want to blink an LED on reception of a byte from the host? Or beep a piezo momentarily when a button is pushed or knob is turned? The Pulse on Public Data Change pin mode makes this easy, with no help from the host.

March 17, 2006: Command Processor cgi Script is online. Want to send cool, binary commands using text strings in hyperterminal? No more tedious conversions. This page will do the conversion for you!

March 5, 2006: The support for our first HD44780 LCD display is complete. The Serial Wombat now directly supports this 2 x 24 HD44780 based display. Scroll one or both lines, and create your own custom characters.

January 12, 2006: The support for the first LCD display is complete. The Serial Wombat now directly supports the WD-C2401P LCD Panel. Just download a string to the Wombat, tell the Wombat how the pins are connected, and your message appears! Best of all, this LCD is only $1.85 at All Electronics.

January 7, 2006: Slight restructuring of the web site. The site is now made up of a larger number of smaller pages. This should make it easier for people to find things, both at the site and by using search engines.

December 28, 2005: The documentation for the Servo Driver Channel Mode is up! The Wombat can drive up to 12 Futaba S3003 servos at once at 10 bit or better resolution! We're pretty psyched about this ability, since this guy wants 12 bucks for a chip that can only drive 5, at 8 bit resolution (See the edeFT639 product).

December 22, 2005: The parts for the starter kit have arrived! Look for a kit soon in our Ebay store! More documentation added for additional channel modes.

December 14, 2005: The Command Set for the initial release is complete on the Protocol Page. The Ebay Store is ready to take your order for a Serial Wombat!

More commands will be added to the protocol in the near future with the 1.1. release.

Right now, only the programmed chip itself is for sale in the Ebay Store. Look for a starter kit in a couple of days.

December 10, 2005: Started filling in the Command Set in the Protocol Page.

Check it out to get an idea of how to talk to the Wombat, and how easy it is to get started using only Windows Hyperterminal.

The site is now also generated using a Perl Script which creates each page by filling in a template from a source file.

December 8, 2005: Added documentation and Protocol pages, a contact us page

The documentation and protocol pages are preliminary and incomplete. But they should give you some idea of what you can expect from the Wombat.

December 7, 2005: On track for release, New Ugly Web Site.

The Serial Wombat is on track for release on December 15th, 2005. See the Overview and Documentation sections for details of what to expect from the Wombat's premiere.

This web site has been overhauled. It is no longer created by one of those "Easy Website with no coding" type programs. Unfortunately, I'm much more of an embedded-systems programming guy than a web programming guy. So the website is ugly.

On the bright side, I am a decent programmer in Perl, so I'll be able to use this format to Auto-Generate pages based on the Wombat's documentation, assuring that the documentation on the web and in the documents always matches.