Getting Started with the CC13xx and CC26xx

Overview

This Getting Started Guide demonstrates how to start evaluating the CC33xx in “Thick MAC” configuration with CC13xx/CC26xx as the host MCU. The reference platform contains the CC1354 Launchpad (LP_EM_CC1354P10_6) and the CC3351 Booster pack (BP-CC3351). Below are the instructions for building and running the Wi-Fi example (Network Terminal) from the CC33xx MCU package on the reference platform. The MCU package is a plugin which is based on content (such as TI drivers for peripherals, FreeRTOS OS adaptation) available in the base SDK (simplelink_cc13xx_cc26xx_sdk_7_10_01_24). Guidance about porting to other platforms is available through the CC33XX Host-Driver Porting Guide.

Prerequisites

Hardware
Software
  • HOST-SDK (simplelink_cc13xx_cc26xx_sdk_7_10_01_24)
  • CC33XX-MCU-Plugin
  • CCS 11.1 and up (recommended CCS 11.2)
  • ARM GCC: gcc-arm-none-eabi-9-2019-q4-major
  • FreeRTOS (version 202104.00 recommended)

platforms/cc13x4_cc2x4 Folder Structure

The plugin folder structure is described in MCU_PLUGIN. This section focuses on the content of platforms/CC13x4_cc2x4:

  • linker/: cc13xx/cc26xx linker command files (.lds for gcc, .cmd for ticlang .lds)

  • LP_EM_CC1354P10_6/: - board-specific adaptation

    • LP_EM_CC1354P10_6/common.syscfg: Launchpad’s generic syscfg file (can be updated or overwritten for a specific example)
    • LP_EM_CC1354P10_6/port/: board-specific adaptation sources (compiled and linked with the example code): osi_filesystem.c, spi_adapt.c, wifi_irq_adapt.c

  • LP-CC2651P3-CC1354P10/: - board-specific adaptation

    • LP-CC2651P3-CC1354P10/common.syscfg: Launchpad’s generic syscfg file (can be updated or overwritten for a specific example)
    • LP-CC2651P3-CC1354P10/port/: board-specific adaptation sources (compiled and linked with the example code): osi_filesystem.c, spi_adapt.c, wifi_irq_adapt.c

  • tools/cc33xx-firmware-programmer/: a CCS project for programming the CC33xx firmware to the Launchpad’s serial flash - to be imported and executed before running an example.

  • cc13x4_cc26x4.mak: platform-specific makefile configuration (used by the makefile from the plugin root)

  • cc13x4_cc26x4.cmake: platform-specific cmake configuration

  • CMakePresets.json: Presets for platform cmake configuration

Setup - CC13xx/CC26xx and CC33xx

  1. For the LaunchPad setup, please refer to LP-EM-CC1354P10. Note that LP_EM_CC1354P10_6 does not contain a debug chip and requires connection to a LP-XDS110ET for the debugging interface (as shown in the platform_figure).

  2. Currently, the booster pack cannot be stacked on top of the launchpad (due to a conflict on a non-interface pin). Instead, the following pins should be wired (see photo below):

    LP_EM_CC1354P PIN BP-CC3301 Pin
    J1_21 (5V) P1_21 (5V)
    J1_21 (GND) P1_22 (GND)
    J1_5 (DIO22) P1_5 (WLAN EN)
    J1_6 (DIO21) P1_8 (WLAN IRQ)
    J1_7 (DIO10) P1_7 (SPI CLK)
    J2_18 (DIO11) P2_18 (SPI CS)
    J2_14 (DIO08) P2_14 (SPI_POCI)
    J2_15 (DIO09) P2_15 (SPI_PICO)
    J1_10 (DIO04) P2_14 (UART RX)
    J1_09 (DIO05) P2_15 (UART TX)

The following photos show the connection of the LAUNCHXL-CC1354 (board in the back) and CC3351 Launchpad (board in the front):

../../_images/IMG-LP_EM_CC1354P10_6__BP-CC3301.png

LP_EM_CC1354P10_6 + BP-CC3301

Note

Connect a PC to the XDS110 Launchpad’s USB-C connector for powering up the platform and for collecting terminal logs.

CCS Preparation

Before using the firmware programmer or any of the examples, the following parameters should be configured in CCS. In CCS -> Window - Select Preferences. In Code Composer Studio -> Build -> Variables, define the following:

Name Type Value
CC33XX-PLUGIN-ROOT Directory <path-to-plugin-root>
FREERTOS_INSTALL_DIR Directory <path-to-freertos-installation>

This must be done once and get updated if one of the paths changes.

Program the Flash

Before running the example, the RAM bootloader, CC33xx Firmware, and initial configuration data file need to be programmed to the external flash on the LP_EM_CC1354P10_6. This will be done using the CC33xx Firmware Programmer application (under platforms/cc13x4_26x4/freertos/boards-support/LP_EM_CC1354P10_6/tools/). This project already contains the CC33xx binaries (firmware, RAM bootloader, and conf file) converted to C arrays. The programmer writes the content of the serial SPI flash using the TI NVS driver. See the flash offsets in the notes below - these offsets are used by the host driver (through osi_filesystem).

  1. Import the project
    1. In CCS, go to File->Import
    2. Choose C/C++ -> CCS Projects
    3. Browse… -> <CC33xx_Plugin>/platforms/cc13x4_cc26x4/tools/cc33xx-firmware-programmer/
    4. Select CC33XX-FirmwareProgrammer_LP_EM_CC1354P10_6
  2. Build the project
  3. Debug the project (load it to the platform and run it). Use the terminal to monitor the status.

Note

  1. The image is loaded and executed from the CC13XX/CC26XX internal execute-in-place (XIP) flash. To save XIP flash space (the CC33xx firmware is about 400KB) the binaries will be stored in the external flash and read during the FW init.

  2. The binaries (available under tools/cc33xx_firmware) should be programmed to a pre-defined offset in the flash (which is already handled by the FirmwareProgrammer), as shown below:

    Binary Name Description Location Offset
    cc33xx_fw.bin CC33XX Firmware under tools/cc33xx_firmware/ 0x00001000
    cc33xx_2nd_loader.bin RAM Bootloader under tools/cc33xx_firmware/ 0x0008A000
    cc33xx-conf.bin CC33xx initial configuration under tools/cc33xx_firmware/ 0x000bA000

  3. The application image should be loaded separately by the CCS debugger (see run an example).

Run the example from CCS

  1. Import the project
    1. In CCS, go to File->Import
    2. Choose C/C++ -> CCS Projects
    3. Browse… -> <CC33xx_Plugin>/examples/
    4. Select the example project for the combination of host platform and compiler (e.g. CC33XX-MQTTClient_LP-EM_CC1354P10_6_freertos_gcc)

  2. Open a serial terminal (see CC13xx/CC26xx Serial Terminal Configuration).

  3. Build the project

    Note

    The build process requires linking the example code with libraries provided with the plugin.
    These components currently includes the Wi-Fi Host Driver and LWIP networking stack (lwip, nimble).
    The libraries are pre-built but can be modified and rebuilt if needed. See details in Rebuilding the libraries .
    Other Libraries (such as Freertos, TI driver, and driverlib) are taken directly from the HOST-SDK.

  4. Debug the project

  5. Once the application (.out file) is loaded to the CC13xx/CC26xx XIP flash, it can be restarted with an MCU reset (e.g. through the launchpad button or the CCS Debugger).

CC13xx/CC26xx Serial Terminal Configuration:

COM Port: Listed as Applications/User UART (see note below)
Baud-rate: 115200
Data bits: 8
Stop bits: 1
Parity: None
Flow Control: None

Note

The COM port can be determined via Device Manager in Windows or via ls /dev/tty* in Linux.

Rebuilding the libraries:

A makefile (based on gnu make which is available in the XDCTOOLS installed with CCS) can be used to build the libraries and applications. In the plugin root folder you can find BUILD-gmake with instructions or just run gmake help to see detailed usage info. Once the libraries (*.a files) are built, the CCS projects will find and link with the new libraries. For cc13x4_26x4 - you can also build the examples (.out) using the makefiles (see the build-all script for supported configuration).

The sources of the wifi host driver are available under <CC33xx_Plugin>/Uuppemac/source/ti/drivers/net/wifi/.
The sources of the wifi stack interface are available under <CC33xx_Plugin>/uppermac/source/ti/net/.
The sources of the LWIP stack are available under <CC33xx_Plugin>/uppermac/source/third_party/lwip.
The sources of the NimBLE stack are available under <CC33xx_Plugin>/uppermac/source/third_party/nimble.