The Epsilon5 Portable USB ISP Programmer is a high-speed development / field / production programmer. The programmer can be operated under PC control during development and for project configuration / uploading using the EQTools Toolsuite. For field / production applications the unit is designed to operate in ‘Standalone Mode’. A ‘Programming Project’ can be recalled from the on-board non-volatile FLASH memory and programmed into a Target System by pressing a single key. All the popular ISP headers are catered for including the new JTAG ISP Port required for fast programming of the Atmel ATmega AVR and AT91SAM7 families.

The ´ATmega AVR JTAG´ License Upgrade for Equinox ISP Programmers supports high-speed  In-System Programming (ISP) of Atmel ATmega AVR Microcontrollers via their on-chip JTAG port. The JTAG algorithm yields much faster programming times (3 - 4 times faster) than the traditional SPI algorithm due to an enhanced protocol and higher bus speed. It is also possible to program multiple AVR microcontrollers which are part of a JTAG Chain on the same Target System using the JTAG algorithm.

Features

Supports PC Controlled and Standalone Programming

• Development Mode - using Equinox Development Suite (EDS) under PC control
• Standalone Mode - ideal for field or small-scale production use (no PC required)

Main features of Epsilon5 MKII

• Fastest programming times possible due to on-board data, high-speed SPI and JTAG port
• Supports programming of FLASH, EEPROM, FUSE bits, Security bits and RC Oscillator Calibration bytes
• 2Mbits of on-board non-volatile FLASH memory for user project storage (Standalone Mode)
• SCK2 Oscillator signal for externally clocking ATmega & ATtiny microcontrollers during programming
• On-board +12V Vpp generator for programming Atmel ATtiny11/12/15 microcontrollers in ´High voltage Serial Mode´
• JTAG Port - FAST ISP using JTAG algorithm

Controlled / configured by Equinox EQTools Software

• Equinox Development Suite (EDS)
• Project Builder - to create/edit Programming Projects
• Project Manager - to create and maintain Project Collections
• Project Upload / Download Utility - to upload projects to the programmer for use in Standalone Mode

Supports all popular ISP Headers to connect to the Target System

• Atmel 10-way SPI Header (as per STK200 / STK500)
• Atmel 6-way SPI Header
• Equinox 10-way SPI header with support for Slave Select & SCK2
• Atmel 10-way JTAG header (as per Atmel JTAG-ICE)
• Equinox 10-way UART header for Atmel T89C51Rx2 (8051) and Philips P89C51 ISP FLASH microcontrollers

Main Features of JTAG Upgrade

• Supports high-speed JTAG programming of a single Atmel AVR microcontroller connected via the JTAG interface
• Supports high-speed JTAG programming of  multiple Atmel AVR microcontrollers which are connected as part of a ´JTAG Chain´ (JTAG daisy-chain mode).
• Fast programming speeds via JTAG (3 - 4 times faster than SPI method)
• Simple 4-wire JTAG Interface to microcontroller
• Same JTAG Interface as Atmel JTAG ICE MK2 Debugger
• User-selectable JTAG frequency
• Supports JTAG Chain Validation
• Supports checking of the ´JTAG ID´ of both AVR and any generic JTAG devices eg. CPLD´s
• Supports automatic checking of ´Silicon Revision´ of target JTAG device

Advantages of JTAG Programming

• The JTAG algorithm is approximately 3-4 times faster at programming compared to the SPI algorithm.
• The programming time using JTAG for the EEPROM is significantly faster than the SPI algorithm
• The JTAG algorithm uses the same ‘JTAG Port’ as the Atmel JTAG-ICE Debugger.
• In JTAG mode is it possible to change the ‘Clock Selection Fuses’ to any value and still program the chip. (with the exception of the ‘JTAGEN’ Fuse)
• It is possible to daisy-chain multiple JTAG devices on the JTAG bus in a so-called ‘JTAG Chain’ and then select to program a particular device in the chain. This functionality is now supported by Equinox programmers running firmware 3.07 and above.

JTAG connections (Single JTAG Device)

• Supports high-speed JTAG programming of a single Atmel AVR microcontroller
• Uses only 4 x JTAG pins + control of the AVR RESET pin
• Uses the same JTAG port pins as used by the Atmel JTAG ICE debugger

JTAG Chain Programming Support

• Supports programming of Atmel AVR microcontrollers which are part of a ´JTAG Chain´
• An individual ´Programming Project´ is used to program a specific ´JTAG Device´ in the ´JTAG Chain´
• The algorithm supports ´JTAG Chain´ programming of both legacy AVR devices eg. ATmega16 and newer AVR devices eg. ATmega2560 with the devices placed in any order in the JTAG Chain
• High-speed  ´JTAG Chain´ programming possible due to optimised algorithms 
• Supports JTAG Chain validation (checks the integrity of the JTAG Chain)
• Supports checking of the ´JTAG ID´ of any other non-AVR JTAG device eg. CPLD in the chain

ISP Header Pin-out

• Equinox programmers feature the same 10-way IDC connector as the Atmel JTAG ICE debugger
• The same JTAG interface can therefore be used for both debugging during the "development phase" and "In-System Programming" during the "production phase"