Analog Devices EE175v06 Application Notes

Engineer-to-Engineer Note EE-175

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Technical notes on using Analog Devices DSPs, processors and development tools

Contact our technical support at [e-mail] and at [e-mail]
Or vi sit our o n-li ne r esou rces htt p:/ /www.analog.com/ee-notes and http://www.analog.com/processors

Emulator Troubleshooting Guide

Contributed by Kathleen Smith and Linda Gray Rev 6 – October 22, 2004

Introduction

DSP Tools Support ([e-mail])
handles all initial e-mail requests regarding
problems with in-circuit emulators (ICEs). Most
problems are resolved by e-mail. Authorization
to return units is reserved until all other options
have been exhausted. To resolve these issues by
e-mail, the support team needs as much
information as possible to identify the problem
and to provide a solution.

The following troubleshooting guide suggests
how to quickly and easily resolve most
installation, connection, and software problems.
It also highlights the information required by the
support team to authorize the return of an
emulator for repair.

Emulator Manuals

The latest manuals are also available via
download from the ADI Web at the URLs listed
below.

HPPCI ICE
HPUSB ICE
USB ICE

http://www.analog.com/dsp/manuals

ADSP-218x EZ-ICE®

http://www.analog.com/processors/proces
sors/ADSP/technicalLibrary/manuals/16Bi
tIndex.html

Summit-ICE™ (now obsolete)

Installation

The VisualDSP++® toolset includes a full set of
documentation in pdf format. These documents
can be found under

>Hardware Tools->ICEs

hardware installation and configuration using
these documents. When reporting faults, confirm
that you followed these procedures and indicate
the exact step number that produced an error. Be
sure to provide the full details of any error
message received.

Help->Contents->Manuals-

in the IDDE. Perform

Apex-ICE™ (now obsolete)

http://www.analog.com/processors/resour
ces/technicalLibrary/manuals/legacyManu
als/legacy_index.html

Other Equipment

The support team needs to know which operating
system, evaluation board, and version of
VisualDSP++ you are using. This information is
used to confirm compatibility and duplicate the
problem. Please indicate whether you have a
third-party multiprocessor board, clustered
multiple boards, or externally configured
memory. All of these factors may affect the
configuration of your equipment.

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Software

Latest Emulator Drivers

VisualDSP++ 3.5

The emulation tools are included in the base
VisualDSP++ 3.5 installation. There is no need
for a second ICE software installation procedure
as was required in previous versions of
VisualDSP++. To install emulator support, select
the appropriate components in the installation
wizard (they are selected by default). The
installer handles the installation and/or update of
the emulator hardware device driver.

VisualDSP++ 2.0 and 3.0

The latest upgrade to the emulator software,
version 7.0.2, is available to download from the
ADI website at the URL listed below. Please
ensure that you have these drivers.

http://www.analog.com/processors/resour
ces/crosscore/emulators/archives.html

Test Connections

ADSP-218x

The ADSP-218x tools do not come with utilities
to test the communication between the PC’s
serial port and your EZ-KIT Lite or between the
PC’s serial port and your emulator. However, a
Microsoft® utility is available. See Appendix A,
which is a brief guideline on using the
HyperTerminal test to confirm that
communications are functioning properly.
Perform this test and provide the support team
with the results when you report a problem.

All other Platforms

The tools include the following utilities to test
communications between the PC’s ports and
your emulator:

JTAG ICE Configurator – used to configure the
ICE SW with the target.

Be sure to install VisualDSP++ first, and then the
emulator software.

Restrictions

The Apex, USB and HPUSB ICEs have a USB
interface and are therefore not compatible with
Windows NT.

EZ-KIT Lite
number begins with KIT- ) of VisualDSP++ do
not support emulation or simulation.

® licensed versions (the serial

Source Code

Ensure that the emulator problems are not caused
by programming issues. If in doubt, zip up your
project and send it to DSP Tools Support
([e-mail]) so that we
can try to reproduce the problem ourselves.

ICETest utility – used to test the communications
between the PC, emulator and target.

These are explained in detail in the VisualDSP++
online help and emulator guides (the URLs are
listed in the installation section above). Use the
guides and explain exactly which step, if any,
causes an error. List all received error messages
and if there are none please confirm that these
utilities have been run with no errors.

Emulator Troubleshooting Guide (EE-175) Page 2 of 7

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Eliminate Other Possibilities

Emulator problems are often difficult to confirm.
The process of elimination is often a good way to
proceed. Check the hardware in the following list
for errors. If all the hardware is OK, the problem
may lie with the emulator. Be sure to inform the
support team of the checks you made and the
results.

Cables – Ensure proper insertion. Replace them
with other known working cables, if available.

Ports – Use another port or another known
working emulator, if available, on the same port.

PC – Ensure that the PC has adequate resources
and is working OK. Use the emulator on another
PC, if available.

Code – Try the Examples provided with
VisualDSP++ tools.

Custom board – Ensure that it conforms to JTAG
regulations as described in EE-68 which can be
found at the following link:

Debug Session List

Occasionally, a corrupted session key causes the
emulator/debugger to stop responding. To correct
this, follow the guidelines below. Confirm to the
support team that you have tried this, and
provide the results.

1. From the Start menu, open VisualDSP++

whilst holding down the Ctrl key.

2. When the Session List dialog box appears,

delete all sessions currently defined.

3. Immediately define the emulator session

required once more and then activate it.

Frequently Asked Questions

It may be useful to look at our DSP
knowledgebase on the ADI Web at the following
URL:

http://www.analog.com/dsp/knowledgebase

http://www.analog.com/ee-notes/

Power Supply – Try another power supply if
available.

Other emulators – If available, use other
emulators, of the same type or other types to
ensure that the problem is not related to the
particular unit or an incompatibility of the
emulator type.

Emulator Troubleshooting Guide (EE-175) Page 3 of 7