The Atmel® | SMART SAM V71 Xplained Ultra evaluation kit is a hardware
platform to evaluate the ATSAMV71Q21, and other Atmel ARM® Cortex®M7-based microcontrollers in the SAM V70, SAM S70, and SAM E70 series.
Supported by the Atmel Studio integrated development platform, the kit
provides easy access to the features of the Atmel ATSAMV71Q21 and
explains how to integrate the device in a custom design.
The Xplained Ultra series evaluation kits include an on-board Embedded
Debugger, and no external tools are necessary to program or debug the
ATSAMV71Q21.
The Xplained Pro extension kits offers additional peripherals to extend the
features of the board and ease the development of custom designs.
The Atmel SAM V71 Xplained Ultra evaluation kit is a hardware platform to evaluate the Atmel
ATSAMV71Q21.
The kit offers a set of features that enables the ATSAMV71Q21 user to get started with the SAM V70 and
SAM V71 peripherals right away and to get an understanding of how to integrate the device in their own
design.
Figure 1-1 SAM V71 Xplained Ultra Evaluation Kit Overview
Three steps to start exploring the Atmel SAM V71 Xplained Ultra:
1.Download Atmel Studio.
2.Launch Atmel Studio.
3.Connect a USB cable (Standard-A to Micro-B or Micro-AB) between the PC and the DEBUG USB
port on the kit.
When the Atmel SAM V71 Xplained Ultra is connected to your computer for the first time, the operating
system will do a driver software installation. The driver file supports both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of
Microsoft® Windows® XP, Windows Vista®, Windows 7, and Windows 8.
Once the kit is powered the green power LED will be lit and Atmel Studio will auto detect the kit and which
Xplained Pro extension board(s) are connected. Atmel Studio will present relevant information like
datasheets and kit documentation. The SAM V71 device is programmed and debugged by the on-board
Embedded Debugger and therefore no external programmer or debugger tool is needed.
2.2. Design Documentation and Relevant Links
The following list contains links to the most relevant documents and software for the SAM V71 Xplained
Ultra.
•Xplained Pro products - Atmel Xplained Pro is a series of small-sized and easy-to-use evaluation
kits for Atmel microcontrollers and other Atmel products. It consists of a series of low cost MCU
boards for evaluation and demonstration of features and capabilities of different MCU families.
•Atmel Studio - Free Atmel IDE for development of C/C++ and assembler code for Atmel
microcontrollers.
•Atmel sample store - Atmel sample store where you can order samples of devices.
•EDBG User Guide - User guide containing more information about the on-board Embedded
Debugger.
•Atmel Data Visualizer - Atmel Data Visualizer is a program used for processing and visualizing
data. Data Visualizer can receive data from various sources such as the Embedded Debugger Data
Gateway Interface found on Xplained Pro boards, and COM ports.
•IAR Embedded Workbench® for ARM - This is a commercial C/C++ compiler that is available for
ARM. There is a 30 day evaluation version as well as a code size limited kick-start version available
from their website. The code size limit is 16KB for devices with M0, M0+, and M1 cores and 32KB
for devices with other cores.
•Keil MDK-ARM Microcontroller Development Kit - The MDK-ARM is a complete software
development environment for Cortex-M, Cortex-R4, ARM7™, and ARM9™ processor-based devices.
MDK-ARM is specifically designed for microcontroller applications, it is easy to learn and use, yet
powerful enough for the most demanding embedded applications.
SAM V71 Xplained Ultra implements several Xplained Pro standards like extension headers and
connectors, this chapter documents these standards.
Xplained Pro is an evaluation platform that provides the full Atmel microcontroller experience. The
platform consists of a series of Microcontroller (MCU) boards and extension boards that are integrated
with Atmel Studio, support data streaming and more. Xplained Pro MCU boards support a wide range of
Xplained Pro extension boards that are connected through a set of standardized headers and connectors.
Each extension board has an identification (ID) chip to uniquely identify which boards are connected to a
Xplained Pro MCU board. This information is used to present relevant user guides, application notes,
datasheets, and example code through Atmel Studio.
3.1. Embedded Debugger
The SAM V71 Xplained Ultra contains the Atmel Embedded Debugger (EDBG) for on-board debugging.
The EDBG is a composite USB device of three interfaces; a debugger, Virtual COM Port, and a Data
Gateway Interface (DGI).
Together with Atmel Studio, the EDBG debugger interface can program and debug the ATSAMV71Q21.
On SAM V71 Xplained Ultra, the SWD interface is connected between the EDBG and the
ATSAMV71Q21.
The Virtual COM Port is connected to a UART on the ATSAMV71Q21 and provides an easy way to
communicate with the target application through terminal software. It offers variable baud rate, parity, and
stop bit settings. Note that the settings on the ATSAMV71Q21 must match the settings given in the
terminal software.
Note: If not set automatically, data terminal ready (DTR) must be set in the terminal software.
The DGI consists of several physical interfaces for communication with the host computer.
Communication over the interfaces is bidirectional. It can be used to send events and values from the
ATSAMV71Q21 or as a generic printf-style data channel. Traffic over the interfaces can be timestamped
on the EDBG for more accurate tracing of events. Note that timestamping imposes an overhead that
reduces maximal throughput. Atmel Data Visualizer is used to send and receive data through DGI.
The EDBG controls two LEDs on SAM V71 Xplained Ultra; a power LED and a status LED. Table 3-1
EDBG LED Control on page 7 shows how the LEDs are controlled in different operation modes.
Table 3-1 EDBG LED Control
Operation ModePower LEDStatus LED
Normal operationPower LED is lit when power is
applied to the board.
Bootloader mode (idle)The power LED and the status LED blinks simultaneously.
Bootloader mode (firmware
upgrade)
For further documentation on the EDBG, see the EDBG User Guide.
The power LED and the status LED blinks in an alternating pattern.
Activity indicator, LED flashes
when any communication
happens to the EDBG.
All Xplained Pro compatible extension boards have an Atmel ATSHA204 CryptoAuthentication™ chip
mounted. This chip contains information that identifies the extension with its name and some extra data.
When an Xplained Pro extension is connected to an Xplained Pro MCU board the information is read and
sent to Atmel Studio. The Atmel Kits extension, installed with Atmel Studio, will give relevant information,
code examples, and links to relevant documents. Table 3-2 Xplained Pro ID Chip Content on page 8
shows the data fields stored in the ID chip with example content.
Product Serial NumberASCII string1774020200000010’\0’
Minimum Voltage [mV]uint16_t3000
Maximum Voltage [mV]uint16_t3600
Maximum Current [mA]uint16_t30
3.3. Power Sources
The SAM V71 Xplained Ultra kit can be powered by several power sources listed in Table 3-3 Power
Sources for SAM V71 Xplained Ultra on page 8.
Table 3-3 Power Sources for SAM V71 Xplained Ultra
Power inputVoltage requirementsCurrent requirementsConnector marking
External power5V ±2% (±100mV) for
Embedded debugger
USB
Target USB4.4V to 5.25V (according
USB host operation.
4.3V to 5.5V if USB host
operation is not
required.
4.4V to 5.25V (according
to USB spec.)
to USB spec.)
Recommended
minimum is 1A to be
able to provide enough
current for connected
USB devices and the
board itself.
Recommended
maximum is 2A due to
the input protection
maximum current
specification.
The kit will automatically detect which power sources are available and choose which one to use
according to the following priority:
1.External jack input.
2.External power.
3.Embedded Debugger USB.
4.Target USB.
Info: External power is required when 500mA from a USB connector is not enough to power
the board with possible extension boards. A connected USB device in a USB host application
might easily exceed this limit.
3.4. Xplained Pro Headers and Connectors
3.4.1. Xplained Pro Standard Extension Header
All Xplained Pro kits have one or more dual row, 20-pin, 100mil extension header. Xplained Pro MCU
boards have male headers, while Xplained Pro extensions have their female counterparts. Note that all
pins are not always connected. All connected pins follow the defined pin-out description in Table 3-4
Xplained Pro Standard Extension Header on page 9.
The extension headers can be used to connect a variety of Xplained Pro extensions to Xplained Pro MCU
boards or to access the pins of the target MCU on Xplained Pro MCU boards directly.
Table 3-4 Xplained Pro Standard Extension Header
Pin numberNameDescription
1IDCommunication line to the ID chip on an extension board
2GNDGround
3ADC(+)Analog to digital converter, alternatively positive part of differential
ADC
4ADC(-)Analog to digital converter, alternatively negative part of differential
ADC
5GPIO1General purpose I/O
6GPIO2General purpose I/O
7PWM(+)Pulse width modulation, alternatively positive part of differential
PWM
8PWM(-)Pulse width modulation, alternatively negative part of differential
PWM
9IRQ/GPIOInterrupt request line and/or general purpose I/O
10SPI_SS_B/
Slave select for SPI and/or general purpose I/O
GPIO
11I2C_SDAData line for I2C interface. Always implemented, bus type.
12I2C_SCLClock line for I2C interface. Always implemented, bus type.
13UART_RXReceiver line of target device UART
14UART_TXTransmitter line of target device UART
15SPI_SS_ASlave select for SPI. Should preferably be unique.
16SPI_MOSIMaster out slave in line of serial peripheral interface. Always
implemented, bus type.
17SPI_MISOMaster in slave out line of serial peripheral interface. Always
implemented, bus type.
18SPI_SCKClock for serial peripheral interface. Always implemented, bus type.
19GNDGround
20VCCPower for extension board
3.4.2. Xplained Pro LCD Extension Connector
The LCD connector provides the ability to connect to display extensions that have a parallel interface.
The connector implements signals for a MCU parallel bus interface and a LCD controller interface as well
as signals for a touch controller. The connector pin-out definition is shown in Table 3-5 Xplained Pro LCD
Connector on page 10. Note that usually only one display interface is implemented, either the LCD
controller or the MCU bus interface.
A FPC/FFC connector with 50 pins and 0.5mm pitch is used for the LCD connector. The connector
XF2M-5015-1A from Omron is used on several Xplained Pro designs and can be used as a reference.
Table 3-5 Xplained Pro LCD Connector
Pin number NameRGB interface descriptionMCU interface description
1IDCommunication line to the ID chip on an extension board
Pin number NameRGB interface descriptionMCU interface description
44IRQ1Interrupt 1
45IRQ2Interrupt 2
46PWMBacklight control
47RESETExtension reset
48VCC3.3V power supply for extension board
49VCC3.3V power supply for extension board
50GNDGround
3.4.3. Xplained Pro Power Header
The power header can be used to connect external power to the SAM V71 Xplained Ultra kit. The kit will
automatically detect and switch to any external power if supplied. The power header can also be used as
supply for external peripherals or extension boards. Care must be taken not to exceed the total current
limitation of the on-board regulator when using the 3.3V pin.
Table 3-6 Xplained Pro Power Header
Pin numberPin nameDescription
1VEXT_P5V0External 5V input
2GNDGround
3VCC_P5V0Unregulated 5V (output, derived from one of the input sources)
4VCC_P3V3Regulated 3.3V (output, used as main power supply for the kit)
SAM V71 Xplained Ultra has four power sources as described in Power Sources on page 8. Figure 4-1
Power Supply Block Diagram on page 13 shows a block diagram of the power supply circuitry, the
related I/O pins are described in Table 4-1 Power Distribution Signals on page 14.
The kit can be powered from the EDBG USB, Target USB, external 5.0V, and/or a 5-14V DC jack input.
The kit will automatically select a source to draw power from.
An on board supercap (100mF) is charged to 3.6V from the kits 5V net. When all external power is
removed from the board or the 3.3V regulator is disabled by the application running on the
ATSAMV71Q21 the power switch will supply the ATSAMV71Q21 from the supercap. It is intended that the
supercap can supply the ATSAMV71Q21 in its low power backup mode.
Info: When the on-board regulator is turned off by the target application in the ATSAMV71Q21,
all ICs on the kit are unpowered except the ATSAMV71Q21. Care must be taken to not supply
and stray power these ICs through the ATSAMV71Q21s I/O pins.
These sections describes the implementation of the relevant connectors and headers on SAM V71
Xplained Ultra and their connection to the ATSAMV71Q21. The tables of connections in these sections
also describes which signals are shared between the headers and on-board functionality. Figure 4-2
SAM V71 Xplained Ultra Connector Overview on page 15 shows all available connectors and jumpers
The Xplained Pro headers EXT1 and EXT2 on SAM V71 Xplained Ultra offers access to the I/O of the
microcontroller in order to expand the board e.g. by connecting extensions to the board. The headers
have a pitch of 2.54mm.
Table 4-2 Extension Header EXT1
EXT1 pinSAM V71 pin FunctionShared functionality
1 [ID]--Communication line to the ID chip on an extension board
2 [GND]--Ground
3 [ADC(+)]PC31AFE1_AD6Shield
4 [ADC(-)]PA19AFE0_AD8Ethernet and Shield
5 [GPIO1]PB03GPIO/RTS0 Camera, MediaLB, and Shield(2)
6 [GPIO2]PB02GPIO/CTS0 MediaLB and Shield(2)
7 [PWM(+)]PA00PWMH0Shield
8 [PWM(-)]PC30TIOB5LCD
9 [IRQ/GPIO]PD28WKUP5EDBG GPIO, Camera, LCD, and Shield(2)
Extension connector EXT4 is a special connector for LCD displays. The physical connector is a TE
Connectivity 5-1734839-0 FPC connector.
Info:
Plugging a cable into the LCD connector creates routing stubs for the on-board SDRAM which
creates ringing. The ringing will reduce the maximum SDRAM communication frequency. See
EBI Signal Integrity on page 43 for more information.