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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Wanted dead, not alive...
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| JTR0701 Regular Member  Joined: 10/07/2013 Location: AustraliaPosts: 71 |
Ok, so this may be a strange request but hey, it is the internet so what else can we expect. I am looking for anyone local with a bricked PIC32. You know, the ones that became unusable after an accident with the PICKIT 3 programmer-2-go button. Aum, to be sure the PIC must be bricked by a programmer accident and not 240VAC. Parts bricked via 240VAC need not apply as so far I have not even managed to change water into wine, much less breath magic smoke back in... Ideally I would like a DIP package device but otherwise anything that is connected to a standard ICSP header is fine to. My hope is to see if I can revive these PICs using my own tools and methods. I have some ideas to try out. This is a community project and any findings, one way or the other, will be made available via the web. |
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Grogster Admin Group  Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9489 |
While I admire your motives, a DIL package PIC32 can be had for about $5. Do you REALLY want to play with a chip that may(or may not) have been damaged by someone else's mistakes? While you may well be able to revive a "Dead" PIC, I question the stress-factor, as a damaged PIC can cause some unpredictable results, and therefore cause you to prematurely admit yourself to an insane asylum. Not trying to put you off - just wondering about the logistics.... Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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| JTR0701 Regular Member Joined: 10/07/2013 Location: AustraliaPosts: 71 |
I've been looking at this issue for over twelve months now and to be perfectly honest I reckon there would be heaps of people out there with a $50+ chipkit or some such more that happy to have it back as a working concern rather than as a paper weight. I could of course buy a PIC32 and brick it myself and maybe that is what I will do but the problem there is I don't have something that is typical of what has befallen some unfortunates who relied to much on microchip's tools. I want the authentic failure mode as experienced out there... I think I will back myself and my expertise over any nay saying on an internet forum any day. |
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| Goeytex Regular Member Joined: 12/05/2014 Location: United StatesPosts: 74 |
I imagine it would be a good idea to test a sample of 20 or more bricked chips to determine the causes and the possible solutions to revive them. I was not aware that bricked chips were that common. But in the case of (for example) a Chipkit, couldn't the chip be erased and new firmware loaded? Or is there something happening that prevents the chip from being erased, such as corrupted/missing factory calibration/Chip ID data? I suppose that bad things happen when protected memory get corrupted. |
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| JTR0701 Regular Member Joined: 10/07/2013 Location: AustraliaPosts: 71 |
Agreed it would be good to have a pool of dud chips and that is exactly what I am fishing for. Yes, there is an odd issue that stops the Device ID from being read and the current microchip tools just cannot revive the bricked PIC. Why that is the case is an interesting question and I have been thinking about it for a year or more. People are just going to have to believe me that I am looking at this at a much deeper and informed level than most would realize. I see that there are possible causes that can be reversed by talking to the PIC at a much lower level. It may turn out that the PICs are not recoverable but after all the research and (unanswered) questions I have posed I must conclude not half of what could be tried has been tried. I would love to tinker with this myself because I believe there is a 50/50 chance of a good result. |
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| JohnS Guru  Joined: 18/11/2011 Location: United KingdomPosts: 3998 |
I don't have any separate chips, they're all on boards, and I've managed not to brick any (yet!) as I read the warnings about what not to do. I wonder if what can happen is that with the wrong software (I suppose a PE or the like) loaded into a PICkit3 then it can stick a lot of volts on Vpp, suitable for an old PIC16 or whatever? I suppose a PIC32 wouldn't like so many volts (13V?). Almost anything else is probably recoverable via JTAG/ICSP but lots of volts could well cause internal damage, I suppose. John |
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| JTR0701 Regular Member Joined: 10/07/2013 Location: AustraliaPosts: 71 |
Yeah, those warning about not what to do. That's what I'm talking about except in the case that someone has already done "not what to do." 
And my earlier comments about 240AC really is just a metaphor for "otherwise blown the guts out of the chip" by any creative means, including 12V Vpp on the poor darlings. 
Like you I expect that getting in deeper with the EJTAG interface might allow the trouble to be erased. |
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| Goeytex Regular Member Joined: 12/05/2014 Location: United StatesPosts: 74 |
OK, So I am guessing that you need a tool that does not require reading a device ID in order to read / write to flash memory.... Or the device ID can somehow be spoofed to trick the tool. Then you go about peeking and poking the appropriate memory locations until you see signs of life ? Am I close ? Good Luck ! |
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| robert.rozee Guru Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 2400 |
just as a random data point, i have read of atmel processors (ATmega328P as used in arduinos) being bricked by the oscillator source becoming misconfigured. the solution is to attach a suitable clock source to the clock input pin (frequency unimportant) and the chips will - if this was the problem - spring to life and be happy to be reprogrammed correctly over an ICSP connection. this was, at least in part i believe, tied to a design oversight in the arduino's "automatic reset" circuit creating a short 9v or so pulse that kicked the processor partly into a programming mode. rob :-) |
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bigmik Guru Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2946 |
Is this one OK for you Jim? 
Just joking! I didn't really do that.. I did a Dr Google Mick Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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