Although up to 20 I/O pins are available, you only have to hook up the exact
functionality required by your application. The minimal hookup to an SNAP Device
consists of two wires:
?
?
One wire for VCC (2.7-3.4 volts DC)
One wire for GND
The SNAP Engines contain core code (written in C) that implements basic wireless
networking functionality. This core code also implements a virtual machine that executes
a subset of the Python programming language. Synapse has named this subset of Python
SNAPpy .
You can find details on the SNAPpy language, and how it compares to Python, in
the “SNAP Users Guide” and the “SNAP Reference Manual.” For now, the
important point is to understand that SNAP nodes support a scripting language.
SNAPpy scripts can be uploaded into SNAP Engines “over the air” (OTA), or over the
serial interfaces. These scripts define the personality of each node; by changing the
SNAPpy script in a node you change the node’s behavior.
SNAP Engines can be designed into your own products, acting as a slave device to your
main microcontroller or microprocessor. In many cases the SNAP Engine can take over
the functionality of the original main processor, in addition to adding wireless capability
and SNAPpy scripting.
In addition to discrete SNAP Engine modules, Synapse also sells SNAP demonstration
boards that extend the basic core capabilities with additional I/O hardware.
Three different kinds of SNAP demonstration boards are included in this evaluation kit:
?
?
?
One SN111 End Device Demonstration Board
One SN171 Proto Board
Depending on the hardware platform around which the kit is based it will
include one of the following:
o One SS200 SNAP Stick USB Dongle
o One SN132 SNAP Stick USB Carrier Module
Details about each of these boards can be found in the “SNAP Hardware Technical
Manual.”
Page 8
of 42
EK2500 Users Guide-v1.7