Microcontrollers TechZone

LPCXpresso™ is the low-cost development platform available from NXP. It supports NXP's ARM-based LPC microcontrollers. The platform is comprised of a simplified Eclipse-based IDE and low-cost target boards which include an attached JTAG debugger.

Designed for simplicity and ease of use, the LPCXpresso IDE (powered by Code Red) will provide software engineers a quick and easy way to develop their applications. The LPCXpresso target boards are jointly developed by Embedded Artists, Code Red, and NXP. Three LPCXpresso boards have been released. The first features the LPC1343 with integrated USB 2.0 Full Speed Device, while the second features the LPC1114, which is the first Cortex M0 controller released to market. Future LPCXpresso boards with other LPC microcontrollers are planned.

LPCXpresso is an end-to-end solution enabling embedded engineers to develop their applications from initial evaluation to final production.

Users can envision three stages, from evaluation to product development. During evaluation, features and peripherals of the target MCU can be easily tested with the prototyping area and with easily accessible connections on the target board. Complementing the target boards are also easy-to-use example projects and a handy Getting Started guide. To quickly explore proof-of-concepts, users can get an off-the-shelf base board from Embedded Artists that provides a variety of interfaces and IO devices. Finally, LPCXpresso users can seamlessly develop their final application by using the LPC-Link's 10-pin JTAG connector to attach any JTAG-capable custom board. This way, users can now enjoy the same user interface right from evaluation to product development.

LPCXpresso's IDE (powered by Code Red) is a highly-integrated software development environment for NXP's LPC microcontrollers, which includes all the tools necessary to develop high-quality software solutions in a timely and cost effective manner. LPCXpresso is based on Eclipse with many LPC-specific enhancements. It also features the latest version of the industry standard GNU tool chain with a proprietary optimized C library providing professional quality tools at low cost. The LPCXpresso IDE can build an executable of any size with full code optimization, and it supports a download limit of 128KB after registration

The LPCXpresso target boards, jointly developed by NXP, Code Red, and Embedded Artists, include an integrated JTAG debugger, so there's no need for a separate JTAG debug probe. The target portion of the board can connect to expansion boards to provide a variety of interfaces and I/O devices. The on-board JTAG debugger provides a high-speed USB to JTAG/SWD interface to the IDE, and it can be connected to other debug targets such as a customer prototype. Users can also use the LPCXpresso IDE with the Red Probe JTAG adapter from Code Red.

The JTAG/SWD debugger portion of an LPCXpresso board is called the LPC-Link™. The LPC-Link is equipped with a 10-pin JTAG header, and it seamlessly connects to a target via USB (the USB interface and other debug features are provided by NXP's ARM9 based LPC3154 MCU). Cutting the traces between the LPC-link and the target will make the LPC-Link a stand-alone JTAG debugger. This enables the LPCXpresso platform to be connected to an external target and used to develop for a wide variety of NXP's Cortex-M0, Cortex-M3, and ARM7/9 based applications.

Obtaining LPCXpresso is easy, so get LPCXpresso today!

LPCXpresso IDE (for Windows and Linux)

• Download at Code Red

LPCXpresso Development Boards

• Order your LPCXpresso board online.

Assistance
Please read the LPCXpresso Getting Started Guide to get started.

• LPCXpresso Getting started with NXP LPCXpresso V11.1 (Dec 1, 2011)

Log in to the LPCXpresso forum today and start discussing with the LPCXpresso community.

• LPCXpresso Forum

The LPCXpresso support page includes the latest software examples and FAQs.

• LPCXpresso Support

NXP has partnered with Code Red and Embedded Artists for the LPCXpresso platform. For added flexibility and higher memory configurations, the LPCXpresso platform can easily be upgraded to include full-blown suites from Code Red and more advanced hardware kits from Embedded Artists. Please visit our LPCXpresso partners for more information.