Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

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spaceface
 
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Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by spaceface »

Hello!

Does anyone know if the nRF51822 module on the BLE feather has custom firmware on it or is it just 'off the shelf'. Is it possible to re-flash the firmware on it?

Thanks!

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adafruit_support_rick
 
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Re: Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by adafruit_support_rick »

The firmware has been developed by Adafruit. We do release firmware updates, which you can upload over-the-air.
Our firmware sources are not available for release due to licensing restrictions.

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spaceface
 
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Re: Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by spaceface »

Thanks for your reply!

If I were to buy the BLE modules and design my own board around the feather is it possible to upload the firmware using DFU? Or does that require a special bootloader?

Cheers

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winstonyang
 
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Re: Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by winstonyang »

Hello,

I too have a similar question. I'd like to design the board around the feather M0 BLE and integrated with the BNO-055 and wanted to know if I could just upload the firmware using the iOS app.

Also, are there any licensing restrictions or attributions with Adafruit that I should adhere to if designing my own board?

Thanks,
Winston

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adafruit_support_rick
 
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Re: Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by adafruit_support_rick »

@spaceface: You would have to contact Nordic for their development kit. We probably use DFU to load images, but I don't know for sure.

@winstonyang: you lost me. What firmware are you trying to load? Are you trying to load code onto the M0? If so, no, you can't load that via Bluetooth.
I'll get the license text for you.

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adafruit2
 
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Re: Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by adafruit2 »

i see what you're trying to do.
we are having an internal discussion about if/how we can license the firmware. check the blog for an announcement, there's not strict ETA but we hope to do in the next week or two.

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winstonyang
 
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Re: Feather 32u4 BLE nRF51822 custom firmware?

Post by winstonyang »

Yes, I was actually referring to the nRF51822 firmware and I believe it was answered above. With Adafruit enabling so many people to be able to create prototypes, one next logical step for many including myself is designing a board. I know a lot of work has been done on the software side of things and many of us support this by buying the hardware. In the future, there could be commercial applications developed by makers and that's where the question of licensing comes in.
Will definitely be on the check out for the blog announcement and thanks for producing such great products!

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