Bluefruit EZ-Link replacement

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KenBrown
 
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Bluefruit EZ-Link replacement

Post by KenBrown »

Dear Adafruit support -

Is there a recommended replacement for the Bluefruit EZ-Link (Product ID: 1588)? I'm desperately looking for an easy way to upload an Arduino sketch OTA wirelessly. I've been down so many dead ends with discontinued and poorly supported products! I'd rather not be burdened with the cost (and complexity) of a cloud service. I need something that can toggle the DTR line so I don't have to physically press a button on the target board.

The target board in this OTA upload solution needs to be supported by the FastLED library. You see, I would like to change my Christmas lights programming without climbing a ladder and plugging a cable into the controller box. I've tried ESP8266 type boards. But using the same controller to manage the WiFi serial link and run my user code makes it really easy to break the WiFi code. And then I have to get out the ladder! Also, connecting to an ESP8266 based board over WiFi for upload doesn't seem to be well supported by the Arduino IDE.

Any suggestions on a solid Bluetooth or Wifi link product for less than $50 that can substitute for a hardwired upload cable, so the IDE thinks my board is connected via a (virtual) serial port? I don't need much range, 25 feet will be plenty.

(What happened to the Bluefruit based products anyway? Buggy or unreliable? Company went out of business?)

Thank you.
Ken Brown

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mikeysklar
 
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Re: Bluefruit EZ-Link replacement

Post by mikeysklar »

Ken,

Why not use a Raspberry Pi for the WiFi / BLE and remote programming and run your existing controller off the Pi's USB port?

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KenBrown
 
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Re: Bluefruit EZ-Link replacement

Post by KenBrown »

Mikey -

Normally I run the Arduino IDE on my Windows laptop and connect to my board from there. Are you suggesting I run the Arduino IDE on a Raspberry Pi? And use a remote desktop type app connected over WiFi to view the GUI of the Arduino IDE on my laptop?

Is there a well supported package for Raspberry Pi that creates a virtual USB port on my laptop that is wirelessly connected to a physical USB port on a R-Pi?

Like I said, I'm looking for a way to change my code wirelessly (OTA over the air) using the Arduino IDE to upload to my target board. And preferably doesn't have the wireless code running in the same processor that's running my Arduino code. (So there's no chance of my code clobbering the wireless connection.)

The description of the Bluefruit EZ-link was exactly what I want to do. (Wireless OTA upload from Arduino IDE, DTR support so upload starts without physical intervention) Has anything else stepped in to fill the void now that the Bluefruit EZ-link is gone?

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mikeysklar
 
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Re: Bluefruit EZ-Link replacement

Post by mikeysklar »

@KenBrown,

Yes, I am suggesting running either the GUI Arduino IDE on the Pi (which is simple) then use VNC to control it remotely.

Another option is to use arduino-cli if you are comfortable with command-line making access even more light weight as you could login from anywhere via ssh.

I've not used any virtual USB port so you I'm not suggesting anything around that.

The EZ-Link OTA ability has not been replaced by another product. I'm pretty sure the goal is to get OTA into the nRF52 in a reliable fashion where we an support that in the future across many of our products.

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