Flasher ATE2 - Getting started

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The Flasher ATE2 makes ultra-fast, high-speed parallel programming ("gang programming") possible. It features 8 fully independent Flasher modules with each module enabling a seperate connecting to a target device.

Introduction

Via an ASCII terminal interface or handshake interface connection between the ATE (Automated Test Equipment) and the Flasher ATE2, flash programming operations can be triggered and responses from the Flasher ATE2 can be read and evaluated. This makes the Flasher ATE2 a perfect fit for small-scale as well as large-scale production environments.

The firmware to be programmed into the target devices can be prepared via a computer running Windows, Linux, or macOS and SEGGER's J-Flash, J-Flash SPI or U-Flash software. The Flasher ATE2's flasher modules can be provisioned with the firmware to be programmed either directly via J-Flash or U-Flash, via an FTP connection to the Flasher ATE2, or via the Flasher ATE2's web interface.

Before putting the Flasher ATE2 into operation, make sure to have the following devices at hand:

  • Power supply (see below for more information)
  • Ethernet cable
  • PC (Windows/ Linux/ macOS)
  • The Flasher ATE2 is set up and good-to-go in less than 10 minutes

After making sure that the devices mentioned above are all available, the Flasher ATE2 can be setup:

  1. Connect Flasher ATE2 to power supply via the POWER connector
  2. Connect Flasher ATE2 to LAN via the LAN connector
  3. Download and install the most recent version of the Flasher Software Package
  4. Make sure Flasher ATE2 is running the most recent firmware, as described below
  5. Open Flasher ATE2's web interface by visiting http://flasherate2-<SerialNo>/ (Make sure to replace <SerialNo> with the serial number of your Flasher ATE2)
  6. Flasher ATE2 is now up and running

Power supply

Flasher ATE2 power supply

The Flasher ATE2 is powered via the POWER connector (pluggable terminal block) on the back panel. The power supply must be able to supply 8 - 30VDC, max. 60W to the Flasher ATE2. For maximum load the power supply must provide at least 12VDC.

If desired, Flasher ATE2 can be powered using a coaxial power connector with the use of an adapter that allows connecting a coaxial power supply into a pluggable terminal block.

UMxxxxx FlasherATE2 Power.png

Current consumption (typical)

Flasher ATE2
External DC power supply Max. 15W


Note:
Undefined behavior may occur if the Flasher ATE2 is not powered sufficiently.

Target power supply pin

The power supply pin of the programming modules on the Flasher ATE2 behave differently than the power supply pin on our other Flasher products. On the ATE2 it is not possible to supply power via these pins, instead the nTPWR pin of each module acts as an open-drain control signal for requesting power. Pin behaviour for power supply setting in J-Flash, J-Flash SPI or U-Flash:

  • Enable target power supply: Pin pulled low (power enable requested from external ATE equipment)
  • Disable target power supply: Pin is open/not connected
Note:
Undefined behavior may occur if targets to program are not powered sufficiently.

Setting up the IP interface

The Flasher ATE2 is equipped with an Ethernet interface to communicate with the host system via your network.

UMxxxxx FlasherATE2 Ethernet.png

The Flasher ATE2 also has a built-in web server that provides system status and allows system configuration.

Connecting for the first time

When connecting the Flasher ATE2 to your network and powering it up for the first time, it attempts to acquire an IP address via DHCP. After the Flasher ATE2 has finished booting (i.e. after the green LED has stopped flashing), you can connect to the Flasher ATE2's web interface by pointing your web browser to

http://flasherate2-<serial_number>/

Make sure to replace <serial_number> with the serial number of your Flasher ATE2, which can be found on the housing.

The "Status" page served by the Flasher ATE2's web server contains the IP address that has been assigned to the Flasher ATE2 by your network.

UMxxxxx Status.png

Direct Ethernet connection

Instead of connecting Flasher ATE2 to a network, it can be set up for a direct Ethernet connection to a computer without a network between.
For this, it is necessary to configure Flasher ATE2's IP interface to use a manual IP address with the same subnet mask as the Ethernet adapter of the computer.

For a Windows 10 system, the IP address and subnet mask of an Ethernet adapter can be determined as follows:

  1. Connect Flasher ATE2 to the PC using a direct Ethernet connection
  2. Open the Control Panel and navigate to Network and Internet → Network and Sharing Center
  3. In the list of active networks, determine that of the Ethernet adapter that Flasher ATE2 is connected to.
    • In this case, it's Ethernet 4
    Win10 CtrlPanel ETH Adapter.png
  4. Open a command prompt
    • Windows key + R → "cmd"
  5. Enter netsh interface ip show addresses "[Name of Ethernet adapter]"
    • Make sure to replace [Name of Ethernet adapter] accordingly
    Win10 Cmd ETHAdapterAddr.png


Now, Flasher ATE2's IP interface can be configured accordingly:

  1. Connect Flasher ATE2 to the PC via USB
    • This can be in parallel to the Ethernet connection
  2. Make sure the most recent version of the Flasher software is installed
  3. Start the Flasher Configurator
  4. Make sure the firmware of Flasher ATE2 is up to date
  5. In the list of programmers connected via USB, double-click Flasher ATE2 to configure it
  6. Set the IP configuration to Manual
  7. Set a manual IP address that is in the same subnet as that of the Ethernet adapter of the PC
  8. Set the same subnet mask as that of the Ethernet adapter of the PC
    FlasherATE2 IPConfig DirectETHConn.png
  9. Click OK

After that, Flasher ATE2 is set up for a direct Ethernet connection to the PC.

Operating modes

The Flasher ATE2 currently can be operated via web interface or via remote-controlled mode.

Web interface

The Flasher ATE2 web interface is the recommended way of operating the Flasher ATE2 for manual operation. It provides a way to use the Flasher ATE2 in a production environment and control it manually, i.e. not using automation via scripts or similar. Using the extensive but intuitive graphical user interface of Flasher ATE2's web server, programming operations and more can be configured, monitored and controlled with ease.

For more information on the web interface, see: Flasher Hub - Web server.

Remote-controlled mode

The remote-controlled mode provides two ways to integrate the Flasher ATE2 into a production environment. Via the ASCII terminal interface, the Flasher ATE2 provides detailed status information that can be used to verify the success of the programming sequence, optimize the production setup, and identify errors. Via the handshake interface, programming can be started and the OK and Busy statuses can be checked. These two methods of operation were mainly designed for automation purposes.

In order to use a Flasher ATE2 based system in remote-controlled mode, the files required for programming the target need to be stored on the connected Flasher modules first. This is described here: Flasher Hub - Project setup.

For more information on remote-control of Flasher ATE2, see: Flasher Hub - Remote control.

LED status indicators

The Flasher ATE2 uses different LEDs as indicated in the following table.

LED indicators

LED Status Meaning
POWER green Flasher ATE2 is powered
STATUS green Status is OK
orange/red Status is not OK (Firmware error or at least one module failed programming)

Flasher module LED indicators

LED Status Meaning
Ready / OK GREEN
short flicker		 Module is ready
Ready / OK GREEN
slow blinking		 Flashing operation in progress:
  • Erasing (blinking at 6.25 Hz)
  • Programming (blinking at 1.67 Hz)
  • Verifying (blinking at 5 Hz)
Not ready / Fail RED
constant		 a) The module is in bootloader mode

b) The most recent operation has failed

Storing configuration and programming data files

The configuration and programming data required to program the target devices is stored on each of the ATE2's Flasher modules. Each Flasher module has approximately 128MB of storage available for data and configuration files.

The Flasher modules can be accessed in the following ways:

  • via TCP/IP or USB by using J-Flash or U-Flash software
  • via an FTP client connected to the Flasher ATE2's integrated FTP-server
  • via the File browser in the Flasher ATE2's web interface

When using J-Flash, the Flasher ATE2's modules (Module 1, Module 2, ..., Module 8) can be selected via tick boxes on the "Options > Project settings > General" screen. Make sure to select the correct connection type. For TCP/IP enter the Flasher ATE2's IP address (or use flasherate2-<serial_number>).

UMxxxxx FlasherATE2 JFlash ModuleSelection.png

When selecting "File > Download config & data file to Flasher" from the J-Flash menu, the configuration and data file of the current J-Flash project will be downloaded to the selected Flasher modules.

UM08039 JFlash MenuDownloadCfgData.png

When using U-Flash, each Flasher module can be individually selected via tick boxes in the Flasher selection.

When using an FTP client or the file browser in the Flasher ATE2's web interface, the Flasher modules are accessible via subfolders named "MODULE.xxx", with xxx being the index of the associated Flasher module, e.g. "MODULE.001" for the Flasher module with index 1.

UMxxxxx ATE2 Files.png

UART Port

For documentation on Flasher ATE2's UART Port, see Flasher Hub - UART Port.

Log files

The Flasher ATE2 keeps a log file if logging is enabled via the web interface on the "Configuration > Flasher ATE2" page. The log itself can be accessed on the "Log" page.

FlasherATE2 WebLog.png

In addition, each Flasher module keeps its own log file. These log files are stored in the module folder of the corresponding module and can be downloaded via FTP or the file browser in the Flasher ATE2's web interface. For more information on the module log file, please refer to the Flasher User Manual (UM08022).

UMxxxxx FlasherATE2 WebFlasherLog.png

Firmware update

Firmware update files for both, Flasher ATE2 as well as its Flasher modules are shipped with each new release of the Flasher Software Package.

Note:
It is recommended to use the most recent version of the Flasher ATE2 firmware as newer versions may contain various improvements as well as bug fixes.

Updating Flasher ATE2 firmware

The Flasher ATE2 firmware can up updated by using the Flasher software or by using Flasher ATE2's web interface.

Using Flasher software

Flasher ATE2 firmware update in Flasher Configurator
  1. Make sure to download and install the most recent version of the Flasher Software Package
  2. Make sure Flasher ATE2 is connected to a PC via USB or IP
  3. Start Flasher Configurator (FlasherConfig.exe)
  4. Right-click on Flasher ATE2
  5. Click "Update firmware"
  6. Flasher Configurator will now update the firmware of Flasher ATE2


Using Flasher ATE2 web interface

  1. Make sure to download and install the most recent version of the Flasher Software Package
  2. Make sure Flasher ATE2 is connected to LAN
  3. Open Flasher ATE2's web interface by visiting http://flasherate2-<SerialNo>/ (Make sure to replace <SerialNo> with the serial number of your Flasher ATE2)
  4. Navigate to Configuration > Flasher ATE2
  5. Next to Flasher ATE2 firmware update click Choose file
  6. Navigate to the installation folder of the Flasher software (e.g. C:\Program Files\SEGGER\Flasher)
  7. Inside the "Firmwares" folder, select the FlasherATE2_V1.bin
  8. Click Open
  9. Click Upload
  10. Wait for the firmware update file to be processed by Flasher ATE2
  11. Reboot Flasher ATE2 to apply the firmware update
  • Web interface Configuration > Flasher ATE2

    Web interface Configuration > Flasher ATE2

  • Web interface firmware update file upload

    Web interface firmware update file upload

  • Selection of Flasher ATE2 firmware file

    Selection of Flasher ATE2 firmware file

  • Web interface following a successful firmware update file upload

    Web interface following a successful firmware update file upload

Updating module firmware

The firmware of the modules on the Flasher ATE2 can be updated as follows.

  1. Make sure to download and install the most recent version of the Flasher Software Package
  2. Make sure Flasher ATE2 is connected to LAN
  3. Open Flasher ATE2's web interface by visiting http://flasherate2-<SerialNo>/ (Make sure to replace <SerialNo> with the serial number of your Flasher ATE2)
  4. Navigate to Configuration > Flasher ATE2
  5. Next to Flasher firmware update click Choose file
  6. Navigate to the installation folder of the Flasher software (e.g. C:\Program Files\SEGGER\Flasher)
  7. Inside the "Firmwares" folder, select the Flasher_Compact_V7.bin
  8. Click Open
  9. Click Upload
  10. Wait for the firmware update file to be processed by Flasher ATE2
  11. Click Update firmwares
  • Web interface Configuration > Flasher ATE2

    Web interface Configuration > Flasher ATE2

  • Web interface module firmware update file upload

    Web interface module firmware update file upload

  • Selection of Flasher ATE2 module firmware file

    Selection of Flasher ATE2 module firmware file

  • Module firmware update selection

    Module firmware update selection

Newline encoding

In general, for all patch files, init files etc., the Flasher modules support both newline encodings:

  • Windows: \r\n
  • Unix/Mac: \n

All parser functionality etc. are written to be independent from the host operating system.

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