3. EZB Microcontroller
When a generic I/O controller (Arduino, Microbit, etc.) is programmed with Synthiam firmware compatible with ARC, we refer to it as an EZB. The firmware then allows the EZB I/O controller to use additional capabilities available in ARC. An EZB connects sensors, motors, and peripherals to the computer.
What is an EZB Microcontroller?
a low-power device that allows sensors, servos, LEDs, and motor controllers to be connected. The EZB provides an interface between your computer and the
robot hardware. Popular EZB Microcontrollers are Arduinos or EZ-Robot EZB v4/IoTiny, etc. You will find a list of compatible microcontrollers below in this guide.
Each EZB will provide various hardware and custom commands. To identify the capabilities of an EZB, ARC provides abstract methods that represent the EZB's capabilities. For example, if the connected EZB supports a hardware UART, the respective EZB index in ARC will provide hardware UART commands. The Firmware Capability Manager determines the capabilities of each EZB. An EZB will report its capabilities to ARC. ARC will notify you if an unsupported command is issued to an EZB.
Natively Supported EZBs
Based on the type of computer selection (embedded SBC or remote PC), EZBs will support different connection types. For example, a connection type of USB requires the computer to be embedded in the robot. An EZB that has Wi-Fi supports a remote computer or embedded computer configuration.
The Arduino Mega 2560 is a very powerful EZB microcontroller. The high number of pins and hardware peripherals makes it a multitasking...
Connection: USB
Arduino Uno is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328P and one of the most popular Arduino models. It has 14 digital input/output...
Connection: USB
The Arduino Leonardo can be programmed with the EZB firmware for various capabilities when connected to ARC. Find the firmware below. The...
Connection: USB
The Esp32 Cam is an affordable WiFi module with few I/O and streaming webcam capability. Adding this firmware to an esp32 cam, the WiFi...
Connection: Wi-Fi
The DOIT Esp32 DevKit v1 is a very affordable WiFi module with plenty of IO, including three hardware UARTs. Adding the firmware below makes...
Connection: Wi-Fi
Connect Something! Introducing IoTiny, the smallest tiniest Robot/IoT controller of the EZ-B family. Powered by a 100mhz Cortex M4 ARM...
Connection: Wi-Fi / USB
The EZ-B v3 Bluetooth Robot Controller was introduced in 2011 and discontinued in 2013 with the EZ-B v4. ARC still supports this device....
Connection: Bluetooth
The v4/2 is the next-generation brain of your robot or IoT device, powering over 20,000 robots worldwide! Give your custom robot or IoT...
Connection: Wi-Fi / USB
The BBC Micro Bit is an ARM-based circuit board designed by the BBC for use in computer education in the UK that can be connected to ARC via...
Connection: USB
The OpenCM9.04-C is the same as the OpenCM9.04-B except that the two TTL connectors (used for the AX series) have been replaced by two...
Connection: USB
OpenCR 1.0 is an open-source robot controller embedded with a powerful ARM MCU compatible with ARC. Install Firmware Source Code Download...
Connection: USB
Do you want to make a cool Arduino robot with ARC? Maybe a hexapod walker or a piece of art with many moving parts. The PCA9685 servo...
Connection: USB
Don't see your hardware listed?
Add any robot product, hardware, PLC, or microcontroller to the Synthiam-supported EZB list. We have published the EZB communication protocol for anyone to use.
EZB Communication Protocol Details