This note explains how to set up the Emcraft Systems Kinetis K70/K61 System-On-Module (SOM) Starter Kit hardware.

As shipped by Emcraft, the kit includes the following hardware components:

1. Kinetis K70 or K61 System-On-Module (SOM);
2. TWR-K70-SOM-BSB baseboard;
3. Mini-USB cable UART/power interface.

Please note that there are two revisions of the TWR-K70-SOM-BSB baseboard All kits before that time make use of the Rev 1A of the baseboard. All kits shipped as of mid-June 2014 or later make use of the Rev 2A of the TWR-SOM-BSB. The TWR-SOM-BSB Rev 2A is an enhanced version of the baseboard, which provides some interfaces not available in the Rev 1A baseboard. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, all documentation available from the site makes references to the TWR-SOM-BSB Rev 2A baseboard. Whenever appropriate, the documentation explicitly states a specific revision of the baseboard. The revision of the baseboard is clearly marked on the baseboard silkscreen.

The Kinetis SOM Starter Kit provides the following components and interfaces. The following picture shows the currently shipping Starter Kit using the TWR-SOM-BSB Rev 2A baseboard:

The following picture shows the earlier version of the Starter Kit using the TWR-K70-SOM-BSB Rev 1A baseboard:

The following jumpers must be configured on the TWR-SOM-BSB Rev 2A baseboard:

The following jumpers must be configured on the TWR-K70-SOM-BSB Rev 1A baseboard:

To power the kit up, simply connect it to a PC / notebook by plugging a mini-USB cable into the P1 mini-USB connector on the TWR-K70-SOM-BSB baseboard. As soon as the connection to the PC has been made, the LED DS2 should lit up, indicating that the board is up and running.

On the PC side, the USB link provides a serial console device to the K70 SOM. The software installed on the board is configured for a 115.2 K terminal. On the Linux host, the serial console is available using a /dev/ttyUSBn device.

To provide network connectivity to the kit, connect it into your LAN by plugging a standard Ethernet cable into the 10/100 Ethernet connector on the baseboard.

Note that the kit does not include any JTAG tools or associated hardware items. The Kinetis SOM comes preloaded with the U-Boot firmware. U-Boot supports loading Linux images from TFTP or Flash providing a sufficient development and deployment environment for the Linux OS. Should you require updating the U-Boot firmware itself, U-Boot supports a self-upgrade capability through loading an image from TFTP and installing it to the integrated Flash of the Kinetis. The implications of the above is that you do not really need JTAG tools unless you intend to use an RTOS other than Linux or have installed a faulty U-Boot image to the Kinetis. If for some reason you require JTAG tools, you will have to obtain any such equipement and associated software separately, directly from respective vendors.