An optimized realization of resource extension on microcontroller based embedded system for Educational Robotic Kit

Resource extension is important to an 8-bit microcontroller (MCU) based platform in the application of educational embedded system. Solutions, which are more expensive, tend to be less flexible and functional. The crux lies in the protocol for efficient data communication between MCU and peripherals. We propose an economical implementation for multiple resource extension by adding one slave MCU to the original system through SPI interface. In our design, the efficiency and adaptability of SPI communication are both greatly enhanced. Comparison between solutions is demonstrated, by which our approach is proved to be an essentially optimized mechanism. This mechanism is further applied to the InnoSTAR™ Robotics Kit, which is a successful educational robotic platform.