HoodLoader2 is a CDC BootLoader with self reprogramming and Fast USB-Serial function.
An Arduino Uno/Mega board has two Microcontroller of which one(16u2) is normally used for USB-Serial translation. But we can also use it as standalone AVR Microcontroller with (or without) USB functions as well.
HoodLoader2 gives you the option to reprogram the 16u2 of a normal Arduino Uno/Mega R3 with custom sketches. This means you can use the 16u2 as a normal USB AVR like a Leonardo. You have a full compatible USB-HID core, CDC Serial and you can also use the 7 i/o pins of the 16u2. The extended HID devices of the HID Project also apply for the HoodLoader2.
The 16u2 is somehow limited in its functions but still a great addition if you know how to use it. It also compatible with FastLED and IRLremote(with PCINT) for example.
The great thing about this is that you actually have two fully Arduino compatible Microcontrollers in one Arduino Uno/Mega board – the board most of you already own. Your IO MCU (328/2560) is still reprogrammable if you enter bootloader mode. All you need for this is a normal Arduino Uno/Mega R3 and some cables to install the new HoodLoader2.
With version 2.0.5 you can now use HoodLoader2 also on a 32u4 which gives you even more power.
Please read the wiki carefully to avoid any problems. You will find most of the answers to your questions already in the wiki.
All documentation moved to the wiki page (most up to date documentation).
An offline snapshot (also for older versions) is available in releases
Contact information can be found here:
2.0.5 Release (26.09.2015)
* No need for HID-Project anymore, PR3640 added u2 support to IDE 1.6.6
* Added up to 2M baud support (thx to https://github.com/urjaman/fast-usbserial)
* Improved USART reconfiguration
* Changed Magic Key to RAMEND
(requires new HID-Project IDE patch, but is still backwards compatible)
* Saved a lot of ram by moving descriptors to PROGMEM (8/16u2)
* Added 32u4 support with saver bootkey option and backwards compatibility
* Added at90usb82 support
* Added EEPROM program support for 32u2
* Switch to U2Xn=0 if needed
* Added USB reconnect support
* General improvements to reduce flash size
* Updated and improved Installation sketch
* Added standard Uno/Mega bootloaders
* Removed /tools folder and added information to wiki instead
* Added recompile option to change single/double tab reset
* Added recompile option to change power on behavior
* Added optional old Atmega328 bootloader compatibility(baud 57600),
only when compiled with a different baud
* Note: Can only be (re)compiled with AVR-GCC 5.1 and LTO (see wiki)
2.0.4 Release (20.03.2015)
* HoodLoader2.0.4
* Upload verification on USB hubs fix in bootloader
* Fixed 1 byte buffer overflow
* Improved installation sketch
* Moved to Lufa Board definition (with a fix)
* Added HID-Project 2.2 compatibility
* Added boards.txt for Uno/Mega + HID-Bridge
* Improved Uno/Mega uploading (no double tab needed any more)
* Updated USB drivers for better PC side recognition
(Each USB core has a different PID + Windows driver)
* Fixed wrong PIDs in boards.txt
2.0.3 Release (28.01.2015)
* Added HID Project 2.1 board definition compatibility
* Fixed usb flag pass via boards.txt (instead of pins_arduino.h)
* Fixed 16u2 4 pin header pinout picture
* DFU burn bootloader fix
* HoodLoader2.0.3 released (minor firmware CDC identifier fix)
* Added 32u2 bootloader to the installation sketch as well
* Improved flash.bat file and included avrdude for windows
* Improved Readme instructions
* Updated USB drivers with 4 different PIDs
* Moved documentation to the wiki
2.0.2 Release (30.11.2014)
* HID Project 2.0 official released:
* Added Arduino IDE Integration for HoodLoader2
* See official changelog for more information.
* HoodLoader2.0.2 released (led off fix)
2.0.1 Pre-Release (29.11.2014)
* HoodLoader2.0.1 Release
* Better, full reset after bootloader execution with watchdog
* This fixes the "No-USB" workaround with the USB clock
* Fixed fuse bug
* Fixed magic key passed from Arduino core (HID Project)
* Changed some descriptor names, bugfix above freed some space
* Special case 57600 baud for compatibility with the ATmega328 bootloader TODO resolved (baud reserved for cdc)
* Reset of 328 when leaving Bootloader mode resolved (not possible to fix)
* _delay_loop_2() instead delay function resolved (saves 2 bytes, more confusing + inaccurate than useful)
* CPU_PRESCALE resolved (not needed for bootloader, watchdog will reset it anyways)
* Re enabled LOCK_BYTE_WRITE_SUPPORT function (due to flash improvements)
* Increased TX/RX EP_SIZE to 64 bytes
* Increased Serial->USB Buffer to 128 bytes
* HID Project dev update related to the magic key bugfix
* Updated Atmega board programmer sketch with the new firmware and fuses
2.0.0 Beta-6 Release (05.11.2014)
* Added Arduino-IDE integration workaround for non USB usage
2.0.0 Beta-5 Release (05.11.2014)
* Improved Atmega Bootloader (added stop programming feature)
2.0.0 Beta-4 Release (04.11.2014)
* Improved Atmega Bootloader (Self flashing now works properly)
2.0.0 Beta-3 Release (03.11.2014)
* Improved Atmega Bootloader (DFU now possible)
2.0.0 Beta-2 Release (02.11.2014)
* Added Atmega Bootloader code (no DFU back possible)
2.0.0 Beta-1 Release (02.11.2014)
* Added CDC Bootloader
* Added USB-Serial function
* Made Repository Public
2.0.0 Alpha Release (22.10.2014)
* Added private Github repository with readme
* Added basic functions with dev states
If you use this library for any cool project let me know!
Copyright (c) 2014-2015 NicoHood
See the readme for credit to other people.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
