Pulse Width Modulation allows microcontrollers to dim lights, control motor speeds, fan speeds and generate analog voltages. By changing the length of the pulse, the output can be controlled. The pulse occurs at a regular frequency, the modulation frequency. The length of the pulse ratio to period time is called the duty cycle. The larger the duty cycle the higher the output is;
The AVR microcontroller can be used to generate PWM signals. The PWM signals can be generated by hardware or by software. A microcontroller like the AT2313 has ones hardware PWM on board of the chip. The output of the PWM signal is at the Port B. 3(OC1) pin.
The hardware PWM can be programmed by setting the timer registers. The AT2313 has three timer registers that you need to set to program the PWM:
- The Timer/Counter1 Control Register (TCCR1A) is to put the timer in PWM mode.
- The Timer/Counter1 registers (TCNT1H and TCNT1L) are used to set the modulation frequency.
- The Output Compare Register1 (OCR1A) is used to set the duty cycle.
PWM with the AVR-microcontroller is a matter of comparison. If the Timer/Counter1 is running and the value of the timer is matching the value that is put in the OCR1A register, the OC1 pin changes from high to low. By changing the value of the OCR1A register the lenght of the pulse can be changed.
