DSO Nano

Introduction

The DSO Nano is a one-channel handheld oscilloscope, suitable for quick field measurements and more. You will find it very simple to use, but it is nonetheless a quite amazing little tool.
Being a new and dynamic open-hardware and open-source project, the information tends to be scattered around quite a bit. This page will try to collect the most relevant information in a single place, in order to help newcomers find their way through the wealth of unorganized material already available.
Click the image to get to different version of DSO Nano.
DSO Nano v1
(Discontinued)
DSO Nano v2
(Discontinued)
DSO Nano v3

Hardware details


So far there have been three major versions of the DSO Nano, the original one in 2009, and the DSO Nano V2 in 2010. (A significant hardware upgrade including dual channels was introduced with the DSO Quad.) Apart from the improved charging unit in V2, and a redesigned PCB, the specifications are pretty much the same. They can use the same firmware.
A photo from inside the V2 was posted to the forum.
CPUARM Cortex™-M3 (STM32F103VBT6)
RAM20k
Flash ROM128k
Clock frequency72MHz
Display2.8″ Color TFT LCD
Display Resolution320×240
Display Color65K
PC connection via USBas SD card reader
Upgradeby bootloader via USB
Power supply3.7V Chargeable lithium battery / USB (LTC4054 charger controller)

Upgrading the firmware


The DSO Nano you hold in your hand took some time to reach you; it is more than likely that a newer version of the firmware is already available.
The newest firmware from BenF is available from the Tech Support(This link is broken, if you are looking for the firmware please refer to the wiki of DSO Nano V3) forum. Inside the ZIP file you will also find the operating manual for this firmware release.
To upgrade the firmware to the latest version, you have a few options:
  • If you work with Windows, follow the instructions contained in the official v2 User Manual (pages 8-10). The required utility DfuSeDemo.exe is also available here.
  • On Linux and Mac OS X you can use dfu-util (0.5 or newer).

Capabilities


Analog bandwidth0 - 1MHz
Max sample rate1Msps 12Bits
Sample memory depth4096 Point
Horizontal sensitivity1μS/Div~10S/Div (1-2-5 Step)
Horizontal positionadjustable with indicator
Vertical sensitivity10mV/Div~10V/Div (with ×1 probe)
0.5V/Div~100V/Div (with ×10 probe)
Vertical positionadjustable with indicator
Input impedance>500KΩ
Max input voltage80Vpp (by ×1 probe)
CouplingDC
Trig modesAuto, Normal, Single, None and Scan
Functionalities:Automatic measurement: frequency, cycle, duty,
Vpp, Vram, Vavg and DC voltage
Precise vertical measurement with markers
Precise horizontal measurement with markers
Rising/falling edge trigger
Trig level adjustable with indicator
Trig sensitivity adjustable with indicator
Hold/run feature
Test signalBuilt-in 10Hz~1MHz (1-2-5 Step)
Waveform storageSD card
PC connection via USBas SD card reader

Resources


Help us make it better

Thank you for choosing Seeed. A couple of months ago we initiated a project to improve our documentation system. What you are looking at now is the first edition of the new documentation system. Comparing to the old one, here is the progresses that we made:
  • Replaced the old documentation system with a new one that was developed from Mkdocs, a more widely used and cooler tool to develop documentation system.
  • Integrated the documentation system with our official website, now you can go to Bazaar and other section like Forum and Community more conveniently.
  • Reviewed and rewrote documents for hundreds of products for the system’s first edition, and will continue migrate documents from old wiki to the new one.
An easy-to-use instruction is as important as the product itself. We are expecting this new system will improve your experience when using Seeed’s products. However since this is the first edition, there are still many things need to improve, if you have any suggestions or findings, you are most welcome to submit the amended version as our contributor or give us suggestions in the survey below, Please don’t forget to leave your email address so that we can reply.
Happy hacking