Knowledge Base
RAM and subroutine stack increased 50%.

The task of allocating resources within the microcontroller chips we use in SPLat is a never-ending battle. On one hand we want to make as much RAM, Flash memory etc. as possible available to you to use for your programming. On the other hand we have plans and hopes for future features that may also require those resources.

However, we have been able to identify some extra RAM that we can make available to users. SL99, MMi99 and certain custom controllers will from the next (dialect 12) Firmware upgrade provide 192 bytes of user RAM, a 50% increase over the current 128 bytes (and a 6-fold increase over the first SPLat).

We have also allocated two more levels of subroutine stack, meaning you can now stack subroutines 6 deep rather than 4 deep.

These changes both reflect the fact that SPLat is being used for increasingly sophisticated control applications. For example, dialect 12 introduces two very powerful instructions for multitasking support, These require the use of 2 bytes of RAM for every task and will tend also to lead to deeper subroutine stacking.

As an offsetting factor, the introduction of semaphore (bit manipulation) instructions will reduce the amount of RAM used in many applications.

All SL99s and MMi99s with firmware V3.3 or later can be reFlashed to the new dialect. Please contact us regarding upgrading custom controllers.