The OCR0x Registers are double buffered when using any of the Pulse Width Modula-
tion (PWM) modes. For the normal and Clear Timer on Compare (CTC) modes of
operation, the double buffering is disabled. The double buffering synchronizes the
update of the OCR0x Compare Registers to either top or bottom of the counting
sequence. The synchronization prevents the occurrence of odd-length, non-symmetrical
PWM pulses, thereby making the output glitch-free.
The OCR0x Register access may seem complex, but this is not case. When the double
buffering is enabled, the CPU has access to the OCR0x Buffer Register, and if double
buffering is disabled the CPU will access the OCR0x directly.
Force Output Compare
In non-PWM waveform generation modes, the match output of the comparator can be
forced by writing a one to the Force Output Compare (FOC0x) bit. Forcing Compare
Match will not set the OCF0x Flag or reload/clear the timer, but the OC0x pin will be
updated as if a real Compare Match had occurred (the COM0x1:0 bits settings define
whether the OC0x pin is set, cleared or toggled).
Compare Match Blocking by
TCNT0 Write
All CPU write operations to the TCNT0 Register will block any Compare Match that
occur in the next timer clock cycle, even when the timer is stopped. This feature allows
OCR0x to be initialized to the same value as TCNT0 without triggering an interrupt when
the Timer/Counter clock is enabled.
Using the Output Compare
Unit
Since writing TCNT0 in any mode of operation will block all Compare Matches for one
timer clock cycle, there are risks involved when changing TCNT0 when using the Output
Compare Unit, independently of whether the Timer/Counter is running or not. If the
value written to TCNT0 equals the OCR0x value, the Compare Match will be missed,
resulting in incorrect waveform generation. Similarly, do not write the TCNT0 value
equal to BOTTOM when the counter is down-counting.
The setup of the OC0x should be performed before setting the Data Direction Register
for the port pin to output. The easiest way of setting the OC0x value is to use the Force
Output Compare (FOC0x) strobe bits in Normal mode. The OC0x Registers keep their
values even when changing between Waveform Generation modes.
Be aware that the COM0x1:0 bits are not double buffered together with the compare
value. Changing the COM0x1:0 bits will take effect immediately.
Compare Match Output
Unit
The Compare Output mode (COM0x1:0) bits have two functions. The Waveform Gener-
ator uses the COM0x1:0 bits for defining the Output Compare (OC0x) state at the next
Compare Match. Also, the COM0x1:0 bits control the OC0x pin output source. Figure 41
shows a simplified schematic of the logic affected by the COM0x1:0 bit setting. The I/O
Registers, I/O bits, and I/O pins in the figure are shown in bold. Only the parts of the
general I/O Port Control Registers (DDR and PORT) that are affected by the COM0x1:0
bits are shown. When referring to the OC0x state, the reference is for the internal OC0x
Register, not the OC0x pin. If a system reset occur, the OC0x Register is reset to “0”.
120
ATmega640/1280/1281/2560/2561
2549A–AVR–03/05
ATMEL [ ATMEL ]
