ATmega48/88/168
OCR1A or ICR1 is lower than the current value of TCNT1, the counter will miss the com-
pare match. The counter will then have to count to its maximum value (0xFFFF) and
wrap around starting at 0x0000 before the compare match can occur. In many cases
this feature is not desirable. An alternative will then be to use the fast PWM mode using
OCR1A for defining TOP (WGM13:0 = 15) since the OCR1A then will be double
buffered.
For generating a waveform output in CTC mode, the OC1A output can be set to toggle
its logical level on each compare match by setting the Compare Output mode bits to tog-
gle mode (COM1A1:0 = 1). The OC1A value will not be visible on the port pin unless the
data direction for the pin is set to output (DDR_OC1A = 1). The waveform generated will
have a maximum frequency of fOC A = fclk_I/O/2 when OCR1A is set to zero (0x0000). The
1
waveform frequency is defined by the following equation:
f
clk_I/O
f
= --------------------------------------------------
OCnA
2 ⋅ N ⋅ (1 + OCRnA)
The N variable represents the prescaler factor (1, 8, 64, 256, or 1024).
As for the Normal mode of operation, the TOV1 Flag is set in the same timer clock cycle
that the counter counts from MAX to 0x0000.
Fast PWM Mode
The fast Pulse Width Modulation or fast PWM mode (WGM13:0 = 5, 6, 7, 14, or 15) pro-
vides a high frequency PWM waveform generation option. The fast PWM differs from
the other PWM options by its single-slope operation. The counter counts from BOTTOM
to TOP then restarts from BOTTOM. In non-inverting Compare Output mode, the Output
Compare (OC1x) is set on the compare match between TCNT1 and OCR1x, and
cleared at TOP. In inverting Compare Output mode output is cleared on compare match
and set at TOP. Due to the single-slope operation, the operating frequency of the fast
PWM mode can be twice as high as the phase correct and phase and frequency correct
PWM modes that use dual-slope operation. This high frequency makes the fast PWM
mode well suited for power regulation, rectification, and DAC applications. High fre-
quency allows physically small sized external components (coils, capacitors), hence
reduces total system cost.
The PWM resolution for fast PWM can be fixed to 8-, 9-, or 10-bit, or defined by either
ICR1 or OCR1A. The minimum resolution allowed is 2-bit (ICR1 or OCR1A set to
0x0003), and the maximum resolution is 16-bit (ICR1 or OCR1A set to MAX). The PWM
resolution in bits can be calculated by using the following equation:
log(TOP + 1)
R
= ----------------------------------
FPWM
log(2)
In fast PWM mode the counter is incremented until the counter value matches either
one of the fixed values 0x00FF, 0x01FF, or 0x03FF (WGM13:0 = 5, 6, or 7), the value in
ICR1 (WGM13:0 = 14), or the value in OCR1A (WGM13:0 = 15). The counter is then
cleared at the following timer clock cycle. The timing diagram for the fast PWM mode is
shown in Figure 47. The figure shows fast PWM mode when OCR1A or ICR1 is used to
define TOP. The TCNT1 value is in the timing diagram shown as a histogram for illus-
trating the single-slope operation. The diagram includes non-inverted and inverted PWM
outputs. The small horizontal line marks on the TCNT1 slopes represent compare
matches between OCR1x and TCNT1. The OC1x Interrupt Flag will be set when a com-
pare match occurs.
117
2545D–AVR–07/04
ATMEL [ ATMEL ]
