Leonardo + Ethernet R3 - need ICSP connector?

Using Arduino Networking, Protocols, and Devices
#1

I have a Leonardo board I'm using with an Ethernet shield R3. They work fine together, but if I put a proto shield in-between them it doesn't work. I'm guessing that it doesn't work because the ICSP connector on the Ethernet shield doesn't plug into anything in this configuration. Would the ICSP connector cause this problem? If so, how do I get the shield to work without using the ICSP connector?

#2

From the Arduino website Leonardo page:

SPI: on the ICSP header. These pins support SPI communication using the SPI library. Note that the SPI pins are not connected to any of the digital I/O pins as they are on the Uno, They are only available on the ICSP connector. This means that if you have a shield that uses SPI, but does NOT have a 6-pin ICSP connector that connects to the Leonardo's 6-pin ICSP header, the shield will not work.

http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardLeonardo

Maybe use a 2x6 (edit: oops, meant 2x3) header and drill a hole?

add: Also, there are some proto shields that have the stackable ICSP connector. http://store.nkcelectronics.com/Protoshield-KIT-for-Arduino-UNO-R3_p_308.html

#3

I read that, but I wasn't sure if the Arduino can use the digital I/O pins to communicate with the Ethernet shield. On the Ethernet shield page it says:

Arduino communicates with both the W5100 and SD card using the SPI bus (through the ICSP header). This is on digital pins 11, 12, and 13 on the Duemilanove and pins 50, 51, and 52 on the Mega.

I found this a bit confusing. I wasn't sure if the Leonardo can communicate on pins 11-13 or not. I just took a look at the Ethernet shield schematic and it doesn't look like pins 11-13 are connected to anything, so I guess you have to use the ICSP header only to communicate with the Ethernet shield.

#4

No. Digital pins 11-13 are not used on the Leonardo. Digital pins 11-13 are not used on the ethernet shield. All ICSP.

I added a link above for proto shields that have the 6 pin ICSP connector. Here it is again: http://store.nkcelectronics.com/Protoshield-KIT-for-Arduino-UNO-R3_p_308.html

#5

Thanks for the link to the proto shield.

#6

SurferTim: No. Digital pins 11-13 are not used on the Leonardo. Digital pins 11-13 are not used on the ethernet shield. All ICSP.

So this means when using Leonardo with Ethernet shield R3, I can use digital pins 10-13 for anything I want in my sketch.

#7

So this means when using Leonardo with Ethernet shield R3, I can use digital pins 10-13 for anything I want in my sketch.

Yes, but take care on pin 13 because there an LED is connected, so if your configuring this pin as an input you might get problems. Cut the LED connection on the board if you need that pin as an input.

#8