Building and flash firmware
Compiling firmware is an optional step. This step is necessary only if the provided source code is modified or updated. If you plan to use compiled binary file which is available in the release section of this project site, then this "compilation" step is not needed to perform.
The firmware of PIC16F886 is developed using free version MPLAB XC8 compiler. This compiler is available to download at Microchip MPLAB homepage.
To build the firmware we recommended to use MPLAB IDE. Through MPLAB compilation is straightforward and may not require any additional plugins/configuration changes.
To get platform-specific instructions, refer Microchip MPLAB X documentation.
MPLAB Integrated Programming Environment (IPE) and Microchip PICkit can be used to transfer the compiled firmware into the microcontroller. At this time of writing IPE is a part of MPLAB X IDE and it can install during the MPLAB setup process.
The most straightforward way to transfer the firmware is attached PIC16F886 MCU with PICkit as shown below:
Above illustrated assembly needs to drive with +5V power source. The most suggested power source is USB +5V output from PC or through mobile phone charging adapter.
IPE appears with an uncomplicated UI, and the programming process is straightforward. For more details refer to the IPE documentation.