Re: USB Hardware Advice...

Cheers Steve, I did think of this as an alternative. I guess it would make the h/w s/w layer easier to handle, especially as I'm hoping to do things in Java.

Do you have any recommendations on the hardware side of things. Did you use a dedicated ethernet Controller IC, or did you find a handy uC with one built in (which would be very nice).

Unfortunately time on this project is a real issue. I hate having to skirt around projects without fully understand whats going on 'under the hood'. But I think I'm going to have to go with a quick, easy and dirty solution.

Thanks Andy

Steve wrote:

For a quick USB solution check out several simple cores from

For the network solution, go get a Net Burner or Rabbit Semiconductor core. look at the adds in circuit cellar or nuts and volts mag.

Tom Woodrow

Andy Greensted wrote:

We use a ST7F652 from STM what is full speed USB (12 Mbit). This seems to require less HW resource than TCP/IP and Ethernet. To avoid writing own windows drivers we use the buildt - in OS drivers for HID what works well with interupt transfers. For bulk transfers you can use the mass storage drivers of the OS and you are also ready with Linux and Apple. To study the USB standards and write own firmware from the scratch (I did not use the STM libraries) took me about 6 weeks. I dont like the FTDI chips becouse it is additional HW chip and not well documented. I first thought about emulating a FTDI chip and use the FTDI drivers but there is no information on how the chip is working (just to use as a black box) to avoid the people from taking the FTDI driver and not buying a FTDI chip.

use

You mention Java, and looking for somehting quick.

Have a look at the maxim DS80C400, there are boards with ethernet etc on them and it supports Java.

First 8051 I have ever been interested in.

Ralph

My USB pages have many links to development boards, articles, code examples, etc.

I would look at:

FTDI for full-speed bulk transfers using their driver.

Mass storage class using the OS drivers except for Win98 gold.

HID class is probably too slow, except possibly at high speed (requires USB 2.0).

For Ethernet + Java, see the TINI at

Jan Axelson