USB vendor ID : Any alternative to USB-IF ???

IMHO, $1500 doesn't sound like much unless you're only producing a small number of units and your margin is ridiculously low. If its just an experiment or personal project, then you can pick just about anything you want. You might look at the Linux USB source to get an idea of which ID's are not in wide-spread use. Once you're ready to go into production, you could fork out the for the vendor ID. I would think you only need a single vendor ID for a number of products, since the USB also includes a product ID that is vendor ID unique.

Sorry if I'm missing something.

Yes, $1500 "doesn't sound like much", but i still consider it as expensive just to get a number from an organization ! That's why I'm wondering if there is a cheapest way... In particular as a vendor ID is enough to commercialize a very large number of products (at least 65536, probably more, i don't remember if it is on 16 bit...), then I'm wondering if there is someone has settle a business to share the cost between products...

"Michael N. Moran" a écrit dans le message de news:kAEdb.894$ snipped-for-privacy@bignews6.bellsouth.net...

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If you're only producing a small number of units is there any reason why you can't just "pick any number"? Accepting, of course, the possibility of clashes with a legit number later, but if you're making something like specialised test gear that, probably, won't be an issue.

Mike Harding (who knows nothing at all about USB)

You're misrepresenting the deal here. What you get from the organization is not just "a number". What you actually get is the guarantee that nobody _else_ will get to make and sell devices using that number. Given that number space is finite, the price must be high enough to avoid everybody and their dog getting one just for the fun of owning it.

You'ld have to look into the conditions under which these numbers are sold. There's sufficient odds that the terms are that this "somone" is either right-out forbidden to share out "his" number space like that, or that he'll be held liable for you to adhere to all the applicable USB standards --- a risk he quite probably couldn't afford to take.

If you use FTDI chips, you can get an ID from them. Stef

except the illegal ones ;-) Stef

If you purchase USB interface chips from FTDI, you can arrange to sell products with product IDs they will issue to you and use their vendor ID. I wonder if Cypress and the other manufacturers of USB interface chips and microcontrollers have similar options?

Mark Borgerson