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USBmicro Products
U401 front view, older style with DIP U401 chip.
U401 back view, newer style with SMT U401 chip.
USBmicro has released the U401 USB Interface, a fully assembled and tested device to interface to your PC (Win⁄Linux) or Mac (OSX) via USB. The U401 is in a "SimmStick" format. Please see the FAQ for differences in the components used in the pictures.
U421 top view.
USBmicro also has the U421 USB Interface. This is also a fully assembled and tested device to interface to your PC (Win⁄Linux) or Mac (OSX) via USB. The PCB of the U421 is in a 24-pin "DIP-like" format.
USBmicro products shipped to Europe are produced without lead.
U401⁄U421 USB I⁄O Interface
The U401⁄421 provides a simple digital i⁄o interface for the PC (Win⁄Linux) or Mac (OSX). Sixteen i⁄o lines from the microcontroller are provided. Commands can be sent to the U401⁄421 that change the i⁄o lines from input to output. I⁄O lines can be individually selected as inputs or outputs. The U401⁄421 supports commands to read the ports, and if the ports are set to output, to write to the ports.
The U401⁄421 is an interface to SPI devices. The firmware on the U401⁄421 provides generic access to read and write SPI devices. The SPI clock rate can be adjusted to 62.5 kHz, 500 kHz, 1 MHz, or 2 MHz. Because additional pins are available as generic i⁄o, the U401 can use these lines as slave select lines and address multiple SPI devices.
The SPI subsystem of the U401⁄421 can be used as a master to communicate with SPI devices such as EEPROMS and A⁄D converters. The U401⁄421 can also be used as a SPI slave to a microcontroller that uses the U401⁄421 as a gateway to the PC (Win⁄Linux) or Mac (OSX) . A PIC or an AVR, for example, can act as a SPI master to communicate data with the U401⁄421, which can then transfer the data to a PC (Win⁄Linux) or Mac (OSX) application.
The U401⁄421 is a convenient way to interface a standard Hitachi-type of intelligent LCD controller to USB. The commands that support communication to the LCD module are the "standard" LCD commands. Standard commands include writing characters to the display, and controlling the display.
USB interfacing is simple with the U401⁄421 - There are no USB drivers to write and there is no device firmware to develop. There are sample applications that will get you started in minutes. The sample code is available to change for your application.
| Hardware: U401 USB Interface U421 USB Interface |
| Programming: USBm DLL Programming Download Files |
| Application Notes: U4x1 Application Notes Misc Applications and Information FAQ |