USB interface for AVRISP?

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lautman
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Posted by lautman: Fri. May 28, 2004 - 06:17 AM
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I'd like to be able to use an AVRISP with a laptop that has no RS232 port but has a USB port. I've bought a couple of different serial-USB converter cables but they both have the same flaw: they have female nut connections on them that prevent them from mating with the AVRISP, which also has female nut connections. Ordinary serial cables have male screws that mate with the nuts, but when both sides of the interface are female, the nuts act as standoffs, preventing the pins and holes from mating. All the gender-changers I've found are nuts-only on both sides, perpetuating the incompatibility. How have others solved this problem? Thanks.

Karl

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AVR Microcontrollers, megaAVR and tinyAVR
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Svuppe
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Posted by Svuppe: Fri. May 28, 2004 - 06:39 AM
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A couple of quick solutions:

1. Use the cable that came with the programmer.
or
2. Remove the nuts.

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BryanW
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Posted by BryanW: Fri. May 28, 2004 - 09:15 AM
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As the last reply said plug the lead that came with the stk500 into the USB to serial cable. I'd be interested in how you get on cause I just bought a new laptop myself without a serial port and was looking at getting a cable for the same reasons. I haven't had a look to see what is around for this sort of thing, so I could do with a few hints :)

Kanda

Kanda Embedded Tools
https://www.kanda.com

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Bronze Marktheusch
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Posted by theusch: Fri. May 28, 2004 - 02:16 PM
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We have had varying results with different USB-to-serial converters, including some fairly expensive. With these:
http://www.4u-depot.com/bafbfusb...
we have not had any problems. They are inexpensive and come complete with a 6-foot USB cable. We have several dozen scattered about through different divisions, many used by sales force personnel who can barely match the correct shape of connector. As a US company it may not be the best choice for you, but the people give very good service--a great Web shop.

Lee

You can put lipstick on a pig, but it is still a pig.

I've never met a pig I didn't like, as long as you have some salt and pepper.

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lautman
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Posted by lautman: Fri. May 28, 2004 - 02:49 PM
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Thanks for the tip about using the existing serial cable. Must have had some sort of conceptual block. I'm going to be using the adapter from 4u-depot.com mentioned by theusch/Lee, but haven't had time yet to actually test it.

Karl

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AndersAnd
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Posted by AndersAnd: Fri. May 28, 2004 - 10:37 PM
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What you have been looking for is an USB <-> RS-232 adapter like this one:

http://www.sunsway.com.hk/produc...

I had been looking for such a cable but It took me a while to find one with male DB9 connector.
This is the only USB <-> RS-232 adapter with a male DB9 adapter with screws I have seen.
The cable is 1.5 m long.

They are small enough to have one at both STK500 RS-232 ports at the same time.

They work great and are very nice designed and more handy compared to the one with female DB9 connector from the previous post.

In Denmark you can buy it from this online shop for kr. 139 ($ 23):
http://www.compumail.dk/vare-ove...
Another Danish shop sells it for kr 149 ($ 25):
http://www.e-tech.dk/shop/defaul...

This converter uses the same USB <-> RS-232 converter chip as the BAFO BF-810 converter from the above post, this means they use the same drivers, maybe with the drivername changed, but the drivers are the same. The quality of the two converters should also be the same, becuse they are made from the same reference design.

The chip is the Prolific PL-2303: http://www.prolific.com.tw/eng/P...

I have attached reference schematic for OrCAd and in PDF in case anyone wants to make their own converter out of this chip.
There is also reference design for PL-2313 which has two RS-232 ports. This makes it fit perfectly to an Atmel STK500 kit, with its two RS-232 ports to only one USB cable.

Attachment(s): 

Package icon Prolific PL-2303 and PL2313 reference design schematics for OrCAD and in PDF
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AndersAnd
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Posted by AndersAnd: Sat. May 29, 2004 - 12:20 AM
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In found a similar cable for $ 22.95 in the US here:
http://www.pccables.com/cgi-bin/...

This cable is made by Magic Control Technology Corp.:
http://www.mct.com.tw/prod/rs232...
http://pfranc.com/usb/usb.mhtml
This converter uses a Philips chip: http://pfranc.com/usb/usb2.htm

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Bronze Marktheusch
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Posted by theusch: Sat. May 29, 2004 - 02:01 AM
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Quote:

I have attached reference schematic ...

Are attachments broken on the Forum? There have been several posts this week that referred to attachments, but I haven't seen any.

Lee

You can put lipstick on a pig, but it is still a pig.

I've never met a pig I didn't like, as long as you have some salt and pepper.

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lautman
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Posted by lautman: Sat. May 29, 2004 - 06:55 AM
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Thanks for all the pointersd, AndersAnd. They're just what I was looking for. Unfortunately, I got the Bafo 810 to work so it will be easier to stay with it than replace it.

Karl

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