FTDI Unveils USB-to-RS232 Cabling Solution

26th March 2012

Future Technology Devices International Limited

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Datasheet

Future Technology Devices International Limited has expanded its portfolio of converter cabling solutions with the introduction of Chipi-X. Measuring a length of 10 cm, this is a USB-to-RS232 level full-handshake UART cable with a male DB9 connector. The DB9 provides the connectivity for RS232 communications and a USB-A plug deals with USB communications.

Supporting USB 2.0 Full Speed operation, this cable can cope with data transfer rates from 300 bits/s to 250 kbits/s at RS232 voltage levels. A 512 byte receive buffer and a 512 byte transmit buffer, which each utilise buffer smoothing technology, allow for high data throughput to be maintained.

An integrated FTDI FT231XS USB-to-UART interface IC (part of the recently announced X-Chip series) handles the entire USB protocol, while the company’s FT3243S transceiver IC deals with the RS232 level voltage conversion. The 2048 byte internal MTP memory in the FT231XS chip contains the USB descriptors e.g. vendor ID (VID), product ID (PID), serial number, and product description strings allowing OEMs to customise the cable’s appearance when connected to a PC. Additional user space on the MTP can also be programmed over the USB interface to enable increased versatility.

Safeguarding against electrostatic discharge (ESD) is an important consideration, especially in the uncompromising industrial environments which this cable can be employed. Protection on the Chipi-X’s RS232 I/Os exceeds ±15 kV IEC1000-4-2 air gap discharge, ±15 kV for human body mode (HBM) and ±8 kV IEC1000-4-2 contact discharge. Protection on the USB lines exceeds ±2 kV for HBM, ±200 V for machine mode (MM) and ±500 V for charged device mode (CDM). A wide operating temperature range, spanning from -40 °C to 85 °C, is also supported.

All components used in their construction are fully RoHS compliant. Royalty-free VCP and D2XX drivers, which can be downloaded from the FTDI website, eliminate the need for engineers to develop their own USB drivers.

“This latest cable release emphasises FTDI’s ability to not only produce leading edge silicon, but also to provide it in a form that makes it easy to implement even in harsh application scenarios,” states Fred Dart, CEO and founder of FTDI. “By utilizing the newly released X-Chip device, the user is getting FTDI’s latest technology which delivers high performance and robust operation at a low cost of ownership.”

Pricing for the Chipi-X cables is US $15.00 for the enclosed version (10-49 pcs).