Software gets to grips with USB development

A new suite of software tools aims to simplify the development of USB 2.0 peripherals.

A new suite of software tools aims to simplify the development of USB 2.0 peripherals.

Cypress's USB MicroStudio 1.0 includes a general purpose USB 2.0 device driver, a new USB control console, an application programming interface (API), device configuration tools and extensive documentation.

It is available free to Cypress USB customers.

"Developing drivers for USB devices usually takes several weeks, if not months", said Cedric Van Rossum, EZ-USB Product Manager for Cypress's Personal Communications Division.

"With Cypress's USB MicroStudio, developers are able to get products to market more quickly without needing extensive knowledge of USB software development".

The WDM (Windows driver module) compliant high-speed device driver included in the USB MicroStudio provides an ideal solution for those who don't want to invest the time creating their own device driver from scratch.

It is designed for general-purpose USB applications, such as data acquisition, test and measurement, toys and other "non-class" compliant devices.

The Windows 2000-, Windows XP- and WHQL-compatible driver includes a customisable GUID (globally unique identifier), as well as support for plug-and-play and remote wake-up.

Another USB MicroStudio tool, CyConsole, is a new USB control console that enables developers to test a multitude of operating conditions without having to learn low-level USB programming.

CyConsole helps emulate USB host application responses to permit USB developers to quickly adjust their firmware and device driver interfaces as needed.

CyAPI, also included in the kit, is a Microsoft Visual C++ compatible class library that exposes a simple API to the Cypress generic USB device driver.

The API hides most of the complexity of the Windows device driver and provides a much simpler interface to USB devices designed with Cypress silicon.

The Cypress USB MicroStudio kit also features the GPIF Designer tool that enables users to graphically configure the general purpose interface (GPIF) available in the EZ-USB products.

The kit is packaged with extensive documentation featuring code examples demonstrating how to use the USB device driver and API.

Cypress's USB MicroStudio 1.0 (CY4604) is available today for download from the reference design kit section of Cypress's website.

The tools are free of charge to Cypress customers and will be shipped with EZ-USB FX2 family development kits starting in February 2004.

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