NI USB 6509 Linux Driver

[Casino]

Currently evaluating the NI USB 6509 under windows and want to move the module to either a VxWorks/Linux systems using a RS-232-to-USB converter. In order to do this move a driver is needed to interface the RS-232-to-USB converter and the end unit which is the NI USB 6509 device. So either a driver already exist or one will have to be developed. But in order to develop the driver the configuration of the NI USB 6509 has to be specified via the transfer Control mode. Can anyone please provide me with a known VxWorks driver or linux driver? Can anyone please provide me with the USB 2.0 chipset being used by the NI USB 6509? If the NI USB 6509 is being configured via onboard FLASH or EEPROM would someone please provide me with the initial chipset configuration so I'll know how to interface with the unit? Thanks!

[bstreiff]

What RS232-to-USB unit are you evaluating, and with what type of system? The only RS232-to-USB units I'm aware of go from a USB port on the host to a RS232 device, not from a RS232 port on the host to a USB port for the device, so I'm a little confused as to how your setup is.

That said, we do not currently support the USB 6509 for Linux; the only supported driver is DAQmx for Windows. In fact, the only USB digital device that currently has Linux support (through DAQmx Base) is the USB 6501, although we're always open to product suggestions for better support.

[Casino]

Hi bstreiff,

Thanks for the reply, there are all kinds of RS-232-to-USB converters. Go to GOOGLE and search for 'RS-232 to USB Converters'. There are a lot of converters available, the ones being considered uses the MOSChip MCS7840 chip. It would be nice to have the product supported under Linux so the USB 6509 can be used with other OSs.

Can you provide the USB chipset used in the USB 6509 so I can investigate the development of a Linux driver? Does the USB 6509 configure the unit via FLASH/EEPROM? If the unit does NOT self configure, can you provide me with the transfer Control mode configuration for the USB 6509? This is strictly for internal usage so the USB 6509 can be used in other H/W configuration we have.

Thanks!

[bstreiff]

The MCS7840 is a USB-to-4x-RS232 chip, not a RS232-to-USB chip:

The MCS7840 is a USB 2.0 to Quad-Serial Port device. It has been developed to connect a wide range of standard serial devices to a USB host. The MCS7840 has a USB device controller connected to four (4) individual UARTs.

I still don't see what you're trying to do with this chip. Do you have an embedded controller running VxWorks/Linux that only has serial ports, and no USB? If so, then this chip doesn't help you-- you can't use it to connect to a USB 6509 even if you had the internal specifications. The 'USB host' above refers to your controller, not to your device. The USB 6509 connects to a USB port, not a RS232 port.

As far as those internal specifications go, I don't know the answers, and I don't know what I could release even if I did (here is where I'd expect an AE to chime in. 🙂 ). Some customers have reverse-engineered their own drivers for the USB 6501, and it may be possible to build off that work, but that wouldn't be an officially-supported solution.