Support Question of the Week: How do I use an SPI Host Adapter to Overcome Latency on the USB link?

Q: For my application, I’d like to conduct real-time audio testing. I am using the Aardvark^TM I2C/SPI Host Adapter along with the Python API to deliver SPI data in packets of 8 bytes. I am trying send my 8-byte packet out every 1ms, but it appears the minimum overhead of the aa_spi_write() call is 2ms. I have not found a limitation in my ...

Support Question of the Week: How Do I Attach a Beagle USB Protocol Analyzer to Monitor an Embedded USB Link?

I have a question about using the Beagle^™ USB 480 Protocol Analyzer. In our latest designs, many of the USB links are embedded – chips are interconnected on the same circuit board. My question: How do we attach the analyzer to an embedded USB link?

Thanks for your question! You can cut a USB and use the individual wires to tap onto to an...

Support Question of the Week: What are the Guidelines to Program SPI Flash Using the Cheetah SPI Host Adapter and the Flash Center Software? (Part 2)

This article is Part 2 of an example of programming SPI Flash devices using the Cheetah^TM SPI Host Adapter and the Flash Center^TM Software. Part 1 provides an overview of the programming modes of the Flash Center Software, and the memory map and commands of the STMicro M25P32 device used in this example. In this post, Part 2, we’ll go o...

Support Question of the Week: What are the Guidelines to Program SPI Flash Using the Cheetah SPI Host Adapter and the Flash Center Software? (Part 1)

This week’s article is about using a Cheetah^TM SPI Host Adapter for programming SPI EEPROM and flash devices, which can be done using Cheetah^TM GUI Software, Flash Center^TM Software, or the Cheetah^TM Software API. This example will use the ST Micro SPI Flash M25P32 mounted on an SPI Flash Demo Board, and the Flash Center Software to progr...

Support Question of the Week: Using the Aardvark I2C/SPI Host Adapter, How Do I Program the Software to Read with a Repeated Start (Sr)?

I am using the Aardvark^TM I2C/SPI Host Adapter with a PMBus (Power Management Bus) device. The protocol of the PMBus device requires a Repeated Start (Sr). The Read Byte protocol looks like this:

S-SlaveAddress(7)-Wr(1)-Ack-Command Code(8)-Ack-Sr-SlaveAdress(7)-Rd(1)-Ack-DataByte(8)-Ack-P

I do not want a Stop between the Write and Read p...

Support Question of the Week: How Do I Configure Beagle Protocol Analyzers to Monitor Both I2C and SPI buses?

I need to simultaneously monitor both the I2C bus and the SPI bus. I have one Beagle^TM I2C/SPI Protocol Analyzer, as well as one Beagle USB 480 Protocol Analyzer. The setup I need:

One USB analyzer (Beagle 480)
One SPI analyzer
One I2C analyzer

Is it possible to have two Data Center^TM Software instances running one analyzer to su...