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Support Question of the Week: How Do I Configure the Aardvark I2C/SPI Host Adapter for a Loopback Mode to Echo Data?
Rena

I’m looking to set up a loopback so that data sent from an Aardvark I2C/ SPI Host Adapter is echoed. How can I do that?

Thanks for your question! To echo data, you can set up a loopback mode by using two Aardvark I2C/SPI Host Adapters and two instances of the Control Center Software to send traffic between the two Aardvark host adapters.  One adapter will be configured as the master, and the other adapter will be configured as a slave.  The slave unit can then be programmed with the message to “echo” when pinged by the master unit.

 

Using the Control Center Software to configure two Aardvark I2c/SPI Host Adapters for a loopback mode

Figure 1: Configuring Aardvark Host Adapters to Echo Data

Following are instructions to set up and verify a loopback mode in SPI (the instructions are similar for the I2C protocols):

  1. Connect the Master I2C/SPI connector of one Aardvark adapter to the Slave I2C/SPI connector of the other Aardvark adapter.
  2. Connect the Aardvark–Master USB port to USB port 1 of the computer.
  3. Connect the Aardvark–Slave USB port to USB port 2 of the computer.
  4. Launch the Control Center Software for the Aardvark-Master on the computer. To do so:

    1. Click Configure Aardvark Adapter → Select Aardvark-Master -> Click OK.
    2. Click Aardvark → Enabled Target Power.
    3. Use the SPI Control section.
    4. Click Master.
    5. Choose the following parameters: Polarity: Raising/Falling; Phase: Sample/Setup; Bit Order: MSB; SS Polarity: SS Active Low; Bit Rate: 1000KHz.
    6. Type 0A 0B 0C 0D in the MOSI message.
  5. Launch the Control Center Software for the Aardvark-Slave on the computer. To do so:

    1. Click Configure Aardvark Adapter → Select Aardvark-Slave -> Click OK.
    2. Use the SPI Control section.
    3. Click Slave.
    4. Choose the following parameters: Polarity: Raising/Falling; Phase: Sample/Setup; Bit Order: MSB; SS Polarity:SS Active Low; Bit Rate: 1000KHz.
    5. Type 01 02 03 04 in the MISO message → Click Set MISO → Click Enable.
  6. In the Control Center Software for the Master, click Send and then verify the following:

    • The transaction log in the (Master) Control Center Software  shows that the Aardvark – Master sent 4 bytes of 0A 0B 0C 0D, and received 4 bytes of 01 02 03 04.
    • The transaction log in the (Slave) Control Center Software shows that the Aardvark-Slave received 4 bytes of 0A 0B 0C 0D, and sent 4 bytes of 01 02 03 04.

For additional information, please refer to the following documents:

Aardvark I2C/SPI Host Adapter Quick Start Guide

Aardvark Adapter User Manual

Control Center Software User Manual

Total Phase Products

Product Selector Guide

We hope this answers your question. If you have other questions about our host adapters or other Total Phase products, feel free to email us at sales@totalphase.com or submit a request for technical support.