Oct 03, 2009 USB Flash Tools – Format Backup Restore / USB Flash Tools is a Free toolkit containing some great tools for use with flash drives or flash memory cards. Some key features include the ability to create a backup image of a flash drive or restore a backup image. Securely erase a drive by overwriting it’s content, making data irretrievable.
The PL2303RA chipset from Prolific can be found in a number of devices. The most common location for this chipset can be found in the USB to RS232 Bridge Controller which you will find in the StarTech 2 Port USB to RS232 Serial DB9 Adapter Cable. You can find the driver for this cable listed below as the Prolific USB to serial driver on this website.
PL2303RA USB to Serial Driver
The StarTech 2 Port USB to RS232 Serial DB9 Adapter Cable driver can be found below. This cable will allow you to add 2 serial RS-232 ports to any laptop or PC with a usable USB port available. This cable is a plug and play adapter however at times it may give problems which are discussed elsewhere on this website such as USB to Serial Error 39 as well as other errors such as common USB errors. This cable is fully compliant with the USB 1.1 specifications. Notice that these all use the same Prolific USB to serial driver on this website.
Bus Type | USB 2.0 |
Chipset ID | Prolific – PL2303HXA / Prolific – PL2303RA |
Interface | Serial |
FIFO | 192 Bytes |
Maximum Data Transfer Rate | 230Kbps |
Serial Protocol | RS-232 |
Connector Type(s) | 1 – USB Type-A (4 pin) USB 2.0 Male |
2 – DB-9 (9 pin, D-Sub) Male | |
System and Cable Requirements | 1 USB 1.1 (or above) port |
Port Style | Cable Adapters |
Note the driver for the adapter is found below.
This will open to the installation pages.
USB to Serial Driver (Windows)
FT232r USB UART Driver (Linux)
VN:F [1.9.22_1171]
VN:F [1.9.22_1171]
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Updating the Atmega8U2 and 16U2 on an Uno or Mega2560 using DFU
The ATmega16U2 chip on your Arduino board acts as a bridge between the computer's USB port and the main processor's serial port. Previous versions of the Uno and Mega2560 had an Atmega8U2. It runs software called firmware (so named because you couldn't change it once it had been programmed in the chip) that can be updated through a special USB protocol called DFU (Device Firmware Update).
Here's how to update the firmware on your 16u2 in a few steps.
Check whether you need to update the firmware
The Arduino Uno and Mega 2560 have been shipping with the updated version of the ATmega16u2 firmware. To check which version of the firmware is on your board, connect it to your computer and follow the directions for your operating system:
- Windows (before 7): locate the board in the Device Manager (it should be under Ports), right click on it and select 'Properties'; in the resulting dialog, click on 'driver details' in the 'Driver' tab ('Details' in Windows 7). In one of the properties, you should the VID, PID, and the revision number.
- Mac OS X: run the System Profiler application (e.g. by selecting 'About This Mac' from the Apple menu and clicking the 'More Info...' button); go to the USB sheet and click on the item for the Arduino board. The firmware version is listed as 'version' (e.g. 0.01 for rev. 0001).
Download a DFU Programmer
This is the software that will update the code :
Windows: Download Atmel's flip programmer from here
Mac: Install MacPorts following these instructions: Once MacPorts is installed, in a Terminal window, type
sudo port install dfu-programmer
NB: If you've never used sudo before, it will ask for your password. Use the password you login to your Mac with. sudo allows you to run commands as the administrator of the computer
Linux: from a command line type
sudo apt-get install dfu-programmer
or
sudo aptitude install dfu-programmer
depending on your distribution
Download updated firmware
The latest version is here
Choose the version that is suitable for your board, either arduino-usbserial/Arduino-usbserial-uno.hex or arduino-usbserial/Arduino-usbserial-mega.hex
The firmware is also located with the Arduino software in the /hardware/arduino/firmwares/arduino-usbserial folder. On OSX, right-click or command-click on the Arduino application and select 'show package contents' to find this folder.
If your board is Arduino UNO R1
You'll need to solder a 10k resistor (Brown-Black-Orange) at the back of your board in the same location as this picture.
Connect the Arduino to your computer with a USB cable
Just like you do whenever you're programming it.
Reset the 8u2 or 16u2
To do this, briefly bridge the reset pin with the ground. The pins are located near the USB connector, as shown in this picture. Connect them briefly with a piece of wire.
To verify you have reset the 8u2 or 16u2 chip: In the Arduino programming environment, check the list of serial ports. The serial port for your board should no longer show up.
Program the chip
Windows: use flip to upload the hex file to your board
Mac & Linux: from a terminal window, change directories to get into the folder with the firmware. If you saved the firmware in your downloads folder on OSX, then you might type
cd Downloads/
Once there, type:
sudo dfu-programmer atmega16u2 erase
When this command is done and you get a command prompt again, type
sudo dfu-programmer atmega16u2 flash Arduino-usbserial-uno.hex
Finally, type
sudo dfu-programmer atmega16u2 reset
Note
If your board has an atmega8u2 type atmega8u2 instead of atmega16u2 in the command lines above.
Unplug your board and plug it back in
Your board should be ready and up to date. You can check this by looking in the serial port menu of the Arduino software. Your port should re-appear.
Using other firmware
The 8u2 and 16u2's flexibility allows for other firmware so your board can appear as a different USB device (MIDI controller, HID, etc.). See the tutorials below for additional information.
- UnoJoy : Turn you Arduino Uno into a PS3 compatible USB joystick