I'd trying to write an automated test routine to characterise an RF device that has an SPI interface (ADAR1000). I would like to program the registers of this device, then measure its RF performance using automated test equipment. The test equipment control side I understand but I do not know if this is something VEE is capable of?
I have access to the SPI signals of the device under test (DUT) but I have no idea what is the best way to interface VEE with the SPI. Should I use an FTDI interface (such as an USB-MPSSE cable)?
Thanks
Jon
Obviously VEE does not directly support SPI or many other similar modern interfaces. But that doesn't mean you can't get the job done with a little effort. There's two ways to proceed, depending upon your interests:
(1) Quick perusal of SPI shows that it is a fairly typical-looking serial interface. With the addition of a fast USB GPIO such as that from Accessio, it isn't hard to synthesize more or less any serial protocol. One forms the signals in software and generates them using the GPIO outputs- or reads and interprets them if you need two-way traffic. Accessio GPIO has drivers that talk directly to VEE and are quite easy to use. Note that this works for most any interface once you have the hardware.
(2) Alternately you can obtain a bridge device such as what you suggest. That takes care of the signalling so that you don;t have to synthesize it. The hard part with this approach may be interfacing with the bridge. There would need to be a driver in a standard enough format that VEE can use it. Ideally plain C interface or documented dotnet or whatever.
Please post what you end up with so that others may benefit.
Stan