VDIP1 not working with Parallel communication

eechik

Hello everyone, I need help!

I have gotten my VDIP1 to work exactly as expected via RS232 with the PC, but I am transferring it to parallel communication with my micro controller I am running into several problems.

1) The flash drive is only recognized if I have it plugged in when I power up, also when I remove the drive nothing is sent saying the disk is removed. Do you have any idea why this might be? (it worked on RS232, but not parallel)

2) I have been able to read the initializing string (version, device detected, no upgrade, and prompt), but every time I go to send a command (even just dir or ipa) I only see a response of 'bad command' with no prompt afterward.
- Do you know of any ways to troubleshoot this? I already checked pin for pin, and the data is on the bus when I pulse WR.
- Has anyone else had this problem? If so, how did you work through it?
- Is it possible that a connection is wrong, even though the device must be seeing my $0D character because the device is responding?

Also, it should be noted, that updating the firmware is not an option for me as I need to have this device working in a little over a week and I don't have the specific hardware you said that I needed to update firmware. I have Ver 2.08VDAPF.

Any help or ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Mike Green

You can update the firmware without any special hardware. Go to Vinculum's support site, to the downloads page. You'll find a "reflash" version of the firmware. Follow their directions for renaming the file on a flash drive that you insert in the VDIP1 and the VDIP1 will update itself.

Can't help you with the parallel connection. I've only used RS232 and SPI. Have you called Vinculum for help?

eechik

I have e-mailed, but not called. There has been a gentleman from the support staff responding to me, but he just keeps telling me what I should be seeing which I already understand, not any ideas of how to get there.

So I do not have to be able to write to the flash drive in order to update the firmware this way? (I was under the impression I needed specific hardware because that is what the support guy told me)

Mike Green

You use your PC to copy the files to the flash drive (a USB memory drive). The support guy talked about specific hardware because that's the most basic way of updating the firmware, particularly if the existing firmware in the device is not working. The VDIP will recognize that there's a drive inserted, will scan the root directory for a firmware upgrade file, will install it if present, then reboot itself with the new firmware.· This has worked fine for me through several upgrades.· They didn't use to have the reflash versions posted on the website.· You had to email them to get the files.· Now they keep the current and most recent previous·versions of the reflash files and the files for the utility ROM updater on their downloads page.

Just download the reflash file to your desktop, rename it to an 8.3 file name as they describe in one of their app notes, and copy it to the flash drive.· I've used a Mac for that, but Windows or Linux should work the same.


Post Edited (Mike Green) : 11/21/2007 7:14:32 PM GMT

eechik

Thank you Mike! I will try that!

eechik

For anyone that reads this, I got it working still with the old firmware. I don't understand why, but I found that the device was rejecting the first command sent no matter what it was (returning 'bad command'. After that, it would accept all commands and work properly.

Thanks again Mike, your quick response was encouraging and made me keep trying!