I just received a PICkit 1 Flash starter kit, and, to my surprise, the programming interface is USB! Imagine that—a USB port on the most basic of Microchip’s development boards (see Photo 1). Although I think the PICkit 1’s USB programming port is a good thing, I still have some problems with USB when it comes to pulling a personal USB project together.

Photo 1—The PICkit 1 Flash starter kit is designed to program and read the new 14-pin flash memory PICs and the legacy 8-pin flash memory parts. The PICkit 1 comes with an extensive software and firmware library that includes source code for the host and PIC USB interface. I populated the snap-off part of my PICkit 1 with a Sipex SP232ACP and supporting components.

Thanks to folks like Microchip, Cypress, and National Semiconductor, USB hardware is relatively cheap and easy to obtain. All of the companies go out of their way to provide useful example code, and some even offer comprehensive USB tutorials aimed at their products. On the other hand, if you want to market a USB-equipped product, you have to either fork out $2500 per year to join the club (i.e., USB Implementers Forum) or obtain a USB vender ID (good for two years) for a measly $1500. Either way, your product must pass various tests to be certified. When the words “test” and “certification” are used, it usually means more money out of your pocket that has to be offset by raising the product’s market price.

You can’t get something for nothing, and I’m sure the USB license fees are used to enhance the processes and tools implemented by the USB development community. It looks like the proceeds are being put to good use, because the free USB tools on the official USB web site are useful for pre-paring a product for USB certification.

USB license fees are small change to large companies. Unfortunately, $2500 or even $1500 may prevent a smaller enterprise from entering the USB market, because the license fee is just a small part of what is needed to seriously develop USB devices.

I had wanted to show you some of the devices, so I contacted a well-known producer of USB analyzers. The company’s least expensive analysis tool runs for approximately $8000, and its top-of-the-line USB analyzers top out at more than $30,000. There are several negative words I could use to describe our conversations. Anyway, as you read this article, you won’t find any of the company’s equipment pictured or mentioned. The bottom line is that the company’s actions indicated that it isn’t interested in showing you its products.

So, I’ve decided to prove that you can obtain personal USB connectivity without spending tens of thousands of dollars on license fees, lab certifications, USB vendor logos, and expensive USB analysis tools. I am officially on a mission.