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jfelten · 05-09-2021, 11:55 PM

As you probably know, a recent firmware update to the Prime introduced 3 new commands for sending/receiving USB signals. I tried attaching a wireless keyboard and mouse bundle to my calculator. I notice that the keyboard sends keystrokes, but the LED doesn't turn on when I press caps lock, and the mouse doesn't send any signals whatsoever. Are there signals I need to send to the keyboard and mouse in order for them to recognize that they are connected?

BruceH · 05-11-2021, 08:24 PM

I think they are just for handling serial comms. So if you plug in a USB cable and map it to a COM port on your PC then you should be able to send/receive characters. And, presumably, a serial to USB converter plugged in would let you communicate with an RS232-type serial device.

jfelten · 05-11-2021, 08:42 PM

I mean using a keyboard and mouse on my calculator, possibly as game controllers. The keyboard sends characters just fine, but the mouse does not work.

toml_12953 · 05-11-2021, 10:16 PM

(05-11-2021 08:24 PM)BruceH Wrote: I think they are just for handling serial comms. So if you plug in a USB cable and map it to a COM port on your PC then you should be able to send/receive characters. And, presumably, a serial to USB converter plugged in would let you communicate with an RS232-type serial device.

Serial to USB converters need a driver to function. Prime has no driver for them so I doubt that would work. I'd love to be wrong, though. I have a Teletype ASR33 with a serial interface (not Current Loop) I'd like to use with Prime.

ijabbott · 05-11-2021, 10:42 PM

(05-09-2021 11:55 PM)jfelten Wrote: As you probably know, a recent firmware update to the Prime introduced 3 new commands for sending/receiving USB signals. I tried attaching a wireless keyboard and mouse bundle to my calculator. I notice that the keyboard sends keystrokes, but the LED doesn't turn on when I press caps lock, and the mouse doesn't send any signals whatsoever. Are there signals I need to send to the keyboard and mouse in order for them to recognize that they are connected?

The LEDs (well at least the traditional Caps-, Num-, and Scroll-lock LEDs) are controlled by the computer, not by the keyboard. So yes, the Prime would need to send something to the keyboard to turn the LEDs on.

**rprosperi** · 05-12-2021, 12:59 AM

(05-11-2021 10:16 PM)toml_12953 Wrote: Serial to USB converters need a driver to function. Prime has no driver for them so I doubt that would work. I'd love to be wrong, though. I have a Teletype ASR33 with a serial interface (not Current Loop) I'd like to use with Prime.

Now that is something I would love to see!!!

I hope this pans out, but if you run into bugs trying to pull it off, it would be fun to see the bug reports and replies:

Quote:Issue: Can't communicate w/remote terminal
Equipment needed to reproduce
Prime
USB to serial cable
ASR33 teletype terminal...

toml_12953 · 05-12-2021, 02:10 AM

(05-12-2021 12:59 AM)rprosperi Wrote:
(05-11-2021 10:16 PM)toml_12953 Wrote: Serial to USB converters need a driver to function. Prime has no driver for them so I doubt that would work. I'd love to be wrong, though. I have a Teletype ASR33 with a serial interface (not Current Loop) I'd like to use with Prime.

Now that is something I would love to see!!!

I hope this pans out, but if you run into bugs trying to pull it off, it would be fun to see the bug reports and replies:

Quote:Issue: Can't communicate w/remote terminal
Equipment needed to reproduce
Prime
USB to serial cable
ASR33 teletype terminal...

LOL! I already have many serial-to-USB converters so it won't cost me anything to try it. The worst that could happen is that it doesn't work. Where is the doc on the Prime USB interface (set baud rate, bits, etc.)?

Tim Wessman · 05-12-2021, 06:19 AM

There is an HID driver and a few classes that came as part of the OS. You can send some text/binary data out, and read data, but this is not like serial... you really need to have some understanding of the specific USB class of the device, the USB descriptors and so on to do anything.

I am not certain if composite device are supported, so if it is a usb/mouse combo might just not work. No clue. We really haven't done much with this but plugged in some keyboards to verify we could receive key presses on query.

jfelten · 09-25-2022, 12:32 AM

So I decided to play around a bit more with the USB drivers. I purchased myself a 7-port USB 2.0 hub and plugged in 2 devices: a keyboard and a mouse (both of which I had verified beforehand were compatible on their own). Then, I plugged the hub into the calculator and ran USBOpen(). Yet to my surprise, only up to one of the connected devices would show up. The device that was output from a given scan was not random, but rather the first device connected to the hub. Unplugging this device causes the calculator to recognize it as empty, even though there are other devices connected, and unplugging all devices "resets" this mechanism so that the next device connected to the hub will show up on the calculator. Moreover, keeping the hub plugged in crashes the calculator after a few seconds (often the moment the "low battery" message pops up). Is this issue already known and are there any workarounds?