pd-buddy-firmware/docs/console_config.md

PD Buddy Sink Serial Console Configuration Interface

Version 1.0.0, 2017-06-05

The PD Buddy Sink can be put into setup mode by holding the Setup button while plugging it into a computer. In this mode, the device does not perform any USB Power Delivery communications, instead running a configuration console over a USB CDC-ACM virtual serial port. This allows the user to change the voltage and current the Sink requests, as well as other settings related to the device’s operation.

Quick Start

Connecting to the Configuration Console

Connect to the PD Buddy Sink with your favorite serial console program, such as GNU Screen, Minicom, or PuTTY. On Linux, the device file will probably be something like /dev/ttyACM0. Any baud rate will work, as USB CDC-ACM doesn’t care what it’s set to. After connecting, press Enter and you should be greeted with a PDBS) prompt.

View the Saved Configuration

To see the configuration the device already has, run get_cfg:

PDBS) get_cfg
status: valid
flags: (none)
v: 9.00 V
i: 3.00 A

If the Sink has no configuration, this will simply print No configuration.

Setting Voltage and Current

The set_v and set_i commands allow you to set the voltage and current the Sink will request. The units used are millivolts and milliamperes. For example, to configure the device to request 2.25 A at 20 V, run the following commands:

PDBS) set_v 20000
PDBS) set_i 2250

Reviewing Configuration Changes

The changes made so far are held temporarily in RAM. To review the temporary configuration buffer, run get_tmpcfg:

PDBS) get_tmpcfg
status: valid
flags: (none)
v: 20.00 V
i: 2.25 A

Saving Configuration

The configuration buffer must be written to flash for the device to actually request the selected voltage and current. To do this, run:

PDBS) write

As soon as the prompt reappears after running write, the changes have been stored to flash, which can be verified with get_cfg. The Sink may be safely unplugged at any time.

Commands

Commands are echoed on the terminal as characters are received. Lines are separated by \r\n and a command’s output ends with the PDBS) prompt.

The command buffer can be cleared by sending ^D (a \x04 character). It is recommended to do this at the start of programmatic communications to ensure that the first command sent will be correctly processed.

help

Usage: help

Prints short help messages about all available commands.

license

Usage: license

Prints licensing information for the firmware.

erase

Usage: erase

Synchronously erases all stored configuration from flash. This can be used to restore a device to its default state.

Note: The erase command is mainly intended for development and testing. Stored configuration is automatically erased if necessary when write is run, and wear leveling is performed as well. Unless you really know what you’re doing, there should be no reason to ever run erase.

write

Usage: write

Synchronously writes the contents of the configuration buffer to flash. Wear leveling is done to ensure long flash life, and the flash sector is automatically erased if necessary.

load

Usage: load

Loads the current configuration from flash into the buffer. Useful if you want to change some settings while leaving others alone. If there is no configuration, No configuration is printed instead.

get_cfg

Usage: get_cfg [index]

If no index is provided, prints the current configuration from flash. If there is no configuration, No configuration is printed instead.

For developers: if an index is provided, prints a particular location in the configuration flash sector. If the index lies outside the configuration flash sector, Invalid index is printed instead.

get_tmpcfg

Usage: get_tmpcfg

Prints the contents of the configuration buffer.

clear_flags

Usage: clear_flags

Clears all the flags in the configuration buffer.

toggle_giveback

Usage: toggle_giveback

Toggles the GiveBack flag in the configuration buffer. GiveBack allows the power supply to temporarily remove power from the Sink’s output if another device needs more power. Recommended if the Sink is being used to charge a battery.

set_v

Usage: set_v voltage_in_mV

Sets the voltage of the configuration buffer, in millivolts.

Note: values are rounded down to the nearest Power Delivery voltage unit (50 mV).

set_i

Usage: set_i current_in_mA

Sets the current of the configuration buffer, in milliamperes.

Note: values are rounded down to the nearest Power Delivery current unit (10 mA).

identify

Usage: identify

Blinks the LED quickly. Useful for identifying which device you’re connected to if several are plugged in to your computer at once.

Configuration Format

Wherever a configuration object is printed, the following format is used.

The configuration consists of a number of fields, one per line. Each field is of the format:

name: value

Only the status field is mandatory. Any or all other fields may be absent if their values are not valid or relevant.

status

The status field holds the name of the status of the printed configuration object. The possible names are:

• empty: A configuration object left empty after the last erase.
• valid: The configuration object that holds the current device settings.
• invalid: A configuration object that once held settings, but has been superseded.

flags

The flags field holds zero or more flags. If no flags are enabled, the field’s value is (none). Otherwise, the field’s value is some combination of the following words, separated by spaces, representing the flags enabled in this configuration object:

• GiveBack: allows the power supply to temporarily reduce power to the device if necessary.

v

The v field holds the fixed voltage of the configuration object, in volts. The field’s value is a floating-point decimal number, followed by a space and a capital V. For example: 20.00 V

i

The i field holds the fixed current of the configuration object, in amperes. The field’s value is a floating-point decimal number, followed by a space and a capital A. For example: 2.25 A

USB Descriptors

The PD Buddy Sink can be identified by the following USB device descriptors:

• idVendor: 0x1209 (InterBiometrics, or pid.codes)
• idProduct: 0x9DB5 (PD Buddy Sink)

The device’s firmware version number is given in the iSerial descriptor. The version number follows Semantic Versioning. The serial console configuration interface is the API that the version number describes.