GP32 Using Usb Port To Talk To Usb Flash Drive

[HalfNelson]

Hi guys,
Just wondering if the GP32 is able to talk to its usb port and if it would be possible hardware wise for a programmer to write an application for the GP32 that can copy from a USB flash drive on the usb port to the smc?

 

[Akuma no Houkon]

Not unless the flash drive was self powered. (i.e. a plug or battery power)

And even then there are a hundred variables to take into account, such as who is going to write the driver, how are you going to get the usb drive to act as a host? And many more.

Now I am not a hardware guy in the least bit, but I dont think you will ever get a usb drive functioning with the GP32.

 

[khephren]

GP 32 functions as an unpowered host-anything plugged in needs it's own power supply, and as Akuma points out, a driver as well.

 

[wave]

With linux and a powered device maybe we could.

 

[Octavious]

well, power wouldnt be hard, and if someone made a USB port driver, then the gp32 would rock... ( 512 megs of space..... ahhh )

~Octavious

 

[HalfNelson]

Unpowered for usb means 100mA or less
i assume that the Worm light uses this 100mA for its light. I found a usb pen drive that uses less than the specified 100mA

http://www.memorysuppliers.com/leaddriv12us.html

now i suppose just a driver is needed?

 

[Octavious]

sweet it uses 3.3 volt
now we just need to make a usb input that goes around back of case to be descrete
and a driver
well, I think I might playaround with the USB thing If I can get a ext cord, but I dont know what cord to what pin on the 32
any good programmers, would this be easier or harder than the chatboard driver was?

~Octavious

 

[cyberic]

About the power issue, couldn't we use a USB hub to power the devices?

I know it won't be really moveable anymore, but will it work?

 

[HalfNelson]

Just checked out the spec on the chip used in the GP32. It certainly seems capable only that the people at Gamepark did no provide us with an OpenHCI driver, hence no usb stack. Looking at the linux usb stack and the OpenHCI spec, it shouldn't be too hard to write a driver for the OpenHCI then in turn write a usb library for writing a mass storage driver. So the steps would be

1. Write OpenHCI driver for the Host Controller on the GP32
2. Write a USB library to make using the OpenHCI easier
3. Write a Mass Storage Driver using the USB Library

now since OpenHCI is a standard in wide use, porting step 2 and step 3
should not be too hard from a embedded linux source.
Step 1 should also be able to be ported since OpenHCI is merely a set of
registers and shared memory the only differences in implementations would be the address of the registers and shared memory.