USB Cable Replacement (Serial Device to send Binary Arrays) with Bluetooth - How

[guitar99]

Simply stated I want to replace a USB Cable running from Computer to
> Device (Say a Guitar) where the payload is just Binary Data with
> Bluetooth. I can add Hardware like power and such but really want to
> get the right Development Resources such as Breakout board and
> books.
>
> I like to use C# but can use anything like VB etc.
>
> I've programmed some Bluetooth but more like LTE (Smart) not SSP or
> whatever stack I need to do this so I'm unsure of the inbetween
> getting form Serial (Virtual Serial?) inside the Application to
> Device/Guitar this is now working with USB (So must be Serial ??) I
> don't know.
>
> I would appreciate it if you can point me in the right direction.
> Code examples are keen.

[Jan Axelson]

With a few exceptions, every USB communication is between a host and a device. The host contains hardware and programming for accessing devices, and the the device contains hardware and programming for communicating with the host.

On power up or attachment, the device sends a series of data structures called descriptors that specify what USB class or vendor driver the host must support if it wants to communicate.

Windows Device Manager will tell you what driver the guitar is using. If the interface appears as a serial (COM) port, Windows is using a USB virtual serial port driver. Otherwise, check the Driver entry for the device.

If you want to replace the guitar's USB interface with Bluetooth, a USB/Bluetooth adapter will give you Bluetooth on the PC.

But the guitar's USB interface is expecting to attach to a USB host. So you will need to develop an adapter that contains (1) USB host hardware and programming for communicating with the guitar's USB device port, (2) a Bluetooth interface that can communicate with the PC's Bluetooth port, and (3) programming inside the adapter to send received USB data to the Bluetooth port and send received Bluetooth data to the USB port.

If the guitar already has a Bluetooth interface, or a serial port, or if you are developing the guitar and can add a Bluetooth interface directly, you won't have to do the USB conversion.

For more about USB hosts in small devices, see:

http://janaxelson.com/embedded_host.htm