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I have a BluRay player that can be programmed by accessing to a serial console, as described here.

I have an Arduino (a Seeduino, actually), that has a USB interface. According to Arduino's documentation, pins 0 and 1 are RX and TX. Do these pins bypass from what the computer sends? Can I use the Arduino as a USB to serial interface for what I need?

Nick T
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pgb
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5 Answers5

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Take a look at this post by Ihsan Kehribar: Using Arduino as serial to usb converter

In this post it is shown that you can use the FTDI chip on the Seeeduino as a serial to usb converter, you just need to run a simple sketch to make sure the AVR does not interfere with the RX and TX lines.

Louis Davis
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  • I take it this comes with the normal limitations associated with using the USB->Serial interfaces (ie many PIC boards etc don't play well with them). – Danny Staple Jan 22 '11 at 11:02
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    It worked like a charm! I was able to connect it to my BD player and make it region free. Thank you for the tip! – pgb Jan 22 '11 at 22:10
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    The link seems to be broken now. Any chance you can update it? – Ricardo Jan 16 '14 at 10:58
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    The link above does not work anymore. Does anyone have the details? I looked at an Archive copy of the site but one of the pictures are missing. https://web.archive.org/web/20110207183541/http://students.sabanciuniv.edu/kehribar/?p=19 – Bertus Kruger Jan 21 '15 at 21:44
  • I think these are the images absent from the archive.org page: [Arduino Duemilanove Schematic](http://arduino-info.wikispaces.com/file/view/arduino-duemilanove-schematic.jpg) and [Seeeduino](http://cdn.instructables.com/FFY/ZO10/GC4G97XR/FFYZO10GC4G97XR.MEDIUM.jpg) – Inactivist Mar 08 '15 at 08:35
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The Arduino has only one UART, so it can't act as a bridge between the computer and the Blu-Ray. I don't speak Polish, but from what I can tell on the site you'll have a lot more luck just using an FTDI USB->serial cable and connecting to the header. I recommend the TTL-232RG-VIP-WE from FTDI, found here: http://www.ftdichip.com/Products/Cables/USBTTLSerial.htm

This is a wire-ended cable, so you'll need to attach some sort of header to it to be able to interface physically to the Blu-Ray, and you'll also need a connection to VCC and ground (so the cable can detect the proper voltage levels). Then you just have to make sure that the computer's RX is connected to the Blu-Ray player's TX and the Blu-Ray player's RX is connected to the computer's RX. Then use a serial terminal program to connect and go crazy.

AngryEE
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  • There are a few bit-bang serial libraries: [SoftSerial](http://www.arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/SoftwareSerial), [NewSoftSerial](http://arduiniana.org/libraries/NewSoftSerial/). – tyblu Jan 22 '11 at 01:20
  • But why add the complexity? The cable I linked to will work for any voltage level and you can connect it directly to a computer. There's no real reason to include an Arduino unless you don't want to buy the cable. And if you use the Arduino you have to ensure that voltage levels are correct. I just think the cable is a simpler solution. – AngryEE Jan 22 '11 at 16:18
  • AngryEE: hobbyists prefer doing things the hard way. – Jeanne Pindar Mar 01 '13 at 23:32
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I connected my Arduino board (without AVR chip) to my router without hassle. Arduino works at 5V (USB ofc) and router 3.3V. It works with no problem whatsoever, I just connected TX, RX and GND (no VCC)

Oh, router model is WR741ND v4.3

Ko Bi
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  • I was attempting to do the same thing, but before I connected the Arduino to the router I read the voltage of the TX pin on the Arduino as 4.5v. I don't want to fry my router. :( – Jonathan Mar 25 '13 at 02:37
  • You have to risk it to get the biscuit. Also, you can power up AVR chip of 3.3V, don't know how to do this on Arduino though. – Ko Bi Apr 23 '13 at 13:42
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Yes, You may use a proper Arduino as an expensive USB to serial converter. Better way would be to buy a USB to serial converter from ebay for less than $3.

Chetan Bhargava
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On mega2560 you can ground reset and bypass avr and use arduino as bridge

som_si_vymyslel
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