Development of a bidirectional I2C to UART Converter for sensor communication

Abstract

This thesis proposes the development of two enhanced versions of an existing UART/I2C converter board used for sensor testing. The current board has problems with inflexibility, communication errors, and limited baud rate options. Also, an external power supply for the sensor is necessary. The project involves the design and implementation of two versions of a circuit board aimed at facilitating data communication between devices. One version is powered by an external 24V power supply, while the other version utilizes power from the handshake lines (RTS, DTR) of the RS232 interface, with a backup option of USB power supply. A software was developed to facilitate the seamless conversion of commands between UART and I²C protocols bidirectionally. It closely mirrors the communication protocol of the old adapter to ensure seamless interchangeability without modifications to the evaluation software on the PC. Numerous tests were conducted to assess the reliability of the adapter, including examinations of its tolerance for incorrect inputs. Additionally, long-term testing was performed to evaluate its overall reliability. The integrity and response time of the adapter were also analyzed. The results were compared with those of the old adapter. In summary, it can be said that the newly developed adapter is slightly superior to the old one in terms of reliability and integrity. The adapter scores point above all for its high flexibility, compact design, and galvanic isolation. However, it has been found that the newly developed adapter responds somewhat slower to commands than the old adapter.

Date of Award	Jun 2024
Original language	English
Supervisor	Andreas Schrempf (Supervisor)