Suggestions on reading I2C on a Mac

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I would like to communicate with a MEGA8-AI over its I2C port. Can this be done on a Mac? I've heard of the Aardvark host adapter but it is $250. It comes with software for OS X. I'm kind of new at this - I hope there is a cheaper way. Thanks.
 

I actually use TotalPhase equipment including the Aardvark, it's very well designed and supported.


However, if you have a limited budget you could certainly design your own Aardvark like device.

Select a microcontroller which has an embedded USB module and essentially write an app which acts as a bridge between the I2C and USB.

You will also need to write a MAC based app to interpret/send/receive the data.


Of course if this is too challenging a project, you could opt for a Bus Pirate

At around $30, it analyzes not only I2C, but 1-Wire, SPI, UART, JTAG and more.

Sparkfun Bus Pirate


I have a Bus Pirate and it performs quite well. There are a number of open source projects which allow it to do numerous tasks, including a logic analyzer.


BigDog
 

Wow, good information. Regarding software, what would I use on a Mac for the Bus Pirate? Would I use the Terminal program? I have never used Terminal to talk to a USB port. Do I need unix-type commands to establish communication? I know these are very basic questions - thanks for your patience.
 

The Bus Pirate USB interface emulates a standard serial port, therefore any terminal emulator application would work.

I'm not familiar enough with the current MAC OS's to suggest a terminal emulator, I typically use Putty.

And while it is open source, I'm not sure if Putty offers a MAC OS version.

The Bus Pirate accepts textual commands.

BigDog
 

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