Nucleus USB Modem Communication Class Driver Eases Migration For Legacy Modem Applications

Mobile, AL - Accelerated Technology, a Mentor Graphics division announced the Nucleus USB Modem Communication class driver, an extension to its popular Nucleus USB software. The driver helps embedded developers migrate legacy modem applications and build new devices that use the Universal Serial Bus (USB) standard as a connection medium.

Traditionally, legacy modems are connected to computers via an RS-232 port. Because USB offers a plug-and play interface, higher data transfer rates and greater flexibility in terms of hot-swapping, it is rapidly replacing RS-232 for transmitting data, for example, over telephone or cable lines. However, various carrier modulation standards exist for modems to support specific legacy control signals and state variables. To solve these dependencies, it is important that new modems provide an Abstract Control Model (ACM) type communication class interface to the USB host.

The Nucleus USB Modem Communication class driver incorporates the ACM implementation and is released for use with the Nucleus USB host and function stack, which are both USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 compliant. The Nucleus USB Host Modem Communication class driver enables the embedded host to connect with USB ACM-compliant modem device. The Nucleus USB Function Modem Communication class driver creates the USB ACM-compliant modem device. Typical applications that can use the Nucleus USB Modem Communication class driver to migrate legacy modems to USB include data, fax, voice, cellular and text phone modems.

The Nucleus USB Host Modem Communication class driver works seamlessly with the Nucleus NET protocol stack and the Nucleus Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) software. This allows the embedded USB host to directly communicate with the Internet via a USB CDC-ACM-compliant modem connection.

SOURCE: Mentor Graphics