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SparkFun Thing Plus Dual-Port Logging Shield

SparkFun Thing Plus Dual-Port Logging Shield allows accessing the microSD card over both SPI and USB-C. This board is designed to be mounted on or under one of the Thing Plus boards. An ATtiny841 microcontroller on this board acts as an arbiter that automatically puts the Dual-Port Logging shield into SPI mode. ATtiny841 will put the shield into SDIO "thumb drive" mode. The Arduino code can access the microSD card normally by powering the shield from the computer and connecting it via USB-C. Data can be logged and read from the microSD card over SPI using the Arduino SD library. This dual port logging shield features footprint and breakout pins, a USB2241 ultra-fast USB 2.0 media controller, and a push-push microSD socket. The logging shield is ideally used in power source voltage sensing and power LED (configurable).

The USB2241 provides the USB interface with a fully integrated single chip solution that is capable of ultra-high-performance operation and supports FAT32, exFAT, and NTFS on cards up to 32GB. Cards larger than 32GB are not supported. Average sustained transfer rates exceeding 35MB/s are possible. The media and host can support those rates and this USB224 includes provisions to read/write and secure media formats.

Features

  • Thing Plus/Feather-compatible footprint and breakout pins
  • Push-push microSD socket
  • Simple I2C command set to switch modes and set the default mode
  • ATtiny841 microcontroller:
    • The ATtiny841 acts as an arbiter and can put the shield into either SPI or SDIO ("thumb drive") mode
  • Power source voltage sensing
  • Activity LED (for SDIO "thumb drive" mode)
  • Power LED (configurable)
  • USB2241 Ultra Fast USB 2.0 media controller:
    • Supports cards up to 32GB
    • Supports FAT32, exFAT, and NTFS
    • Up to 35MBytes/second (card-dependent) read and write speed
    • The board includes solder pads for an optional 24C04 I2C EEPROM

Specifications

  •  Powered by:
    • 3.3V thing plus/feather
    • 5V USB-C
  • Full power control:
    • 300µA sleep current (PWR LED disabled)

Board Dimension

Mechanical Drawing - SparkFun Thing Plus Dual-Port Logging Shield

Videos

Additional Resources

Published: 2022-07-21 | Updated: 2022-09-21