Cross Platform RS485 Communication Between a X86 PC and a Microcontroller Using C#

In this instructable, we will learn to build and program a

RS485 communication network between a x86 PC and a microcontroller board .

The Full article along with Source Codes ,Circuit Diagram etc can be found here.

The USB to RS485 Converterand the MSP430 Booster Pack for RS485 Communication are

available online for purchase from our online store.

PC side

On the PC side we are using a USB to RS485 converter to convert the USB signal to RS485 compatible signal.The PC side software is written in CSharp (C#) and is targeted to run on both Linux and Windows operating systems.

On the Microcontroller side

you can use any microcontroller with a built in UART like 8051,PIC ,MSP430 or LPC2148.The UART should be interfaced with a MAX485 RS485 decoder chip.The connection diagram is available here

Here we are using MSP430 Launchpad (MSP430G2553) as the microcontroller .

Step 1: Required Materials

For this Instructables you will require the following things

1) USB to RS485 Converter like USB2SERIAL

2) Microcontroller (MSP430,8051,PIC or LPC2148)

3) MAX485 chip (RS485 Decoder )

4) ProtoBoard

5) Wires

6) Terminal Block Connectors

7) MSP430 Motor Control /RS485 communication Booster Pack

(optional ,If you don't want to build the MAX485 interfacing Circuit and you are planning on using MSP430 Launchpad as the Microcontroller Platform)

The USB to RS485 Converter and the MSP430 Booster Pack for RS485 Communication are available online for purchase from our online store.