Kinetis host realtek wifi usb driver

[rogerfl]

I'm thinking of developing a host driver for the realtek wifi dongles (search RTL8188CUS on ebay for example) as a low cost way of adding a low-cost, bare metal wifi alternative for Kinetis applications.  Use the Freescale Host USB stack? Is this feasible? I'm thinking of sharing it or making it open source if anyone else is interested in this project. For my own application, I'd install the dongle inside the enclosure. Feedback?

[kai_liu]

Update:

I attached my collections for your reference. Up to now, I can only find datasheet for RT3070L and RTL8187, instead of popular RTL8188CUS. It is really stranger since they still consider them as confidential. Even these PDF files have not reveal enough information. so we have to check driver source code and cross checking. If someone really wants to do it. he should contact supplier to sign an NDA to access enough information, including but not limited to EEPROM programmer, STA/AP switching......

I usually probe USB devices in user mode with PyUSB or libUSB to interactive with their EPs.

As I mentioned, this project maybe bigger than our though. So collect more and survey in detail may help us to find out how big it is.

I have read GS embedded WiFi module used by Freescale TWR. It has simple strucuture, one link manager, one TX callback, one RX callback. The host communicates with it via AT command over UART, like MODEM.

To keep it as simple and small as possible. We can borrow the structure, and leave callbacks as API. The link manager is useful and must be implemented in first stage. That brings up requirements for console, timer for timeout, NVM storage for SSID. Of course, an open source TCP/IP stack is necessary to offer basic socket communication.

Just simple socket programming interfaces are enough for IoT applications.

Leave WEP/WPA and any advanced features to future release.

Regarding development tool, personally I prefer IAR + KL25Z. However, as an open source, GCC + gdbserver is better.

[kai_liu · Accepted solution]

Hi, Roger

As a start point, we should collect datasheet and open source drivers for USB dongle first. I can not find too many documents in public domain.

Furthermore, we have to do following things:

- Define common platform for development. (MCU/Dongle/Compiler, KL25/K20/K40/K60? IAR/Keil/GCC/CW? )

- Define basic features to be implemented first. (Open/WEP/PSK? TCP/IP? connection daemon? socket? high level FTP/HTTP/Telnet? API interface?)

- Align common interests in open source as well as commercial license.

- Common source code repo.

- More background information, Can they work in F/S USB, instead of H/S USB? Any modification?

Just some ideas about it. I have collected some datasheets for RT3070L/RTL8188 as well as some source code packages. I can share with you. But porting them is not enough.