Replacement:BOB-10124. The new revision spaces out the board a bit more and breaks out 4 more pins. This page is for reference only.
This is a breakout board for the SP3485 RS-485 transceiver IC, which will convert a UART serial stream to RS-485. The SP3485 is a half-duplex transceiver, so it can only communicate one way at a time, but it can reach transmission speeds of up to 10Mbps. This board requires a very low amount of power and can operate from a single +3.3VDC supply.
This breakout board includes the SP3485 RS-485 transceiver, filter capacitor, and other components shown on the schematic. We've broken out the RS-485 output to three different connections: (1) an RJ-45 connector, (2) a 3-pin 3.55mm screw terminal, and (3) a 3-pin 0.1" pitch header; none of these output connectors come populated.
Replaces:BOB-09505
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How come there are 2 Ground Pins on this break out ? I am a little confused as to why there is a need for 2 ? One is for the SP3485 chip and the other located on the 3 pin header is for ? Are they shorted together ?
One ground is for the power supply the other is for the cable that leaves the board. It could be done without the second ground, but then an extra wire would need to be run to the power supply ground.
Could this be used to connect an Xbee to an RS-485 connection? Would it be possible to do that directly with this device?
RS-485 is a way of communicating a digital signal one way over a long distance. I use the following IC in my last project that controlled stage lights:
http://www.analog.com/static/imported-files/data_sheets/ADM485.pdf
Also read:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EIA-485
Good question, I also want to know. Someone must has tried this?
found one:
http://real2electronics.blogspot.com/2009/09/arduino-and-rs485-english-version.html
For an embarrassment of riches, Google: rs485 arduino
anybody a good tutorial how to use this one on a arduino?