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FrX · 11-09-2013, 12:58 PM

You can obtain a copy of the J2534 spec here:

https://law.resource.org/pub/us/cfr/...j2534.2002.pdf

You would probably be surprised how little difference there is between, say an EcuTek cable and one of the Chinese Clone MVCI cables.

The EcuTek cables (and the Ross-Tech and Bavarian Technic) are all made my a company called Sensolutions. They include an Atmel MCU, FTDI USB controller, and a set of the Microchip CAN controller and transceiver pair.

The Chinese MVCI cables contain an NXP LPC MCU with a built-in CAN controller, an FTDI USB controller and a CAN transceiver.

Theoretically the Chinese clone cables are perfectly capable of the speeds any of the other hardware gives you. However, the software and firmware they provide is buggy and does not fully meet the J2534 spec. Only a bare minimum of the API is provided. Not to mention that it is stolen/cloned from a previously legitimate source who has since stopped development. You are not going to see any bug fixes or help for your problems, ever.

One interesting aspect of the Chinese cables is that the reset and ISP programming pins are connected correctly to the FTDI chip. You can successfully have the device enter the ISP mode and respond to queries. The current firmware is protected, but it may be possible to overwrite it with your own. I have not tried that yet, though.

In regards to working with your own hardware, which is appealing because all the current players are full of lock-down, I like the new TI Stellaris/Tiva chips. They include both USB and CAN on-board (still need the transceiver IC, a Microchip MCP2551 or NXP TJA1051 work well). They also have 4 UART controllers, so you can tap into both K-Line ports too. The Launchpad is a nice development platform, too.

11-09-2013, 12:58 PM	#239
FrX Senior Member Join Date: May 2012 Drives: 2013 Scion FR-S, 1993 Lexus SC300 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 411 Thanks: 284 Thanked 175 Times in 102 Posts Mentioned: 5 Post(s)	You can obtain a copy of the J2534 spec here: https://law.resource.org/pub/us/cfr/...j2534.2002.pdf You would probably be surprised how little difference there is between, say an EcuTek cable and one of the Chinese Clone MVCI cables. The EcuTek cables (and the Ross-Tech and Bavarian Technic) are all made my a company called Sensolutions. They include an Atmel MCU, FTDI USB controller, and a set of the Microchip CAN controller and transceiver pair. The Chinese MVCI cables contain an NXP LPC MCU with a built-in CAN controller, an FTDI USB controller and a CAN transceiver. Theoretically the Chinese clone cables are perfectly capable of the speeds any of the other hardware gives you. However, the software and firmware they provide is buggy and does not fully meet the J2534 spec. Only a bare minimum of the API is provided. Not to mention that it is stolen/cloned from a previously legitimate source who has since stopped development. You are not going to see any bug fixes or help for your problems, ever. One interesting aspect of the Chinese cables is that the reset and ISP programming pins are connected correctly to the FTDI chip. You can successfully have the device enter the ISP mode and respond to queries. The current firmware is protected, but it may be possible to overwrite it with your own. I have not tried that yet, though. In regards to working with your own hardware, which is appealing because all the current players are full of lock-down, I like the new TI Stellaris/Tiva chips. They include both USB and CAN on-board (still need the transceiver IC, a Microchip MCP2551 or NXP TJA1051 work well). They also have 4 UART controllers, so you can tap into both K-Line ports too. The Launchpad is a nice development platform, too.