Technical details to understand USB 3.0 and 2.0 spec requirements, design compatible products, download developer-related PDFs, and more.
What is Universal Serial Bus (USB)?
USB Universal Serial Bus is a connection standard used by computers and other devices like smartphones, flash drives, cameras, etc. Here s more.
Short for Universal Serial Bus, an external bus standard that supports data transfer rates of 12 Mbps. A single USB port can be used to connect up to 127 peripheral devices, such as mice, modems, and keyboards. USB also supports Plug-and-Play installation and hot plugging . Starting in 1996, a few computer manufacturers started including USB support in their new machines. It wasn't until the release of the best-selling iMac in 1998 that USB became widespread.
Computer dictionary definition for what USB Universal Serial Bus means including related links, information, and terms.
Short for Universal Serial Bus, an external bus standard that supports data transfer rates of 12 Mbps.
USB – Universal Serial Bus 3.0 and 2.0 Specifications
USB 3.0 specification > Provides technical details necessary to understand USB 3.0 requirements and design USB 3.0-compatible products. USB 3.0 internal connector and cable specification > Describes the internal cable interface for USB 3.0 connections in a desktop—focusing on the electrical and mechanical requirements of the connector—and cable assembly. The detailed daughter card or direct-cable implementation is out of the scope of this documentation. PHY interface for the PCI Express* and USB 3.0 architecture specification > This is a final version of the physical layer (PHY) interface for PCI Express* (PIPE) and USB 3.0 architectures specification that supports PCI Express* and USB 3.0 architectures. The PIPE specification describes a standardized interface between PHY and media access control (MAC) implementations for PCIe* Gen2 and USB 3.0. This document can be used for both discrete PHY parts and for PHYs that are foundry macrocell implementations. eXtensible Host Controller Interface for USB (xHCI) > This specification describes the register-level host controller interface for all USB speeds and includes a description of the hardware/software interface between the system software and the host controller hardware. The specification is intended for hardware component designers, system builders, and device driver (software) developers. The reader is expected to be familiar with the current USB specification revisions. Adopters can demonstrate compliance of their product(s) with the adopters agreement. USB Type-C Connector System Software Interface (UCSI) > This specification describes the registers and data structures used to interface with the USB Type-C connectors on a system. The system software component is referred to as the OS Policy Manager (OPM) in this specification. This specification is intended for hardware component designers, system builders and device driver (software) developers. The reader is expected to be familiar with USB Type-C and USB Power Delivery (PD) specifications. In spite of due diligence, there may exist conflicts between this specification and either one or both of the above mentioned specifications. In such cases the USB Type-C and USB Power Delivery (PD) take precedence. Adopters can demonstrate compliance of their product(s) with the adopter’s agreement . USB 2.0 USB 2.0 specification > (download from the USB-IF website): Technical details necessary to understand USB 2.0 requirements and to design USB 2.0-compatible products. On-the-go supplement to the USB 2.0 specification > These specifications address the need for portable devices to communicate with each other and with USB peripherals when a PC is not available. Enhanced host controller interface (EHCI) compliance testing program > The EHCI compliance testing program measures an EHCI controller implementation for conformance to the EHCI specification and evaluates the functionality of the EHCI controller function of a USB 2.0 host controller. It does not evaluate the functionality of the USB companion controllers. USB 2.0 Transceiver Macrocell Interface (UTMI) > The UTMI specification covers the physical interface and many operational aspects of the USB 2.0 Transceiver Macrocell (UTM). The intent of the UTMI is to accelerate USB 2.0 High-speed, Full-speed, and Low-speed peripheral development. This document defines an interface to which ASIC and peripheral vendors can develop. ASIC vendors and foundries will implement the UTM and add it to their device libraries. Peripheral and IP vendors will be able to develop their designs, insulated from the high-speed and analog circuitry issues associated with the USB 2.0 interface, thus minimizing the time and risk of their development cycles.
USB was developed by Compaq, Digital Equipment Corp, IBM PC Co., Intel, Microsoft, NEC and Northern Telecom. Becoming standard on motherboards, OS support.
Overview provides information on Universal Serial Bus technology, including market growth, industry standards, wireless extensions, and future uses.
Stands for Universal Serial Bus. USB is the most common type of computer port used in today s computers. It can be used to connect keyboards, mice, game controllers.