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ESH10000359 - Communication Module

Product Brief

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ESH10000359 is the communication and control module for your Accordion. It acts as the central coordination point between the host system and all peripheral modules.

The module provides configurable communication interfaces (I²C, UART, SPI, JTAG), voltage generation for attached buses, multi‑purpose analogue/digital I/O, fan control, status indication via RGB LEDs, and synchronized numeric data acquisition.

Typical use cases include:

  • PCBA bring‑up, boundary, and functional testing during NPI and production

  • Serving as a protocol hub controlling and powering DUT‑side interfaces

  • Environmental monitoring and thermal management inside test fixtures

  • High‑speed analogue sampling for leakage, rail monitoring, and sensor evaluation

The module is designed to be fully software‑defined and operated through Accordion APIs from C#, Python, or test frameworks.


Datasheet

Parameter

Specification

Module type

N5 TOP communication and control

Communication interfaces

2× I²C, UART (RS232), SPI, JTAG

I²C enable & pull‑ups

Per‑channel, software‑controlled

UART default

/dev/serial0, 9600 baud

Analogue / DAC resolution

12‑bit

Analogue voltage range

0–5 V (double ADC/DAC range enabled)

Analogue channels

4× VOUT, 4× MPIO

Pseudo‑digital support

Yes (MPIO, VL/VH thresholds)

Special I/O modes

Open‑drain, float (MPIO)

Fan control

2× PWM, tachometer feedback

Fan controllers

2× MAX6650


Manual

System overview

ESH10000359 is typically installed as the top module (ModuleIndex = 15). All user‑accessible channels follow the naming scheme:

{ModuleIndex}.ESH10000359.{ChannelName}

Example:

15.ESH10000359.I2C1

Communication interfaces

I²C

  • Two independent I²C channels

  • Each channel has:

    • Enable control (I2C1_EN, I2C2_EN)

    • Software‑controlled pull‑ups (I2C1_PU, I2C2_PU)

    • Dedicated voltage output (I2C1_VOUT, I2C2_VOUT)

Recommended sequence:

  1. Set VOUT to required bus voltage

  2. Enable pull‑ups if needed

  3. Enable I²C channel

  4. Execute transactions

UART

  • RS232 signalling

  • Automatically enabled on access

  • Baudrate configurable in software

  • Dedicated voltage output (UART_VOUT)

SPI and JTAG

  • Shared voltage output (SPI_JTAG_VOUT)

  • Explicit enable required (SPI_EN, JTAG_EN)


Analogue and digital I/O

VOUT channels

  • Output‑only

  • Used to supply communication buses or DUT rails

  • 0–5 V range

Channels:

  • I2C1_VOUT

  • I2C2_VOUT

  • UART_VOUT

  • SPI_JTAG_VOUT

MPIO channels

  • Bidirectional

  • Operate in:

    • Analogue mode (ADC/DAC)

    • Pseudo‑digital mode (threshold‑based)

Pseudo‑digital behaviour is defined using VL and VH thresholds. Special modes:

  • Open‑drain: VH < 0

  • Floating output: VL < 0

Use cases:

  • GPIO emulation

  • Voltage sensing

  • Presence and leakage detection


Fan control

  • Two independent fans

  • Ratiometric speed control (0.0–1.0)

  • Configurable maximum RPM per fan

  • Tachometer feedback available for runtime verification

Channels per fan:

  • FANx

  • FANx_MAX_RPM

  • FANx_FREQ

Use FAN_INHIBITn to disable fans at hardware level.


LED status indication

  • Eight RGB LEDs mapped to system functions

  • Colour controlled by named colours or hex values

  • Global luminance control

LEDs:

  • I2C1, I2C2, UART, SPI, JTAG

  • POWER

  • FAN

  • ADCIO

Intended for operator feedback and fast diagnostics during production.


Numeric result acquisition

  • High‑speed, synchronized sampling from analogue channels

  • Supports multi‑channel acquisition

  • Optional reduced result set for large data volumes

Typical usage:

  • Leakage testing

  • Rail stability checks

  • Sensor characterization

Results are transferred as base64‑encoded numeric sets.


Error handling

The module validates:

  • Channel existence

  • Voltage threshold limits

  • Threshold ordering (VH > VL)

  • Colour formatting

Communication and bus errors are returned to the caller and should be handled at test‑step level.


Pinout

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Pin
Name
Type
Description
EXTPWR_1
20V
Power
20V always on, 0.5A thermal fuse
EXTPWR_3
12V
Power
12V always on, 0.5A thermal fuse
EXTPWR_5
5V
Power
5V always on, 0.5A thermal fuse
EXTPWR_7
3V3
Power
3V3 always on, 0.5A thermal fuse
EXTPWR_2, 4, 6, 8
GND
Power
Ground reference
FAN[1|2]_1
PWM
Output
PWM output to fan
FAN[1|2]_2
VFAN
Power
Switchable fan power, selectable 5V/12V
FAN[1|2]_3
TACH
Input
Tachometer input
FAN[1|2]_4
N.C
-
No connect
I2C[1|2]_1
SDA
Bidirectional
SDA signal of I2C bus. Can switch in/out pull-up resistor 1k to VI2C
I2C[1|2]_2
VI2C
Power
Programmable I2C power output 0-5V
I2C[1|2]_3
SCL
Output
SCL signal of I2C bus. Can switch in/out pull-up resistor 1k to VI2C
I2C[1|2]_4
GND
Power
Ground reference
ADCIO_1,2
5V
Power
5V always on, 0.5A thermal fuse
ADCIO_3
MPIO2
Bidirectional
Programmable analog/pseudo-digital 0-5V
ADCIO_4
MPIO1
Bidirectional
Programmable analog/pseudo-digital 0-5V
ADCIO_5
MPIO4
Bidirectional
Programmable analog/pseudo-digital 0-5V
ADCIO_6
MPIO0
Bidirectional
Programmable analog/pseudo-digital 0-5V
ADCIO_7,8
GND
Power
Ground reference
SPI_1
SCK
Output
SPI Clock
SPI_2,4,8,10
GND
Power
Ground reference
SPI_3
CS0
Output
SPI Chip Select 0
SPI_5
SDI
Input
SPI Serial Data In
SPI_6
VSPI/JTAG
Power
Programmable output power 0-5V. Note, shared between JTAG and UART
SPI_7
SDO
Output
SPI Serial Data Out
SPI_9
CS1
Output
SPI Chip Select 1
JTAG_1
TCK
Output
JTAG Test Clock
JTAG_2,4,8
GND
Power
Ground reference
JTAG_3
TMS
Output
JTAG Test Mode Select
JTAG_5
TDI
Input
JTAG Test Data In
JTAG_6
VSPI/JTAG
Power
Programmable output power 0-5V. Note, shared between JTAG and UART
JTAG_7
TDO
Output
JTAG Test Data Out
JTAG_9,10
N.C
-
No connect
UART_1
RxD
Input
Receive Data
UART_2
VUART
Power
Programmable output power 0-5V
UART_3
RTS
Input
Ready to Send
UART_4
CTS
Output
Clear to Send
UART_5
TxD
Output
Transmit Data
UART_6
GND
Power
Ground reference