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BOOST-IR: Query about Infrared BoosterPack

Part Number: BOOST-IR

Dear all TI Engineers,

I am interested in this bundle of MSP430 and IR Boostpack.

Now, my question is: do I have to buy 2 IR boostpacks in order to test their communication?

  • It's not a requirement, but you'll probably find it convenient to have two devices that are pretty much guaranteed to talk to one another out of the box, particularly if you are new to these kinds of protocols.

    It's possible to manage with only one. You may have an old IR TV remote that can talk to it, but those things aren't typically marked with their protocols (and there are many), so you'd spend a long time guessing. The decoder is software, so you could write your own, but that's not really "out of the box".

    As I recall there's a "protocol learning" program in the Examples (I haven't tried it). You could presumably teach the BOOST the protocol from your TV's remote , then use that to talk to your TV.

    In my case (I bought only one, an impulse buy) I read the TI sample code to deduce the protocol, pulled a TSOP38 IR decoder chip out of my gizmo box, plugged that into another board I had at hand, and wrote a little decoder program. That's doable, though kinda the long way around.

    So if it won't damage your budget, I'd suggest two. And they appear to be on sale (-30%?) this week, with free shipping. [Coupon code KILBY17. Don't tell anyone I told you.]

    PS: I don't work for TI, but I think they make some good toys, er, tools.

  • Dear Bruce,
    Thanks for your detailed explanation. I have already put one bundle into my cart. They are very cheap this week, only US$16.55.

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