Ali Slim's Ollie v2 Is a More Compact, USB Type-C-Equipped Safe-by-Design Serial Gadget
New, smaller layout brings with it new features and a healthier supply chain — though there are some downgrades, too.
Australian engineer Ali Slim is back with a new take on the isolated multi-protocol serial dongle, Ollie — launching a crowdfunding campaign for the Ollie v2, with USB Type-C connectivity and a more compact design.
"Ollie v2 is an isolated, multi-function interface module and USB-to-isolated-UARTx2/CAN/RS485/RS232 converter," Slim writes of his latest creation, brought to our attention by CNX Software. "This versatile device combines our most commonly used interface modules into one safe, reliable, compact, and affordable package. Ollie v2 prioritizes safety through isolation, which will save your computer from damage if things go wrong when you’re interfacing with high voltage devices."
Slims' original Ollie board launched in mid-2020, promising a multi-functional isolated interface to talk UART, CAN, RS485, or RS232 from any computer's USB port. The Ollie v2 is, unsurprisingly, an evolution of this — moving from a micro-USB connector to the newer USB Type-C standard, offering the ability to set the voltage level of the UART connection based on the target's needs, a more compact design, an RGB activity LED for serial activity, and some component changes offering a more "resilient supply chain."
There are, however, a few losses in the move from the original version to v2. The new Ollie lacks support for USB Full Speed downstream targets, with Slim claiming that "most modern debuggers such as STLINK-V3 only support USB High Speed" connectivity. The more compact design also lacks an isolated power output, and the maximum data rate from the UART buses has been halved from 12Mb/s to 6Mb/s.
The device's full feature list includes two isolated UART ports with a 6Mb/s data rate and 1.8V, 3.3V, 5V, or "target voltage" operation, CAN 2.0A/B up to 1Mb/s with SocketCAN support and bus monitoring, RS485 at up to 500kb/s, and RS232 at up to 235kb/s. For those who need it, there's also an optional DB9 connector board for the CAN, RS485, and RS232 interfaces.
The crowdfunding campaign for the Ollie v2 is now live on Crowd Supply, with hardware priced at $60 plus $10 for the optional DB9 board; all hardware is expected to ship in mid-December.