How is the mini USB port?

A personal computer needs to communicate with other devices in a compact and fairly fast I / O port. In due time this function was performed by the so-called COM-port, which has a number of shortcomings. First of all, developers did not suit its size, while speed was receding into the background. Also a good option at that time was the use of LPT, which has remained unchanged until now. This is where the printer connects. Imagine what size a USB flash drive needed to be created in order to use this connector? Nevertheless, it has survived to this day and is characterized by high speed due to the use of a parallel data transfer protocol.

To solve this problem, a so-called mini USB port was created, which is used when working with compact and small-sized devices. They are equipped with mobile phones, video cameras, chargers, programmers, video surveillance systems, etc. Due to its small size, it easily "fits" into the design of these devices and copes well with their duties.

On the principle of the mini USB-port does not differ from its large "colleague". Structurally it is made of two power wires and two, intended for data transmission. The wires are twisted into twisted pairs for Reduce interference during operation. For the same purpose they are placed in a special screen. Typically, the adapter cable is short in length, designed to position the electronic device near the computer. This also has its own meaning. The shorter the connection, the more stable the operation of the mini USB port is in the receive / transmit mode. Since the devices work with low-current circuits, it makes sense to place the cord itself away from network or other sources of interference.

The data transfer protocol is serial, and the process itself is controlled by a special controller. The speed of this method of communication is sufficient to ensure the stable operation of electronics.

The power wires embedded in the mini USB connection perform two useful functions at once:

• First, they stabilize the process of data transmission. This is due to the fact, That the magnetic field, which creates a twisted pair from the power source, has a constant component. It prevents the penetration of foreign interference into the "information" wires.
• Secondly, the mini USB connector allows you to "power" low-power devices, for example, recharge your mobile phone.

An alternative to such a connection is wireless communication, for example, Bluetooth or Red Port, but they all lose wire connection in speed and noise immunity.

A promising trend in the development of a mini USB connection is the development of new controllers that operate at a higher clock speed. This increases the data transfer rate. Further miniaturization will depend on the design features of the instruments. It should also be taken into account that the optimum port sizes are directly related to the maximum current for the power wires. On this depends and the maximum power when recharging electronic devices.