RS-485: Imported from Wikipedia (overwrite)

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Imported from Wikipedia (overwrite)

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{{Short description|Scottish semiconductor device design company}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2014}}
{{Infobox company
|name = FTDI
|logo = File:Logo of FTDI.png
|caption =
|type = [[Private company|Private]]
|genre =
|fate =
|predecessor =
|successor =
|foundation = 13 March 1992
|founder = Fred Dart
|defunct =
|location_city =
|location_country =
|location = [[Glasgow]], [[Scotland]]
|locations =
|area_served =
|key_people =
|industry = [[Semiconductor industry]]
|products =
|services =
|revenue =
|operating_income =
|net_income =
|aum =
|assets =
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|owner =
|num_employees =
|parent =
|divisions =
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|homepage = {{Official URL}}
|footnotes =
|intl =
}}

'''Future Technology Devices International Limited''', commonly known by its acronym '''FTDI''', is a Scottish privately held [[Fabless manufacturing|fabless]] [[semiconductor device]] company, specialising in [[Universal Serial Bus]] (USB) technology.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ftdichip.com/FTCorporate.htm|title=FTDI Corporate Information|date=5 July 2020 |publisher=}}</ref>

It develops, manufactures, and supports devices and their related cables and software drivers for converting USB signals to and from various protocols, including [[RS-232]]/[[TTL serial]] (to provide support for [[Legacy system|legacy devices]] on modern computers lacking an accessible [[UART]]) and inter-chip [[Bus (computing)|communication bus]] protocols (e.g. [[Serial Peripheral Interface|SPI]], [[I²C]], [[JTAG]], or [[General-purpose input/output|GPIO]]) to interface with chips like [[Microcontroller|microcontrollers]], [[flash memory]], and [[FPGA|FPGAs]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ftdichip.com/FTProducts.htm|title=FTDI Products|publisher=}}</ref>

The company also provides [[application-specific integrated circuit]] (ASIC) design services, and consultancy services for product design, specifically in the realm of electronic devices.

==History==
FTDI was founded on 13 March 1992<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date= |title=Future Technology Devices International Limited |url=https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/SC136640 |access-date=2020-12-11 |website=Companies House |language=en}}</ref> by its current CEO, Fred Dart (whose initials happen to be "FTD"). The company is an indirect descendant of Computer Design Concepts Ltd, a former semiconductor technology startup also founded by Dart.

FTDI's initial products were chipsets for personal computer motherboards, the primary customer of which was [[IBM]], which used them in its [[AMBRA Computer Corporation|AMBRA]] and [[IBM PS/1|PS/1]] personal computers. It later expanded its product line to include interface translators, such as the MM232R and the USB-COM232-PLUS1, along with other devices for converting between USB and other communication protocols.

The headquarters of FTDI is in [[Glasgow]], Scotland. It has offices in Singapore, [[Taipei]] (Taiwan), and [[Portland, Oregon]], and a subsidiary in China.<ref name=":0" /> The company's manufacturing is handled by subcontractors in the Asia-Pacific region.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2012-05-17 |title=FTDI signs global distribution deal with Arrow |url=https://www.newelectronics.co.uk/content/news/ftdi-signs-global-distribution-deal-with-arrow/ |access-date=2023-10-16 |website=New Electronics |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2012-08-02 |title=Embedded World: Altium, FTDI Chip collaborate on new board level components |url=https://www.newelectronics.co.uk/content/news/embedded-world-altium-ftdi-chip-collaborate-on-new-board-level-components/ |access-date=2023-10-16 |website=New Electronics |language=en}}</ref>

In 2012, FTDI signed a global distribution agreement with [[Arrow Electronics]],<ref name=":1" /> which was expanded in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2013-05-07 |title=FTDI Chip expands with Arrow |url=https://evertiq.com/design/29458 |access-date=2024-01-23 |website=evertiq.com |language=en}}</ref> Also in 2012, it began a collaboration with [[Altium]] providing the board level IC components from FTDI for its Altium Designer software.<ref name=":2" /> In 2013 the distribution agreement with Arrow was expanded and FTDI also began a collaboration with [[Mikroelektronika]].<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2013 |title=FTDI Chip expands with Arrow |url=https://evertiq.com/design/29458 |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=evertiq.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2013 |title=FTDI teams up with MikroElektronika |url=https://evertiq.com/design/29221 |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=evertiq.com |language=en}}</ref>

FTDI appointed a new distributor in 2014 for the Chinese market, Shanghai Jing Xi Electronics Information Systems Company Ltd.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014 |title=FTDI appoints new distributor in China |url=https://evertiq.com/design/34459 |access-date=2024-01-23 |website=evertiq.com |language=en}}</ref>

Through a technology partnership in 2014, FTDI and MCCI (USB software developer) released TrueTask USB, an embedded USB host stack for the FTDI FT900 product family.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2014-08-26 |title=FTDI Chip adds embedded USB host stack for FT900 MCU chips |url=https://www.eenewseurope.com/en/ftdi-chip-adds-embedded-usb-host-stack-for-ft900-mcu-chips/ |access-date=2023-11-13 |website=eeNews Europe |language=en-US}}</ref>

FTDI created a separate company called Bridgetek in 2016 to focus on [[Microcontroller|microcontroller units]] (MCUs) and Embedded Video Engine (EVE).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-11-03 |title=FTDI forms separate company focussed on MCU & display-related products |url=https://evertiq.com/design/40454 |access-date=2024-01-23 |website=evertiq.com |language=en}}</ref>

===Driver controversy===
On 29 September 2014, FTDI released an updated version of its USB-to-Serial driver for [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] on its website.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141005060035/http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm|title=Virtual COM Port Drivers|archivedate=5 October 2014|publisher=}}</ref> Users who manually downloaded the new drivers reported problems.<ref name=hackaday-ffdidriver/> After Windows drivers became available on 14 October (''[[Patch Tuesday]]'') via [[Windows Update]], it was reported by users of hardware enthusiast forums and websites that the drivers could [[Bricking|soft-brick]] [[Counterfeit electronic components|counterfeit]] and software-compatible clones of the chips by changing their USB "Product ID" to "0000". The change prevents the chip from being recognised by drivers of any OS, effectively making them inoperable unless the product ID is changed back.<ref name=ars-brickingdriver>{{cite news|title=Windows Update drivers bricking USB serial chips beloved of hardware hackers|url=https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2014/10/windows-update-drivers-bricking-usb-serial-chips-beloved-of-hardware-hackers/|accessdate=24 October 2014|work=Ars Technica|date=22 October 2014}}</ref> The behaviour was supported by a notice in the drivers' [[end user license agreement]], which warned that use of the drivers with non-genuine FTDI products would "irretrievably damage" them.<ref name=ars-brickingdriver/> Critics felt that FTDI's actions were unethical, considering that users may be unaware that their chips were counterfeit, or that Windows had automatically installed a driver meant to disable them.<ref name=zdnet-bricking/><ref name=ars-brickingdriver/><ref name=hackaday-ffdidriver>{{cite web|title=Watch That Windows Update: FTDI Drivers Are Killing Fake Chips| url=http://hackaday.com/2014/10/22/watch-that-windows-update-ftdi-drivers-are-killing-fake-chips/| website=Hackaday| date=22 October 2014| accessdate=24 October 2014}}</ref><ref name=pk-licensetokill>{{cite web|last1=Siy|first1=Sherman|title=IP Rights Aren't a License to Kill Devices (And No, Fine Print Doesn't Make It OK)|url=https://www.publicknowledge.org/news-blog/blogs/ip-rights-arent-a-license-to-kill-devices-and-no-fine-print-doesnt-make-it-|publisher=[[Public Knowledge]]|accessdate=24 October 2014|archive-date=10 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170610164436/https://www.publicknowledge.org/news-blog/blogs/ip-rights-arent-a-license-to-kill-devices-and-no-fine-print-doesnt-make-it-|url-status=dead}}</ref> On 22 October 2014, an emergency patch was made to the FTDI drivers in the [[Linux kernel]] to recognise devices with the "0000" ID.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Hung|first1=Perry|title=[PATCH] usb: serial: Add "bricked" FTDI device PID|url=https://www.mail-archive.com/linux-usb@vger.kernel.org/msg50762.html|publisher=linux-usb mailing list|accessdate=24 October 2014}}</ref>

On 24 October 2014, in response to the criticism, FTDI withdrew the driver and admitted that the measure was intended to [[digital rights management|protect]] its [[intellectual property]] and encourage users to purchase genuine FTDI products. The company also stated that it was working to create an updated driver which would notify users of non-genuine FTDI products in a "non-invasive" manner.<ref name=ftdi-response>{{cite web| title=FTDI Post|url=http://www.ftdichipblog.com/?p=1053| website=FTDI| accessdate=24 October 2014}}</ref><ref name=zdnet-bricking>{{cite web| title=FTDI admits to bricking innocent users' chips in silent update| url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/ftdi-admits-to-bricking-innocent-users-chips-in-silent-update/| website=ZDNet|publisher=CBS Interactive|access-date=24 October 2014}}</ref>

In February 2016, it was reported that FTDI had published another driver on Windows Update with DRM components intended to block non-genuine products. This time, the driver will communicate with affected devices, but all transmitted and received data is replaced with the looped [[ASCII]] string "NON GENUINE DEVICE FOUND!", which could cause irregular interactions with devices.<ref name="hackaday-fakechipsagain">{{cite web|title=FTDI Drivers Break Fake Chips, Again|url=http://hackaday.com/2016/02/01/ftdi-drivers-break-fake-chips-again|website=[[Hack A Day]]|date=February 2016 |accessdate=5 February 2016}}</ref><ref name="techrepublic-ftdiagain">{{cite web |title=FTDI abuses Windows Update, pushing driver that breaks counterfeit chips |url=http://www.techrepublic.com/article/ftdi-abuses-windows-update-pushing-driver-that-breaks-counterfeit-chips/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307174533/https://www.techrepublic.com/article/ftdi-abuses-windows-update-pushing-driver-that-breaks-counterfeit-chips/ |archive-date=7 March 2023 |accessdate=5 February 2016 |website=TechRepublic}}</ref>

==Products==
Examples of some FTDI products.
<gallery widths="220px" heights="165px">
File:FTDI USB SERIAL.jpg|FTDI US-232R: [[USB]] to [[RS-232]] cable.
Image:FTDI Cable.jpg|FTDI TTL-232RG: USB to [[UART]] cable.
Image:FT232R USB UART IC (SSOP).jpg|FTDI FT232RL: USB to UART [[Integrated circuit|chip]]<br/>(in [[Small Outline Integrated Circuit|SSOP]] package).
Image:Ftdi-FT232RL-HD.jpg|Internal [[Die (integrated circuit)|die]] of FTDI FT232RL chip.
File:FT232H (18710686901).png|Adafruit FT232H USB to UART board. (3rd party product)
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category inline}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://ftdichip.com/drivers/vcp-drivers/ Drivers]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ftdi}}
[[Category:Semiconductor companies of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Technology companies established in 1992]]
[[Category:Companies based in Glasgow]]

FTDI - Revision history

RS-485: Imported from Wikipedia (overwrite)