If I want to send data to a device serially from my PC, there are 3 things that must be done:
- I must connect a USB to serial converter (FTDI breakout or similar) to the USB port of the PC
- The target device is connected to the serial output of the USB to serial converter
- I write to the serial port that the device is connected to.
What I am confused about, is why there is a need for such a USB to serial converter if I am writing to a serial port anyways? Since there is a need for a converter, that tells me that USB packets are still being sent, and not my desired serial data.
My guess is that the usb to serial converter is receiving usb packets which contain the serial data and information like baud rate and parity. Why do this, and not just simply send serial data directly out of the usb port?