Compatible (and incompatible) devices

[Tool-Scientist]

Post here devices that you have attempted to use.

Ideally post an image and/or link to the device. Mention if the device:

• works without issue,
• works with modifications (i.e. RX pulldown resistor)
• does not work at all

[Tool-Scientist]

Funduino FT232RL. Works without issues (does increase dumb charge count if script is not running)

https://99tech.com.au/product/pgm-ftdi-basic-funduino/

[Tool-Scientist]

Moyina FT232RL. Works without issue.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075N82CDL

[thenib]

This one works perfectly.

[tung256-ship-it]

@Tool-Scientist i can confirm your adapter works as i have the exact same thing

[Spud2233]

I can also confirm this works out of the box.

[justindd2017]

I can confirm that this DID NOT work out of the box, level shifter (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M7U5DV2) on the way.

It seems LIKELY that the battery itself might matter - I only tried it with one of my 2.0s that I don't care about in case I accidentally short something though. Maybe different batteries need different levels. There is actually an 'official' tool for batteries that certain employees have had. I might see if I can talk one I know into borrowing theirs.

[GoEzyImNew]

Can also confirm it not only DOES NOT WORK but it seems to have blown it up, there was a nice pop and a small hole blown into the chip in the middle. I'm just going to order something that matches the tutorial as this had a switch, I had it set to 3.3v so I don't know what the issue was.

[Spud2233]

[https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B07WX2DSVB](https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B07WX2DSVB)

Works with ~30k ohm pull down resistor on RX

[Spud2233]

Cheep AliExpress CP210x USB interface.
NOT WORKING

[Spud2233]

Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W
Native UART serial interface (GPIO14 & GPIO15)
(This should work on other Raspberry Pi boards but I have not been able to test it yet.)

Bluetooth needs to be disabled to free up the hardware serial port to interface with the battery.

Disable Bluetooth
In a terminal window open the config.txt file.
sudo nano /boot/firmware/config.txt

at the bottom of the file add the line
dtoverlay=disable-bt

Exit and Save the file.
Ctrl+x to Exit
Y then Enter to confirm saving file

Disable related services
In a terminal window enter the following commands.
sudo systemctl disable hciuart.service
sudo systemctl disable bluealsa.service - this service was not present on my Pi Zero 2 W but may be present on other Pi devices.
sudo systemctl disable bluetooth.service

REQUIREMENTS
15k-30k resistor between RX and Ground OR the below circuit between J1 and RX.

[Tool-Scientist]

May I add this circuit diagram to our repo so I can reference it better in our README?

[gk977246]

I could not get it to work, with DTR connected to TX, or not, With Pulldown on Rx or not. Leds removed- nothing.
But with 2NPN Transistors from Spud2233 my WCH Serial Adapter are working.

[Tool-Scientist]

Just to clarify, are you saying:

• CH34X - work, but only with spud-isolator™
• CP2102 & Fake FTDI - do not work, even with spud-isolator™

[gk977246]

Exactly -
CH34X - work, but only with spud-isolator™
my CP2102 & Fake FTDI - do not work, even with spud-isolator™ - I also tried connecting DTR to Tx like in the old schematic, and I tried Pulldown on Rx (10K, 16K, 30K)

[joshpmerk-source]

ok maybe that was my problem

[ParaAdBellum]

After fiddling with lots of rx pull down resistor values (even having them in series with blue wire), I've finally managed to make cheapo fake ftdi from AliExpress work. Here is what I needed:

• 5.6k pull down resistor for RXD
• short out DTR and TXD

this came from (usb-c version):
https://a.aliexpress.com/_EGx7IGI

>>> m.health()
Reading battery. This will take 5-10sec

Type: 36 [Unknown]
E-serial: 8929961 (does NOT match case serial)
Manufacture date: 2021-04-26
Days since 1st charge: 1379
Days since last tool use: 65
Days since last charge: 0
Pack voltage: 18.649
Cell Voltages (mV): [3726, 3731, 3721, 3725, 3746]
Cell Imbalance (mV): 25
Temperature (deg C): 20.86

CHARGING STATS:
Charge count [Redlink, dumb, (total)]: 15, 43, (58)
Total charge time: 1:27:47
Time idling on charger: 0:00:00
Low-voltage charges (any cell <2.5V): 0

TOOL USE STATS:
Total discharge (Ah): 4.49
Total discharge cycles: Unknown battery type, unable to calculate
Times discharged to empty: 0
Times overheated: 0
Overcurrent events: 0
Low-voltage events: 0
Low-voltage bounce/stutter: 0
Total time on tool (>10A): 0:39:48
Time @   10-20A: 0:27:44 70% XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Time @   20-30A: 0:10:19 26% XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Time @   30-40A: 0:01:27  4% XXXX
Time @   40-50A: 0:00:18  1% X
Time @   50-60A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @   60-70A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @   70-80A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @   80-90A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @  90-100A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 100-110A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 110-120A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 120-130A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 130-140A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 140-150A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 150-160A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 160-170A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 170-180A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 180-190A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @ 190-200A: 0:00:00  0% 
Time @   > 200A: 0:00:00  0% 

[ParaAdBellum]

#24

[joshpmerk-source]

Can we get a detailed view for these modifications needed?
I can't see them in this picture.
Thanks

[ParaAdBellum]

Sure, but do note that a pull down resistor is not a reliable solution, and you may need a different value resistor for your board. a better solution is documented here #7 (comment)

[Abbey-Lubber]

Just a warning to anyone else out there: there are a lot of different versions of this fake FT232RL board out there. This particular one never wants to let TXD go low with m.idle(). Connecting DTR to TXD does not solve the issue. (DTR is 0.6VDC at low and 3.18VDC at high when set/cleared by REALTERM) RXD needs a pull down resistor, but since TXD doesn't seem to work properly, no communication can happen. (Didn't do further signal testing outside of multimeter voltage tests and simple serial monitoring/control via REALTERM)
(late 2024 purchase of type C FT232RL from Aliexpress: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806262911231.html)

[zeifangb]

I have exact same Board as @ParaAdBellum with same Coding on the Bottom (V1350 YP-05) from Amazon Brand AYWHP.

• connect DTR & TxD
• SparkFun logic level converter
• input driver/buffer stage on RxD needed (as mentioned), i did it with two n-channel mosfet from "leftovers box".
  Works on all tested batteries B1.5/HB5.5/HB12
  

>>> m.health()
Reading battery. This will take 5-10sec

Type: 36 [1.5Ah CP (5s1p 18650)]
E-serial: 220716 (does NOT match case serial)
Manufacture date: 2015-12-20
Days since 1st charge: 3327
Days since last tool use: 11
Days since last charge: 0
Pack voltage: 20.648
Cell Voltages (mV): [4124, 4131, 4136, 4126, 4131]
Cell Imbalance (mV): 12
Temperature (deg C): 20.26

CHARGING STATS:
Charge count [Redlink, dumb, (total)]: 43, 108, (151)
Total charge time: 44:40:53
Time idling on charger: 304:54:53
Low-voltage charges (any cell <2.5V): 0

TOOL USE STATS:
Total discharge (Ah): 66.28
Total discharge cycles: 44.19
Times discharged to empty: 4
Times overheated: 1
Overcurrent events: 0
Low-voltage events: 22
Low-voltage bounce/stutter: 1
Total time on tool (>10A): 5:27:44
Time @   10-20A: 1:02:38 19% XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Time @   20-30A: 2:01:26 37% XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Time @   30-40A: 1:24:08 26% XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Time @   40-50A: 0:56:14 17% XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Time @   50-60A: 0:03:04  1% X
Time @   60-70A: 0:00:10  0%
Time @   70-80A: 0:00:03  0%
Time @   80-90A: 0:00:01  0%
Time @  90-100A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 100-110A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 110-120A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 120-130A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 130-140A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 140-150A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 150-160A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 160-170A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 170-180A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 180-190A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @ 190-200A: 0:00:00  0%
Time @   > 200A: 0:00:00  0%

[surveyhut64]

Good morning all,

I tried this software with this device and it didn't seem to work. Verified connections were good and correct, yet the J1/J2 values never changed no matter which command I used m.idle() or m.high(). After more reading, it looks like someone else was able to get a similar adapter working, however I don't have the components to make the isolator circuit. I ended up returning this one as I would prefer to use one of the options depicted here that works without modification.

This was found at the following Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJKCSZZW

[tomasekpl]

This one works for me with spud-isolator

[fgmccrea]

Thanks for sharing your work - I had to change line 587 "tz=datetime.UTC" to "tz=datetime.timezone.UTC" and add type 39 4Ah battery

[Tool-Scientist]

Thank you. I was sure type 39 was 4Ah but no one was replying to give me confirmation.

[surveyhut64]

I was able to confirm that this adapter works without modification. It appears to be similar to the Moyina one mentioned earlier in this thread that is no longer available, at least for me.

This can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PK5723H

[DeathCamel58]

Can confirm this works as well without any modification

[kotor2knight]

I can also confirm this one works with nothing besides the level shifter.

[gullygossner]

I found a similar unit on aliexpress that worked out of the box.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004621529953.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.59.7f301802e1mBxa

[ottoxgam]

Just purchased one of these though the amazon link you posted. I'm showing .01v of difference between m.idle and m.high. I may have gotten a bad board, though.

[GoEzyImNew]

I see people saying "works without modification" but do you always need a level shifter?

[jessevallaro]

Sparkfun CH340C working with Spud-Isolator™

• USB-C to Serial Adapter: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MLXS877 Or https://www.sparkfun.com/sparkfun-serial-basic-breakout-ch340c-and-usb-c.html
• Logic Level Shifter: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M7U5DV2 Or https://www.sparkfun.com/sparkfun-logic-level-converter-bi-directional.html
• A 4-pin battery adapter with case: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DGQ956Y9 ( I was impatient and this was easy...I know, I know, Aliexpress probably had this for cheap, but this was the only one with 4-pins on Amazon).
• Spud-Isolator™: CP2102 based UART not functioning properly #7 (comment)

[surveyhut64]

Looks pretty well-done. I am looking into seeing if I can do something similar but just 3d print the case

[jessevallaro]

Looks pretty well-done. I am looking into seeing if I can do something similar but just 3d print the case

Thanks! Someone on here already 3D printed one as well, maybe this can help you: #7 (comment)

[tomasekpl]

Waveshare 20646 - USB-UART TTL FT232 - USB-C working with Spud-Isolator™, not working without it
https://www.waveshare.com/ft232-usb-uart-board-type-c.htm

Isolator -> #7 (comment)

Adapter made of old, broken tool

[kenrevo]

Off brand WWZMDiB FT232 works without anything: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJKCSZZW

Also, I'm using WWZMDiB Logic Level Shifter: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CCF6TCSJ and a 4 pin adapter: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D4Z3HK8F

[ParaAdBellum]

I ordered one from https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJKCSZZW and it did NOT work out of the box. It also looks different than one advertised. It also seems to be a fake FT223 chip.

[Rampagy]

Works with 22k pulldown on RX (22k resistor between RX and GND). Also need to break the solder bridge from 5v and add one for 3.3v.

https://www.sparkfun.com/sparkfun-ft231x-breakout.html
https://www.sparkfun.com/sparkfun-logic-level-converter-bi-directional.html

[GPSFan]

I've been following this project ever since the HAD post on Sept 14.
Great job to all involved.
I have Milwaukee batteries & tools.
I have a CP2102 serial adapter or 2 hanging about.
I have some of the level translators.
I run Linux on all my computers.
After whipping up a breadboard and setting up
a virtual environment on my laptop I ran the program.
Failure...
Added a 30k pulldown, Failure.
Changed to a 17k pulldown, Failure.
Looked at the Reverse Engineering pages from Quagmire.
The output from J1 of the battery is a high impedance signal, any load will hose it up.
Replaced the pulldown with an emitter follower, Failure.
Cut out the Tx & Rx LEDs from the CP2102 as they were directly connected to the Tx & Rx signals.
Not quite a total failure as enabling m.txrx_print(1) showed that there was communication.
Only 2-3 transactions.
Replaced the CP2102 with a CH341 adapter, Succcess, all data read.
Now I knew the software worked and with the emitter follower the battery signal was stable.
But why didn't the CP2102 work? I've used many of them in many projects for years.
Got some FT232 adapters from Amazon.
Re-worked the emitter follower to be a 2 transistor buffer like Spud2233 described.
Buffered the TX data to the battery with a similar circuit, maybe the MOSFET level translator was a problem.
Failure, the FT232's were fake (not unexpected)
The fake FT232s did not produce a break when commanded.
Added DTR to the TX line. Failure.
Re-worked the circuit to properly allow DTR to produce a Break, not quite total failure.
I could see the Break, AA and a few commands and responses but they stopped after 2 or 3.
So now I had a CP341 which worked, and a CP2102 and fake FT232 that didn't.

To make a long story a bit shorter I started poking at the software and after adding a
time.sleep(0.05) just before the return in "def read_response..." it worked, totally, CP2102
(with or without LEDs), fake FT232 (with DTR mod) and CH341.

Pic of the circuit I used below, the DTR isn't necessary for the CP2102, CH341 or real FT232, a level translator
is required, be it MOSFET of bipolar transistor, as is a buffer of some sort for the battery data output.
This circuit is just an example of what worked for me. The critical part of getting it to work was the delay
in the read_response method.

Don't mess around with various value pulldowns, if it works today, it might not tomorrow, use a buffer.

[kstokes33]

To make a long story a bit shorter I started poking at the software and after adding a time.sleep(0.05) just before the return in "def read_response..." it worked, totally, CP2102 (with or without LEDs), fake FT232 (with DTR mod) and CH341.

YES! That made the difference! My fake FT232 board works perfectly after making that change!

[mikeblas]

Thank you so much for sharing this code, @Tool-Scientist. It's a very awesome job of reverse-engineering. I'm so impressed!

I bought SparkFun FTDI Basic Breakout - 5V Development Tool with USB Mini-B Connector from Amazon. Maybe it's a real SparkFun board (and therefore a real FTDI chip) because it comes from the "SparkFun Store" at Amazon. OTOH, I can't really find the exact same part on the SparkFun website.

And this SparkFun Logic Level Converter - Bi-Directional Step Down 5V Signals to 3.3V and Steps up 3.3V to 5V Board Dimensions: 0.63 x 0.52 (16.05 x 13.33mm)

This FTDI board works with modification: I needed a 22K pull-down resistor on RTX. Here's the long story:

Since I'm not so experienced with the SparkFun products, I just bought the one that most closely resembled the illustrations in the wiring diagrams here. But the FTDI breakout I chose isn't quite right: it is a five-volt part. Fortunately, it can be modified by cutting a trace and soldering a jumper so that the "5V" pin outputs 3.3 volts relative to ground.

Even after setting the 3V3 jumper solder blob, it didn't work: empty responses. I added a 22 kilo-ohm resistor between RTX and GND, and it works perfectly.

Hope that helps.

[Rampagy]

I forgot to mention in my post that I had to break the solder bridge from 5v to 3.3v. I'll add that now...

[dTermine]

For any Aussies shopping at core electrionics, this works with the following USB to UART module. I didn't bridge out the 3.3-5v pads.

Needed a logic level converter as well as spuds isolator. I'm a pretty huge noob with this stuff, so it may work with a pulldown resistor. I have 1,9V on J1 when m.idle(), so I think the isolator is the only decent option. Having a resistor in series doesn't really do much for comms, though it does bring voltage down.

[Crasoum]

Windows FTDI drivers, depending on the version of the drivers might not work with cheaper serial chips.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJKCSZZW is a cloned chip that might need some playing with driver wise on windows to get working. But it might also just work with a level shifter, DTR mod and isolation circuit; depending on the version of windows/driver. Works fine in a Linux system (live or installed, whichever,) I used GPSFan's circuit with DTR connected. One Windows 11 machine it doesn't work, another it does. Haven't tried more systems but the one it worked on was a fresh system, and the one it didn't I've upgraded through Windows 8 to 11. FTDI used to not let cloned FTDI chips play nice. I've gone back and forth on this playing with it. Kinda frustrating.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PK5723H works with just a level shifter and without messing with my OSes. Also used GPSFan's circuit without DTR connected and it worked fine. Is also a clone though, as far as the serial number on it is concerned.

TL;DR if it doesn't work, try another OS.

[tbmhale]

For anyone in NZ looking for a board,
https://epartners.co.nz/products/ha7005?_pos=1&_sid=ce4938b54&_ss=r

• Appears to be a fake/clone but works with

1. level converter
2. Spud circuit
3. DTR bridged to TXD
4. With the updated delay line (now in the standard m18.py code)

Cheers to all the work you guys have put in

[tanker665-pixel]

A gutted charger makes a great looking case melted in a new + pin or take apart a broken tool for the battery connector. They fit perfectly in the charger and use the ac cord hole for your usb plug just have to trim off a little bit of plastic inside so the board lines up and hot glue it down

[Harry-ei6ku]

sorry if my earlier post below wasn't clear....

NOTE: the digital level required at the battery J2 pin is a minimum of 12v (18v in practice) and all the serial adaptors shown on this page deliver either 3 or 5 volts at their TX pin, hence a level shifter is needed for all including the Dtech adapter below ....

---

This Dtech adapter type KJ-6884 works out of the pack, ( with the GPSfan level shifter.... ) I used GPSFan's buffer cct below, but without connecting DTR, and it all works ...

https://www.amazon.com/DTECH-Converter-Indicators-Debugging-Programming/dp/B0DSRYC7W7

your after the 3v3 version.....

note:
While RX and TX are 3v3 the
VCC on the connector is 5V
and it will work with GPSfan's cct below...

[Harry-ei6ku]

Morning Sorry for confusion, Ive updated the post, yes all the adaptors shown on this page deliver 3 or 5v at their TX pin, hence all require a level shifters for the TX to J2 connection. Hope your up and running soon, its a great addition to be able to get the details of your battery packs... H On Thursday, December 18, 2025 at 01:49:16 AM GMT, justindd2017 ***@***.***> wrote: I can confirm that this DID NOT work out of the box, level shifter on the way. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub, or unsubscribe. You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: ***@***.***>