DIGI XBee 3 USB Adapter User Guide

June 10, 2024
DIGI

Digi XBee® 3
USB Adapter
User Guide

Revision history—90002331

Revision Date Description
A Apr-19 Initial release.
B Jul-21 Added safety instructions.
C Mar-22 Added translated safety instructions.

Trademarks and copyright
Digi, Digi International, and the Digi logo are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United States and other countries worldwide. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the  property of their respective owners.
© 2022 Digi International Inc. All rights reserved.
Disclaimers
Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Digi International. Digi provides this document “as is,” without warranty  of any kind, expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of fitness or merchantability for a particular purpose. Digi may make improvements and/or changes in  this manual or in the product(s) and/or the program(s) described in this manual at any time.

Warranty

To view product warranty information, go to the following website: www.digi.com/howtobuy/terms
Customer support
Gather support information: Before contacting Digi technical support for help, gather the following information:

  • Product name and model
  • Product serial number (s)
  • Firmware version
  • Operating system/browser (if applicable)
  • Logs (from time of reported issue)
  • Trace (if possible)
  • Description of issue
  • Steps to reproduce

Contact Digi technical support: Digi offers multiple technical support plans and service packages.
Contact us at +1 952.912.3444 or visit us at www.digi.com/support.

Feedback
To provide feedback on this document, email your comments to techcomm@digi.com
Include the document title and part number (Digi XBee® 3 USB Adapter User Guide, 90002331 C) in the subject line of your email.

About the XBee 3 USB Adapter

Digi’s XBee 3 USB Adapter is an easy-to-use USB to XBee Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) adapter, providing local connectivity to wireless networks. Simply plug the XBee 3 USB  Adapter into the USB port of a laptop or PC for instant access to an Digi XBee network and its connected devices.
This compact, USB-powered wireless adapter enables local network configuration, diagnostics or device monitoring.
Compatibility with other XBee devices—————————–
LEDs—————————-

Compatibility with other XBee devices
The XBee 3 USB Adapter can be programmed with Zigbee, 802.15.4, or DigiMesh 2.4 firmware. If your network does not operate on the same protocol that the XBee 3 USB Adapter is  programmed with, it will not be able to connect to your network. You can change the firmware on the XBee 3 USB Adapter through XCTU.

LEDs
Characters sent from the computer to the XBee 3 USB Adapter through DIN illuminate the white LED.
Characters sent from the XBee 3 USB Adapter to the computer through DOUT illuminate the yellow LED.
The XBee Associate/DIO5 line is connected to the Blue LED. It indicates whether the XBee 3 USB Adapter is powered and its network association status. This LED functions differently  depending on the RF protocol for the product, or you can configure it.

Safety instructions

XBee adapter, gateways, and routers

  • The XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router products cannot be guaranteed operation due to the radio link and so should not be used for interlocks in safety critical devices such as machines or  automotive applications.

  • The XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router products have not been approved for use in (this list is not exhaustive):
    • medical devices
    l nuclear applications
    l explosive or flammable atmospheres

  • There are no user serviceable components inside the XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router product. Do not remove the product covers or modify the Gateway or Router in any way.
    Modifications may exclude the product from any warranty and can cause the gateway or router to operate outside of regulatory compliance for a given country, leading to the possible  illegal operation of the product.

  • Use industry standard ESD protection when handling the XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router product.

  • Take care while handling to avoid electrical damage to the PCB and components.

  • Do not expose the XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router products to water or moisture.

  • Use this product with the antennas specified in the XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router product user guides.

  • The end user must be told how to remove power from the XBee Adapter, Gateway, or Router product or to locate the antennas 20 cm from humans or animals.

Technical specifications

The following tables provide general specifications for the XBee 3 USB Adapter.
Environmental specifications————————————24
Power requirements————————————24
Dimensions————————————24
RF operation specifications————————————25
RF performance specifications————————————25
Networking and security specifications————————————25
Regulatory conformity summary————————————26

Environmental specifications

The following table provides the environmental specifications for the XBee 3 USB Adapter.

Specification Value
Operating temperature -40°C to +85°C (-40°F to +185°F)
Relative humidity 5% to 95% (non-condensing)

Power requirements
The following table describes the power requirements for the XBee 3 USB Adapter.

Specification Value
Supply voltage 5V (± 0.25 V) from USB port of PC
Operating current (transmit, typical) 45 mA
Operating current (receive, typical) 26 mA
Power-down current, typical Do not put the XBee 3 USB Adapter into sleep

mode.

Dimensions

DIGI XBee 3 USB Adapter - dimensions

The following table provides the dimensions for the XBee 3 USB Adapter.

Technical specifications

Specification Value
Length 2.29 in (5.83 cm)
Width 0.80 in (2.03 cm)
Height 0.44 in (1.12 cm)

Networking and security specifications
The following table describes the networking and security specifications for the XBee 3 USB Adapter.

Specification Value
Supported network topologies DigiMesh, 802.15.4, Zigbee
Number of channels (software selectable) 16
Addressing options PAN, Channel, and address

Regulatory conformity summary

Approval

United States (FCC Part 15.247)| Approved, contains FCC ID: MCQXBEE3
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED)| Approved, contains IC: 1846A-XBEE3
European compliance| CE marked

Configure the XBee 3 USB Adapter

Connect the XBee 3 USB Adapter—————————–28
Programming options—————————–28
Configure the XBee 3 USB Adapter—————————–28
Hardware reset—————————–28

Connect the XBee 3 USB Adapter
Plug the XBee 3 USB Adapter into the USB connector of a PC. Do not use a USB extension cable.
The XBee 3 USB Adapter requires a device driver, FT232R. To download this device driver, go to ftdichip.com/drivers/vcp.htm and select the download appropriate for your operating system.
The USB connection is converted to UART communications and are connected to DIN, DOUT, RTS, CTS and DTR of the XBee 3 device.
Programming options
There are many options to consider when making wireless programmatic access to an XBee network of devices or device adapters. In broad terms, you can write a program which runs on a  computer to interact with a network or you can use a gateway device.
When using a computer, consider using Command mode for the XBee device attached to the computer. Although using this mode is straight forward it does not offer you as fine of control as  when using the API mode option.
You can also use Digi Remote Manager to program the XBee 3 USB Adapter; see the Digi Remote Manager Programming Guide.

Configure the XBee 3 USB Adapter
For information on configuring the XBee 3 USB Adapter, see the user guide for the protocol you are running:

  • XBee 3 DigiMesh 2.4 RF Module User Guide
  • XBee 3 802.15.4 RF Module User Guide
  • XBee 3 Zigbee RF Module User Guide

Hardware reset
There is no external access to the hardware reset pin on the XBee 3 USB Adapter. If a hardware reset is required, hold the UART break line for an extended time to hardware reset the XBee 3 USB Adapter.
Hardware reset will occur between 4 and 20 seconds.

Regulatory information
FCC notices—————————–30
ISED notices—————————–30
Europe (CE)—————————–30

FCC notices
This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept  any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.
CAUTION! Changes or modifications not expressly approved by Digi International Inc. could void the user’s authority to operate the equipment.
Note: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable  protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the  instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause  harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of  the following measures:

  • Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
  • Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
  • Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.
  • Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

ISED notices
This device contains licence-exempt transmitter(s)/receiver(s) that comply with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada’s licence-exempt RSS(s). Operation is subject to the  following two conditions:

  1. This device may not cause interference.
  2. This device must accept any interference, including interference that may cause undesired operation of the device.

Europe (CE)
The XBee 3 USB Adapter conforms to the Radio Equipment Directive (2014/53/EU). A declaration of conformity is at: digi.com/resources/certifications.

References

Read User Manual Online (PDF format)

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