USB VSense is a voltage indicator designed to provide insight into USB-powered devices quickly and simply. USB VSense works by giving you an unambiguous visual indication of the USB voltage mode with the help of illuminated, individually color-coded, and clearly labeled lights, one for each USB Power Delivery fixed voltage mode, up to and including the latest 48 V and 5 A Extended Power Range (EPR) specs.

Outside of engineering settings, USB VSense can be useful for diagnosing a host of USB power issues and can help you gain confidence in your charging accessories. For instance, in the past, have you plugged your smartphone into a charger that took way too long to charge? Or have you ever tried charging your laptop with another charger only to find out hours later that your battery level hasn’t budged? In either case, USB VSense could save you a lot of hassle and time, either in your day-to-day life or while tinkering with your next electronics project.

Compact, Accurate, and Easy-to-Read

We came up with the idea of USB VSense while working on another project. We researched other USB power meters and discovered that they were often saddled with unnecessary features and were larger than they needed to be. So, we designed USB VSense using the “keep it simple” philosophy—this led to a streamlined product that is small, rugged, easily replicated, and still covers most USB power diagnostic situations you might encounter, including:

• Figuring out whether a cable or a charger can provide sufficient power to your device.
• Troubleshooting and detecting chargers that could potentially be unsafe or cause damage or unreliable behavior.
• Determine your devices' power requirements and choose the right charger for them.
• Ensure that your charger and device are compatible.
• Act as a trustworthy development tool for USB power-related projects.

Voltage Info, at a Glance

With its simple array of LEDs, USB VSense has an individual annunciator for each USB Power Delivery voltage. Every indicator has a different color to make it easy to read and includes numerals. The following table demonstrates the range of lights and flashing patterns and what they mean:

Features & Specifications

• Fully capable of the latest USB PD EPR specifications (48 V, 5 A, 240 W)
• A wide operational and measurement range of 4.5 V to 51 V
• Individual color-coded indicators for each fixed voltage level:
  • 5 V (red)
  • 9 V (orange)
  • 12 V (yellow)
  • 15 V (green)
  • 20 V (lime)
  • 28 V (blue)
  • 36 V (purple)
  • 48 V (white)
• Distinct alerts show > 5% and > 10% deviations from the fixed voltages. This feature is also helpful in approximating PPS voltages
• Passthrough for USB 2.0 data, CC, and SBUS lines
• Ultra-low power consumption, less than six mA of current drawn by the device (absolute maximum under regular operation)
• ATtiny 406’s 10-bit ADC with 4.3 V internal voltage reference provides stable measurements of up to 22 mV resolution for voltages below 20 V and 49 mV for voltages between 20 V and 51 V
• Stacked PCB construction with high-quality parts built to last:
  • Automotive grade LDO from Microchip (+70 V absolute max input voltage with ESD protection)
  • Kingbright low-current LEDs
  • JAE USB Type-C connectors rated for 48 V and 5 A
• 56 x 18.5 x 5.6 mm (2.28 x 0.73 x 0.22 in)

Open Source

USB VSense is fully open-source, and both its hardware and firmware will be available for you to browse once we hit our funding goal.

It was also designed to be easy to repair and modify, featuring a stacked PCB "Oreo" construction; the entire device is made of PCBs. That means you can modify its appearance without a 3D printer, and its elegant design uses only four screws. With its open firmware, you’ll be able to make adjustments to add different blinking patterns or change the voltages if you desire.

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