Must I create a new driver for LIRC ?

[Steve M. <mo...@es...>]

Hello,

I write you to take advice because I'm a little confused :-)
I'm currently working on project in which I must get IR signals from a TV
Remote.

I may tell you first my system configuration :
- mainboard : MV823A
- IR internal FIR Controller (integrated into the mainboard) : VIA VT1211
- IrDA module plugged into the mainboard (thanks to VT1211)
- Linux Fedora Core 3 (2.6.10-1.770_FC3 kernel)

I've activated FIR in the BIOS with the following settings :
- IRQ = 11
- DMA = 6

Linux has automatically detected and registered VT1211 with via-ircc and
irda modules. I've tested IrDA with :
- modprobe ircomm-tty ircomm
- attach irda0 -s
- irdadump

irdadump showed me a cellular phone I've placed near the IR module. So I'm
sure module works. But I don't want to use IrDA. I only need to receive IR
signals from my TV Remote. However, I read on the Internet that there
frequencies differences between TV Ir and IrDA but USUALLY IrDA chipsets
can also get IR signals in spite of frequencies differences...

So, I compiled LIRC with some drivers in order to see if another way of
accessing data can help me. I wonder if they were really adapted to what I
want to do. Here is informations I get from VIA on VT1211 FIR Controller :

IrDA (VFIR) Host Controller I/O Space Registers
Offset  Base = LDN C Rx61-60 (E800h)  Default  Acc
0-F  -reserved-  00  ?
10  Infrared Configuration Low 0  00  RW
11  Infrared Configuration High 0  00  RW
12  Infrared SIR BOF  C0  RW
13  Infrared SIR EOF  C1  RW
14  Infrared Status High 0  00  RO
15  Infrared Status and Control 0  00  RW
16  Infrared Status Low 1  00  RO
17  Infrared Status High 1  00  RO
18  Infrared Configuration Low 1  00  RW
19  Infrared Configuration High 1  00  RW
1A  Infrared Configuration Low 2  00  RW
1B  Infrared Configuration High 2  00  RW
1E  Infrared Configuration 3  00  RW
1F  -reserved-  00  ?
20  Host Control  00  RW
21  Host Status  00  RO
22  Miscellaneous Control  00  RW
23  Tx Control Low  00  RW
24  Tx Control High  40  RW
25  Tx Status  00  RO
26  Rx Control  40  RW
27  Rx Status  00  RO
28  Reset Command  00  RW
29  Packet Address  00  RW
2A  Rx Byte Count Low  00  RO
2B  Rx Byte Count High  00  RO
2C  Rx Ring Packet Pointer Low  00  RO
2D  Rx Ring Packet Pointer High  00  RO
2E  Tx Byte Count Low  00  RW
2F  Tx Byte Count High  00  RW
30-31  -reserved-  00  ?
32  General Purpose Timer  00  RW
33  Infrared Configuration 4  00  RW
34  Infrared Transceiver Control Low  00  RW
35  Infrared Transceiver Control High  00  RW
36-3E  -reserved-  00  ?
3F  Stepping ID  00

Most HOW-TO's in the Internet deals with "DB9 plugged" tranceiver and not
those which are "internal plugged" as mine. "IR-220L+" is written on the
module IR I plugged into the mainboard. Atfer looking up for this
reference, I found an ActiSys product that could be the same product (same
"whole" shape except it has DB9 connector and the electronic card is
hidden as it's an external device). You can see the module here :

http://www.wexim.com/cgi-bin/shop/IR-MD.html?id=NjuxYZZK

So finally I would like to ask you 3 questions please :

- Could you think I could adapt this long base memory (00-3F) to something
easier, in order to use the serial driver of LIRC for example ?
- Do you think VT1211 chipset could (physically, I mean in an hardware
point of view) not see TV Remote Ir signals ?
- Otherwise, do you think I could adapt via-ircc module to "force" it to
see remote signals ?

Thanks for having read and thanks in advance :-)
Steve