Prolific Technology Manufacturer Skill

MPN Structure

Prolific MPNs follow this general structure:

PL[SERIES][VARIANT][PACKAGE][-REEL]
 |   |       |        |       |
 |   |       |        |       └── Optional: REEL, TUBE, TRAY, TR for packaging
 |   |       |        └── Package code (implicitly determined by variant for PL2303)
 |   |       └── Variant letters (HX, HXA, HXD, TA, GT, GC, GL, RA, SA, etc.)
 |   └── 4-digit series number (23xx, 25xx, 27xx, 38xx)
 └── PL = Prolific prefix

Example Decoding

PL2303HXA-SSOP
│  │   │  │
│  │   │  └── SSOP package
│  │   └── HXA = Enhanced HX variant
│  └── 2303 = USB to serial converter
└── PL = Prolific prefix

PL2303GT
│  │   │
│  │   └── GT = QFN package variant
│  └── 2303 = USB to serial converter
└── PL = Prolific prefix

Product Series

PL23xx Series - USB to Serial

| Series | Type | Description | |--------|------|-------------| | PL2303 | USB-Serial | USB to RS-232 serial converter (most common) | | PL2312 | USB-Serial | Enhanced USB to serial |

PL25xx Series - USB Bridge

| Series | Type | Description | |--------|------|-------------| | PL2501 | Bridge | USB 2.0 to ATA/ATAPI bridge | | PL2571 | Bridge | USB 2.0 to IDE bridge |

PL27xx Series - USB Hub

| Series | Type | Description | |--------|------|-------------| | PL2734 | Hub | USB 2.0 4-port hub controller | | PL2773 | Hub | USB 3.0 4-port hub controller |

PL38xx Series - USB to Parallel

| Series | Type | Description | |--------|------|-------------| | PL3805 | USB-Parallel | USB to parallel port converter |

PL2303 Variants

The PL2303 series has many variants with different features:

| Variant | Package | Features | |---------|---------|----------| | (none) | SOP | Standard, basic version | | HX | SSOP | Enhanced, higher speed | | HXA | SSOP | HX with improved GPIO | | HXD | SSOP | Latest HX generation | | TA | SSOP-28 | Extended features | | GT | QFN | Small form factor, GPIO | | GC | QFN | Compact version | | GL | QFN | Low power variant | | RA | SOP | RoHS compliant | | SA | SOP | Standard alternate |

Package Codes

| Code | Package | Notes | |------|---------|-------| | S | SOP | Small Outline Package | | SOP | SOP | Explicit form | | SS | SSOP | Shrink SOP | | SSOP | SSOP | Explicit form | | Q | QFN | Quad Flat No-Lead | | QFN | QFN | Explicit form | | TSS | TSSOP | Thin Shrink SOP | | TSSOP | TSSOP | Explicit form |

USB Version by Series

| Series | USB Version | |--------|-------------| | PL2303 | USB 2.0 (Full Speed) | | PL2312 | USB 2.0 | | PL2501 | USB 2.0 | | PL2571 | USB 2.0 | | PL2734 | USB 2.0 | | PL2773 | USB 3.0 | | PL38xx | USB 2.0 |

Handler Implementation Notes

Pattern Matching

// PL23xx series - USB to serial converters
"^PL23[0-9]{2}[A-Z]*.*"

// PL25xx series - USB bridge ICs
"^PL25[0-9]{2}[A-Z]*.*"

// PL27xx series - USB hub controllers
"^PL27[0-9]{2}[A-Z]*.*"

// PL38xx series - USB to parallel converters
"^PL38[0-9]{2}[A-Z]*.*"

Series Extraction

// Series is "PL" + 4 digits
// PL2303HXA -> PL2303
// PL2773 -> PL2773

if (upperMpn.matches("^PL2303.*")) {
    return "PL2303";
}
// Generic: return first 6 characters

Package Code Extraction

// For PL2303 variants, package is implied by variant:
// HX, HXA, HXD, TA -> SSOP
// GT, GC, GL -> QFN
// RA, SA, S -> SOP

// Explicit package after hyphen:
// PL2303HXA-SSOP -> SSOP

Variant Extraction (PL2303)

// Check variants from longest to shortest:
if (suffix.startsWith("HXD")) return "HXD";
if (suffix.startsWith("HXA")) return "HXA";
if (suffix.startsWith("HX")) return "HX";
if (suffix.startsWith("GT")) return "GT";
if (suffix.startsWith("GL")) return "GL";
if (suffix.startsWith("GC")) return "GC";
if (suffix.startsWith("TA")) return "TA";
if (suffix.startsWith("RA")) return "RA";
if (suffix.startsWith("SA")) return "SA";

Replacement Compatibility

PL2303 Family Compatibility

All PL2303 variants are generally compatible:

Same USB-to-serial functionality
Different variants offer additional features (GPIO, speed)
Software drivers are largely interchangeable

Hub Controllers

Hub controllers are NOT interchangeable across USB versions:

PL2734 (USB 2.0) is NOT compatible with PL2773 (USB 3.0)
Within same USB version, hubs are compatible

Driver Notes

PL2303 driver compatibility: Different OS versions may require different drivers
Counterfeit chip detection: Prolific drivers detect counterfeit chips and refuse to work
HXA/HXD variants: Require newer drivers than original PL2303

Related Files

Handler: manufacturers/ProlificHandler.java
Component types: ComponentType.IC

Learnings & Edge Cases

PL2303 is the dominant product: Most Prolific parts are PL2303 variants
Variant determines package: Unlike other manufacturers, the variant suffix often implies the package type
Driver compatibility issues: PL2303 has complex driver compatibility across variants and OS versions
Counterfeit detection: Prolific implemented counterfeit detection in drivers, causing issues with some legacy parts
USB version in series number: PL27xx uses last digit to hint at USB version (PL2773 = USB 3.0)
No manufacturer-specific ComponentTypes: All parts use generic ComponentType.IC