The USB-I2C module provides a complete interface between your PC and the I2C bus. The module is self powered from the USB cable and can supply up to 70mA at 5v for external circuitry from a standard 100mA USB port. The module is an I2C master only, not a slave.
The USB-I2C module uses the FTDI FT232R USB chip to handle all the USB protocols. The documentation provided by FTDI is very complete, and is not duplicated here. Before using the USB-I2C, you will need to install FTDI's Virtual COM Port ( VCP ) Drivers. These drivers appear to the system as an extra Com Port ( in addition to any existing hardware Com Ports ). Application software accesses the USB device in the same way as it would access a standard Windows Com Port using the Windows VCOMM API calls or by using a Com Port Library. Drivers are available for Windows, Apple, Linux and Open BSD systems directly from the FTDI website. You should get and install the drivers now, before you connect the USB-I2C to your computer. The Drivers page is here. More technical review here.
