7.7. USB

If device implementations have a USB port, they:

  • SHOULD support USB peripheral mode and SHOULD support USB host mode.

7.7.1. USB peripheral mode

If device implementations include a USB port supporting peripheral mode:

  • [C-1-1] The port MUST be connectable to a USB host that has a standard type-A or type-C USB port.
  • [C-1-2] MUST report the correct value of iSerialNumber in USB standard device descriptor through android.os.Build.SERIAL.
  • [C-1-3] MUST detect 1.5A and 3.0A chargers per the Type-C resistor standard and MUST detect changes in the advertisement if they support Type-C USB.
  • [SR] The port SHOULD use micro-B, micro-AB or Type-C USB form factor. Existing and new Android devices are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to meet these requirements so they will be able to upgrade to the future platform releases.
  • [SR] The port SHOULD be located on the bottom of the device (according to natural orientation) or enable software screen rotation for all apps (including home screen), so that the display draws correctly when the device is oriented with the port at bottom. Existing and new Android devices are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to meet these requirements so they will be able to upgrade to future platform releases.
  • [SR] SHOULD implement support to draw 1.5 A current during HS chirp and traffic as specified in the USB Battery Charging specification, revision 1.2. Existing and new Android devices are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to meet these requirements so they will be able to upgrade to the future platform releases.
  • [SR] STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to not support proprietary charging methods that modify Vbus voltage beyond default levels, or alter sink/source roles as such may result in interoperability issues with the chargers or devices that support the standard USB Power Delivery methods. While this is called out as "STRONGLY RECOMMENDED", in future Android versions we might REQUIRE all type-C devices to support full interoperability with standard type-C chargers.
  • [SR] STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to support Power Delivery for data and power role swapping when they support Type-C USB and USB host mode.
  • SHOULD support Power Delivery for high-voltage charging and support for Alternate Modes such as display out.
  • SHOULD implement the Android Open Accessory (AOA) API and specification as documented in the Android SDK documentation.

If device implementations include a USB port and implement the AOA specification, they:

  • [C-2-1] MUST declare support for the hardware feature android.hardware.usb.accessory.
  • [C-2-2] The USB mass storage class MUST include the string "android" at the end of the interface description iInterface string of the USB mass storage
  • SHOULD NOT implement AOAv2 audio documented in the Android Open Accessory Protocol 2.0 documentation. AOAv2 audio is deprecated as of Android version 8.0 (API level 26).

7.7.2. USB host mode

If device implementations include a USB port supporting host mode, they:

  • [C-1-1] MUST implement the Android USB host API as documented in the Android SDK and MUST declare support for the hardware feature android.hardware.usb.host.
  • [C-1-2] MUST implement support to connect standard USB peripherals, in other words, they MUST either:
    • Have an on-device type C port or ship with cable(s) adapting an on-device proprietary port to a standard USB type-C port (USB Type-C device).
    • Have an on-device type A or ship with cable(s) adapting an on-device proprietary port to a standard USB type-A port.
    • Have an on-device micro-AB port, which SHOULD ship with a cable adapting to a standard type-A port.
  • [C-1-3] MUST NOT ship with an adapter converting from USB type A or micro-AB ports to a type-C port (receptacle).
  • [SR] STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to implement the USB audio class as documented in the Android SDK documentation.
  • SHOULD support charging the connected USB peripheral device while in host mode; advertising a source current of at least 1.5A as specified in the Termination Parameters section of the USB Type-C Cable and Connector Specification Revision 1.2 for USB Type-C connectors or using Charging Downstream Port(CDP) output current range as specified in the USB Battery Charging specifications, revision 1.2 for Micro-AB connectors.
  • SHOULD implement and support USB Type-C standards.

If device implementations include a USB port supporting host mode and the USB audio class, they:

  • [C-2-1] MUST support the USB HID class.
  • [C-2-2] MUST support the detection and mapping of the following HID data fields specified in the USB HID Usage Tables and the Voice Command Usage Request to the KeyEvent constants as below:
    • Usage Page (0xC) Usage ID (0x0CD): KEYCODE_MEDIA_PLAY_PAUSE
    • Usage Page (0xC) Usage ID (0x0E9): KEYCODE_VOLUME_UP
    • Usage Page (0xC) Usage ID (0x0EA): KEYCODE_VOLUME_DOWN
    • Usage Page (0xC) Usage ID (0x0CF): KEYCODE_VOICE_ASSIST

If device implementations include a USB port supporting host mode and the Storage Access Framework (SAF), they:

  • [C-3-1] MUST recognize any remotely connected MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) devices and make their contents accessible through the ACTION_GET_CONTENT, ACTION_OPEN_DOCUMENT, and ACTION_CREATE_DOCUMENT intents. .

If device implementations include a USB port supporting host mode and USB Type-C, they:

  • [C-4-1] MUST implement Dual Role Port functionality as defined by the USB Type-C specification (section 4.5.1.3.3).
  • [SR] STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to support DisplayPort, SHOULD support USB SuperSpeed Data Rates, and are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to support Power Delivery for data and power role swapping.
  • [SR] STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to NOT support Audio Adapter Accessory Mode as described in the Appendix A of the USB Type-C Cable and Connector Specification Revision 1.2.
  • SHOULD implement the Try.* model that is most appropriate for the device form factor. For example a handheld device SHOULD implement the Try.SNK model.