brainstem
Acroname BrainStem Software Control Package
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you own or plan to use Acroname BrainStem hardware and need Python control. Install friction is low, maintenance is active, and no known vulnerabilities exist. The proprietary license restricts redistribution and modification but poses no barrier to internal use. Not relevant for general-purpose Python development.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires a physical BrainStem device connected via USB or Ethernet; libffi system library may need separate installation on Linux systems
- Low install friction; pure-Python wheel with only cffi and pycparser as runtime dependencies.
- Last release 38 days ago indicates active maintenance.
License · maintenance · safety
(unclear) — Licensed under a proprietary agreement that restricts modification, reverse engineering, and redistribution. Use is limited to internal business purposes; commercial or redistributive deployment requires explicit written permission from Acroname.
last release 2026-07-07 (38 days)
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 719,860 downloads/mo, #5,237 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install brainstem
import brainstem
spec = brainstem.discover.findFirstModule(brainstem.link.Spec.USB)
stem = brainstem.stem.USBStem()
stem.connectFromSpec(spec)
result = stem.system.getModel()
print(brainstem.defs.model_info(result.value))- Whether libffi system library is pre-installed on target deployment platforms or must be installed separately
- Compatibility with Python versions beyond 2.7 and 3.6+ stated in the description
What it is and what it does
BrainStem is a Python library that exposes control APIs for Acroname's embedded hardware modules—USB hubs, Ethernet bridges, relay controllers, DAQ devices, and similar peripherals. It wraps the underlying BrainStem2 C library (via cffi) to let developers discover connected devices, establish connections, and send commands to read sensors, control outputs, and manage device state from Python code.
The library supports both Python 2.7 and Python 3.6+, ships as a pure-Python wheel with minimal dependencies (cffi and pycparser), and is actively maintained. Typical workflows involve discovering devices on the USB or Ethernet bus, connecting to a specific module by type, and then calling methods on that module's subsystems (e.g., `stem.system.setLED()`, `stem.system.getModel()`) to interact with hardware. The package includes example scripts for common devices and is designed for embedded automation, test infrastructure, and hardware integration tasks.
Use it for
- Automate USB hub port switching and power control in test labs or CI/CD environments
- Build Python scripts to monitor and log sensor data from BrainStem DAQ modules in real-time
- Control relay modules and digital I/O from a central Python application for hardware sequencing
- Discover and enumerate all connected BrainStem devices on a network and manage them programmatically
- Integrate Acroname hardware into Python-based embedded systems or robotics projects
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you own or plan to use Acroname BrainStem hardware and need Python control.
Install friction is low, maintenance is active, and no known vulnerabilities exist. The proprietary license restricts redistribution and modification but poses no barrier to internal use. Not relevant for general-purpose Python development.
Install
brainstem on PyPI
Before you install
Low install friction; pure-Python wheel with only cffi and pycparser as runtime dependencies. Last release 38 days ago indicates active maintenance.
Requires a physical BrainStem device connected via USB or Ethernet; libffi system library may need separate installation on Linux systems
License in practice
Licensed under a proprietary agreement that restricts modification, reverse engineering, and redistribution. Use is limited to internal business purposes; commercial or redistributive deployment requires explicit written permission from Acroname.
Quickstart
pip install brainstem
import brainstem
spec = brainstem.discover.findFirstModule(brainstem.link.Spec.USB)
stem = brainstem.stem.USBStem()
stem.connectFromSpec(spec)
result = stem.system.getModel()
print(brainstem.defs.model_info(result.value))Verify before relying
- Whether libffi system library is pre-installed on target deployment platforms or must be installed separately
- Compatibility with Python versions beyond 2.7 and 3.6+ stated in the description
Package facts
| License | Not declared unclear |
| Python support | Not specified |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 2 packagescffipycparser |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 38 days since the last release |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 719,860 / month, #5,237 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | License :: Other/Proprietary LicenseOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: Python :: 2Programming Language :: Python :: 3 |
Evidence: brainstem-2.12.5-py2.py3-none-any.whl
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See also binho-host-adapter · hid · pyusb · crownstone-uart · usb-devices · phidget22 · adb-shell · isystem.connect · stem · python-smarttub