Access smart card through a card reader connected on USB

[Niccolò Battezzati]

Hi all,

I'd need to get access (send APDUs) to a smart card using an external card reader connected through USB to my Android Phone.
Is it possible to do this with native Android or do I need to install/compile something else?

Creating another Android image is not an option for me, I need to develop an App that can be installed on any Android phone, so if it is possible to use native APIs I'd also need to know from which version of Android they're supported. I've tried looking on the web but I could not find a unique answer to this question. That's why I'm asking here.

Last thing: if it is not possible to do it with native APIs, is there a library I could bind to my app? Or shall I re-implement the CCID protocol using the USB Host interface?

Thank you very much,
Niccolo`