Loading firmware for USB device after boot

["Thomas Mueller" <mueller6724%bellsouth.net@localhost>]

Is it possible to load firmware for a USB device subsequent to boot?

I assume there must be, NetBSD is not MS-Windows, and I think even MS-Windows 
could load firmware for a USB device connected after boot.

In this case, the USB device is a wireless network adapter, Atheros AR9271, on 
motherboard but apparently the boot process is too impatient.  Sometimes the 
firmware is loaded, but most of the time not.  

I believe OpenBSD has a firmware loader, but can't find anything similar in 
NetBSD-current or any other NetBSD.

Or maybe that firmware loader is just a downloader-installer for firmware that 
can not be distributed with OpenBSD base system due to license restrictions.

Tom