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Seco’s New i.MX8M And i.MX8Quad Based Modules Run Linux

Posted on by Rik

Seco Embedded Creators have launched the i.MX8M based Q7-C25 and i.MX8Quad based Q7-C26. Both can run Linux and Android, and are available in 0 to 60°C and -40 to 85°C models. The 5V modules have many similar features, but the Q7-C26 based on the more powerful, up to hexacore i.MX8Quad adds some extras such as SATA III support.

Seco Q7-C25
Seco Q7-C25

The Q7-C25 utilizes NXP’s dual- or quadcore, 1.5GHz Cortex-A53 i.MX8M. It facilitates a 266MHz Cortex-M4 MCU and a Vivante GC7000Lite GPU. Unlike the Quad and Dual models, the quad-core i.MX8M QuadLite model lacks a VPU.

On the other hand, the Q7-C26 features the more powerful i.MX8Quad, which is available in quad A53 configurations, but clocked to a lower 1.26GHz. All three i.MX8Quad Quad models also accommodate dual Cortex-M4 MCUs and dual GC7000Lite GPUs. The mid-range i.MX8QuadPlus model combines 1x Cortex-A72 core and the high-end QuadMax adds 2x -A72 cores.

Seco Q7-C26
Seco Q7-C26

Both the Q7-C25 and Q7-C26 ship with onboard LPDDR4-3200 RAM, but only the Q7-C25 lists a quantity, which is up to 4GB. They both offer presumably optional eMMC and QSPI flash onboard, but no quantities are listed. Only the Q7-C26 supports SATA III, but it’s a factory option swap-out for one of the 2x PCIe x1 interfaces provided by both modules. Both COMs also combine a GbE controller.

Both the Q7-C25 and Q7-C26 support up to 4096 x 2160p60 video output with HDR via an HDMI 2.0A port. On the Q7-C26 DisplayPort 1.3 is supported, and the Q7-C26 also supports HDCP 2.2. Both modules also provide an HD-ready LVDS interface, I2S audio, and a MIPI-CSI camera interface.

The Q7-C25 supports 5x USB ports compared to 6x on the Q7-C26. Yet on the Q7-C25, two of those are USB 3.0 compared to one on the Q7-C26, which is the only one to support a USB OTG port. Common features on both modules are 2x I2C, 8x GPIO, and single UART, CAN, SPI, and SD connections. They both supply a watchdog and power management signals and the Q7-C26 also features a boot select signal.

Both modulessupport the same 3.5-inch form-factor, cross-platform (Arm and x86) CQ7-A42 carrier board. Another option is a Q7 Dev Kit 2.0 that offers a different and much larger CQ7-A30 board with more legacy connections.

No pricing or availability information was provided for the  Q7-C25 and Q7-C26 modules or related carrier boards and kits as they are currently under development. More information may be found in the following Seco product pages for Q7-C25, Q7-C26, CQ7-A42 and Q7 Dev Kit 2.0.

FriendlyELEC Launches a new Samsung Powered Octa-Core Board

Posted on by Ayo Ayibiowu

Smart6818 is a board built for industrial applications and is a successor to the Smart210 board. At the heart of the Smart6818 is the powerful Samsung Octa-Core Cortex-A53 S5P6818 SoC which is able to have a dynamic scaling frequency of up to 1.4Ghz unlike the 1GHz provided by Samsung S5PV210 for the Smart210 board.

FriendlyElec Smart6818 Module

The Smart6818 board has an interesting 2.0mm pitch double row pin headers (P1, P2, and P4) containing a whopping 174 pins in total. These pins contain pretty popular interface pins. By default, it has the 2 opposites pin rows (P1 and P2) soldered on the board leaving P4 for user’s applications.

The standard version of the board comes packed with 1GB DDR3 RAM and an 8GB eMMC, with support for software power-off and Real Time Clock (RTC) alarm power-on functions. In Linux, the real-time clock alarm can be set or retrieved using /proc/acpi/alarm or /sys/class/rtc/rtc0/wakealarm.

Also, its Gbps Ethernet and audio jack make it super duper suitable for various industrial applications. It works with various FriendlyELEC LCDs such as the 3.5″ LCD, 4.3″ LCD, 5″ LCD, 7″ LCD like a Lenovo tablet and the larger 10.1″LCD screen.

Below are some of the board core specs:

  • SoC: Samsung S5P6818 Octa-Core Cortex-A53, 400MHz – 1.4GHz
  • PMU Power Management: Implemented by an MCU, support software power-off, and RTC alarm power-on functions
  • DDR3 RAM: 1GB 32bit DDR3 RAM
  • Ethernet: Gbps Ethernet(RTL8211E) with unique MAC
  • eMMC: 8GB
  • Audio: 1 x audio codec chip, 1 x onboard Microphone and 1 x audio jack
  • LED: 1 x Power LED, 2 x GPIO LED
  • PCB Dimension: 74 x 55 mm, Six-Layer
  • Power: DC 5V, up to 2A
  • Temperature measuring range: -40℃ to 80℃
  • OS/Software: u-boot, Android5.1/4.4, Debian8, ubuntu-core
  • PINS: 3 x 2.0mm pitch double row pin header, 174 pins in totals
  • USB: USB 2.0 – Host x1, OTG x1
  • Video output/Display: RGB Parallel I/F (24-bit), LVDS and HDMI 1.4a
  • Video input: DVP Camera interface, ITU-R BT 601/656 8-bit and MIPI-CSI
  • Audio input: Microphone
  • Audio output: Audio jack (with headset detection) and HDMI audio
  • Ethernet: 10/100/1000Mbps Ethernet x 1
  • ADC (Analog-to-Digital Converter): CPU internal ADC, 7 channels, 12-bit, range: 0 ~ 1.8V
  • External interface: SDIO/MMC x2, SPI x2, I2C x3, UART x5, PWM x3, GPIOs x24
  • Others: Power key input, RESET input, RESET output, RTC battery input

An SDK carrier board is available for the Smart6818 which enables the smart6818 CPU board’s various ports and interfaces. The carrier board has a SATA interface and a mini PCIe interface that supports an external 4G module. One incentive with this board is that it offers compatibility with the Raspberry Pi’s interface.

 

Smart6818 SDK Carrier Board

Before start to use the Smart6818, one will need to get the following items ready:

  • Smart6818 CPU board and Smart 6818 SDK carrier board
  • Standard SD card: Class10 or above 8GB SDHC card
  • A DC 12V/2A power is a must.
  • HDMI monitor or LCD
  • USB keyboard and mouse
  • A host computer running Ubuntu 14.04 64 bit system

The Smart6818 board is available for purchase on the friendly arm store for about $49.00. The board also comes with other add-ons which will add extra features to it. More information about the product is available on the product page.

PopCom – Identify your COM ports

Posted on by mixos

avishorp has written a small program that pops up a message whenever a serial port over USB device is plugged in, that is available on GitHub (code).

PopCom is a COM port plug-in/plug-out notifier. Whenever a USB device that emulates a COM port is connected to the computer, a pop-up will be displayed, describing the device that has been plugged in and the COM number assigned to it. This pop-up helps determining the COM number assigned to each device, a number that is required for communicating with it.

PopCom – Identify your COM ports – [Link]

Sapphire’s New FS-FP5V SBC Incorporates Ryzen Embedded V1000 SoC

Posted on by Rik

Sapphire Technology, a Hong Kong-based technology company, has launched a 147.3 x 139.7mm Mini-STX (almost 5×5-inch) form factor SBC that runs Ubuntu 16.04 or Windows. It is powered by AMD’s new Ryzen Embedded V1000 SoC. AMD’s Ryzen V1000 is highly competitive on CPU performance with the latest Intel Core chips, and the Radeon Vega graphics with it, are superior enough for enabling four 4K displays to run at once.

Sapphire's FS-FP5V SBC
Sapphire’s FS-FP5V SBC

The only other Ryzen V1000 based SBC, 120 x 120mm is Udoo Bolt, which ships to Kickstarter backers in December. Sapphire’s commercial board FS-FP5V is available for sale now with shipments beginning later this month.

The FS-FP5V base model starts at $325, equipped with the dual-core, quad-thread V1202B version of the Ryzen V1000 with lower-end Vega 3 graphics. The three models with the quad-core, octa-threaded versions of the SoC go for $340, $390, and $450, with increasing clock speeds and graphics ranging from Vega 8 to 11.

Pricing, which does not include RAM or storage, seems to be a bit higher than the Udoo Bolt. The Bolt also adds an Atmega32U4 MCU for Arduino and Grove compatibility but is limited to the two lower-end V1000 SoC models. The FS-FP5V, which has up to 4x DisplayPorts, is more directly aimed at digital signage and other media-centric applications including electronic gaming, medical imaging, thin clients, and POS terminals.

This is Sapphire’s first Mini-STX SBC. Its other AMD-based motherboards include AMD R-Series based Mini-ITX boards and some 4×4-inch eNUC form factor boards such as the G-Series based LX 210. A Sapphire representative says his company can make custom boards based on the Ryzen V1000. They also show a Kubb enclosure for the FS-FP5V from Bleujour, as well as an upcoming 2×2 digital signage display wall from Seneca Data that taps the FS-FP5V to generate 4x 4K displays.

The FS-FP5V is available now starting at $325, with shipments starting later this month. More information may be found on Sapphire’s FS-FP5V product page.

PCBWay Offers Low Cost SMD Stencils

Posted on by Ayo Ayibiowu

A new offer has been thrown to the public by PCBWay; The public can now get various sizes of SMD (Surface Mounted Devices) stencils. A stencil is a utensil that contains a perforated sheet through which ink can be forced to create a printed pattern onto another surface. It allows a person to know where precisely each component and solder would go on the SMD pads. The nature of SMD stencil influences the quality of the completed PCB because a poorly placed SMD stencil will not only render the SMD component useless, it will most likely make the whole device useless.

PCBWay is offering to existing and new customers to order for an SMD Stencil job. The SMD Stencils being offered by PCBWay are made up of 14 different sizes, with starting size of 370mm x 470mm with a valid area of 190mm x 290mm, and the biggest size available to be 500m x 1400mm with a valid area of 320mm x 1200mm. When ordering you can choose a framework if you want one and there are four thickness options to pick from. It is important to note that the size and thickness of the stencil determine the amount and shape of the applied solder paste.

Lasered Stencils are also an option, and a person can decide to have the stencil lasered half way or lasered through. When the halfway option is chosen, it is important to note that this means the stencil will be lasered from the bottom to middle.

There is also a chance to have your stencil go through electropolishing, aq process that ensures there is maximum optimization of the surface quality of the SMD stencils after laser processing. Electropolishing, also called electrochemical deburring is carried out by an acid rinse with additional applied voltage, to control the cutting of roughness. This is simply a finishing service and is not compulsory.

Once done with stencil selection choices, customers will have the option to pay using PayPal, Credit card, or one of the several payment options. Shipping will be done by DHL, FedEx, TNT, Aramex, Hongkong post, E-pack, and many more. DHL is preferred as the default option.

Get started with PCBWay SMD Stencil by visiting their stencil page here.

obniz is a hardware platform specially built for IoT

Posted on by Ayo Ayibiowu

In the last few years, we have seen a proliferation of hardware that are designed to serve as our interface to the Internet of Things. We have seen boards like the Arduino, Raspberry, Particle, ESP32, and several others. These hardware have made developing and scaling for the Internet of Things quite easy for developers and product managers. Despite the fact, these hardware are meant for the cloud-based applications (IoT Applications) most of them don’t get developed with web-based programming but traditional programming languages. obniz is a hardware for the internet of things that is designed with the Web in mind.

obinz

obniz brings a different ball game to the hardware industry especially for applications in the Internet of Things space. obniz is an IoT gateway but doesn’t stop there. obniz can be thought of as a complete IoT development platform because it doesn’t just give you the hardware to build, it also provides the enabling platform to connect your devices to the web. obniz not only lets you program your product but also allow you control it from your own apps, your own website, your smartphone and anything that can accept API or supports javascript. obniz is a product of the Japanese based Cambrian Robotics company.

obniz speaks the language of the web; it means if you understand the likes of Javascript (obniz have an SDK for javascript based on nodejs) and HTML it shouldn’t take you less than 5 minutes to build a powerful IoT device and setting up obniz takes less than 30 secs. obniz is designed for beginners in mind, it provides support for Block programming, a drag-and-drop programming that is based on pre-defined functions and comes with beginners lesson.

obniz Block Programming

The obniz hardware is made up of 12 IOs, each IO can handle up to 1A making it easy to connect at least 1 motor to all pins at the same time. It supports WiFi 802.22 b/g/n and Bluetooth Low Energy which is made possible by the onboard ESP WROOM 32, a 128 by 64 px OLED screen for display applications, a switchable 5V or 3V on each I/O.

One major benefit of using obniz is the nature of its IO pins. All 12 pins can be used for A/D (Analog and Digital Processing), UART, SPI and others. There are no specialized pins, they all have the same capabilities. Although there is a limit to the total number of UART pins that can be used, but A/D and others can be used on all 12 pins at the same time. Just like Arduino, it is short protected.

 

obniz is connected to the obniz Cloud using the WiFi Module, and from the obniz cloud, it is easy to control the IOs through the REST API or WebSocket API. The obniz team have released a javascript parts library for the browser using Nodejs.

Getting started with obniz is easy with these 3 steps:

  1. Connect obniz to Wifi
  2. Connect motors sensors to your obniz
  3. Scan a QR code on your obniz that will direct a user to a program page.

obniz is available for purchase for about $59 on Amazon, Tindie, and obniz store.

Google Unveils USB Type-C Version Of It’s Edge TPU AI Chip

Posted on by Rik

Google has come up with its Edge TPU machine learning chip announcement by also revealing a USB Type-C based device that can be plugged into any Linux or Android Things computer, including a Raspberry Pi. The company announced a USB stick computer version of Edge TPU that can work with any Linux or Android Things computer. It also published more details on the upcoming, NXP-based Edge TPU development kit, including its SoC NXP i.MX8M.

Two views of the Edge TPU dev kit
Google’s Edge TPU dev kit

The Edge TPU Accelerator uses the same mini-scaled Edge TPU neural network coprocessor that is built into the upcoming dev kit. It has a USB Type-C port to connect with any Debian Linux or Android Things computer to accelerate machine learning (ML) inferencing for local edge analytics. The 65 x 30mm device has mounting holes for host boards such as a Raspberry Pi Zero.

Same as the Edge TPU development kit, the Edge TPU Accelerator enables the processing of machine learning (ML) inference data directly on-device. This local ML accelerator increases privacy, removes the need for persistent connections, reduces latency, and allows for high performance using less power.

The Edge TPU Accelerator starts competing with products like Intel’s Neural Compute Stick, previously referred to as the Fathom. The USB-equipped Neural Compute Stick is equipped with the Movidius Myriad 2 VPU and neural network accelerator.

The Edge TPU dev kit details

The Edge TPU Accelerator is going to ship in October this year along with the Edge TPU chip and development kit. It was informed that the computer-on-module that features the Edge TPU will run either Debian Linux or Android Things on NXP’s i.MX8M. The 1.5GHz, Cortex-A53 based i.MX8M integrates a Vivante GC7000Lite GPU and VPU, as well as a 266MHz Cortex-M4 MCU.

The yet unnamed, 48 x 40mm module will ship with 1GB LPDDR4, 8GB eMMC, dual-band WiFi-ac, and Bluetooth 4.1. The baseboard of the dev kit will add a microSD slot, as well as single USB Type-C OTG, Type-C power (5V input), USB 3.0 host, and micro-USB serial console ports.

The Edge TPU development kit baseboard is further provided with GbE and HDMI 2.0a ports, as well as a 39-pin FPC connector for 4-lane MIPI-DSI and a 24-pin FPC for 4-lane MIPI-CSI2. There’s also a 40-pin expansion connector, but with no claims for Raspberry Pi compatibility. The 85 x 56mm board also provides an audio jack, a digital mic, and a 4-pin terminal for stereo speakers.

More information may be found in the Edge TPU Accelerator announcement, as well as the original Edge TPU announcement.

Adlink Launches A New Apollo Based Fan-less Panel Computer Series

Posted on by Ayo Ayibiowu

Adlink, a provider for embedded and computer solutions has launched a new panel computer to the market. Adlink has been known for providing different types of panel computers for the different markets from the general industry, consumer market and to the health sector. Adlink’s new panel computer has been tagged as smart panel that offers rapid human-machine interaction device development.

The new Adlink panel computer is a rugged and customizable Intel Atom-based panel PC series called SP-AL with IP65-protected 7- to 25-inch capacitive or resistive screens. The Smart Panel is an embedded panel computer that should easily integrate into a wide variety of form factors and configurations. The Smart Panel will easily find applications in many sectors, products, services and industries with its exceptional range of display sizes, inputs, touch types, I/O interface, heat sink, temperature, and coupled with Adlink’s unique Function Module (FM) design enables it to fulfil a wide range of requirements.

ADLINK SP-AL Panel Computer

At the core of the panel, is the Apollo Lake SoC – Intel Atom® x5-E3930 running at about 1.3 to 1.8GHz with a 6.5W TDP. An optional Intel Atom® x7-E3950 is also available for ordering running at about 1.6 to 1.8GHz at 12W TDP. The display size ranges from 7-inch, 1024 x 600 to 21.5-inch, 1920 x 1080 models. The full sizes range is – 7”, 10.1”, 12.1”, 15.6”, 18.5”, and 21.5”.

Adlink’s SP-AL series of all-in-one open frame panel computers range from 7-inch, 1024 x 600 to 21.5-inch, 1920 x 1080 models with a choice of 5-point capacitive or 5-wire resistive touchscreens. The rugged systems are equipped with a choice of two Apollo Lake SoCs: the Intel Atom x5-E3930 (1.3/1.8GHz, 6.5W TDP) or Atom x7-E3950 (1.6/2.0GHz, 12W TDP).

The device can run Windows 10, Ubuntu 16.04 and Android though Android support is expected to arrive in the fourth quarter of 2018. ADLINK’s Smart Panel can be embedded in a wide variety of installations. With 4K immersive graphics and media performance, fast video acceleration, support for 3 independent 4K Ultra HD displays, up to 15 simultaneous 1080p30 decode streams, extensive media codec library, and advanced security; the SP can offer self-service in retail kiosks, secure digital transactions for ticketing machines, smooth 3D image rendering for CNC machines, streamline medical examination processes, and serve at poker tables in casinos.

The Smart Panel supports many I/O interfaces, including the likes of USB 2.0, I2C, 32 Function keys, audio control, power control, display ports, and connectivity options. Power supply supports 12V and 9-36V and is available through external isolated power modules or uninterrupted power supply (UPS) systems.

Below are some of the device core features:

  • Intel Atom® x5-E3930/x7-E3950 processor
  • 5 points capacitive or 1 point 5-wire resistive touchscreens
  • External I/O: 1x DisplayPort, 1x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0, 2x GbE ports, 2x COM port (RS232/422/485)
  • Internal I/O: 1x mPCIe slot, 1x USIM slot, 1x USB 2.0, 2x I2C, 1x 8 GPIO
  • Expansion I/O: Customized specifically by FM board
  • Storage options: 1x eMMC, 1x SATA, 1x M.22x 2W speaker, 1x Mic in /Line out
  • 2x 2W speaker, 1x Mic in /Line out
  • Front side IP65 protection

Modularization is one of the main priorities of the Smart panel, and the high level of modularization in the panel design provides optimal flexibility allowing users to choose from a range of options like CPU choice, I/O interface and display sizes depending on the users need. The SP-AL series appears to be available now, but no information about the pricing. More information may be found on Adlink’s SP-AL product page.

Vehicle Battery monitor on a automotive relay form factor

Posted on by mixos

Jesus Echavarria has tipped us with his latest project. A car battery monitor in a Relay form Factor. Unfortunately only hardware details are given and no details on software. He writes:

Hi all! I’m really busy this year so I can’t post all the projects where I’m involved. Here’s one of the design I do last year for a client. He wants to measure the voltage of a car battery and set a couple of alarms when voltage falls below a defined values. Also, he wants to put the device in the relay box of the car, so the design needs to have a relay form factor to easy integration. So, after a couple of iterations, here’s the final design of the battery monitor.

The project start around a year ago. The client wants a device to integrate in the relay box of some vehicles to monitor the voltage of the battery (12V nominal value). He wants two alarms at two different voltages. The alarm output will activate other external relays for advertising the low level of the battery, so I use a couple of small SSR for this outputs. Also he wants to configure the time to enable / disable alarms: once the device detect a voltage lower or higher than configurated values, the device needs to wait some time (configurable) before actívate or desactivate the alarms.

Vehicle Battery monitor on a automotive relay form factor – [Link]

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