BLE Carbon 96Boards IoT Edition Board Runs Zephyr OS

Linaro Connect Las Vegas 2016 is taking place right now, and the organization has some very interesting development, with a new focus on the Internet of Things thanks to the creation of LITE (Linaro IoT and Embedded) segment group that will work on “delivering end to end open source reference software for more secure connected products, ranging from sensors and connected controllers to smart devices and gateways, for the industrial and consumer markets”. The first LITE IoT Reference Platform release to be made in December 2016, but in the meantime, Linaro introduced 96Board IoT specifications, as well as the first compliant board with the launch of Carbon board (aka BLE Carbon) running Zephyr OS.

Click to Enlarge
Click to Enlarge

Carbon 96Boards IoT Edition board specifications:

  • MCU – STMicro STM32F401 ARM Cortex M4 microcontroller @ up to 84 MHz with 512kB Flash, 96kB ram
  • Connectivity – Bluetooth 4.0 LE via Nordic Semi nRF51822 SoC + chip antenna
  • USB – 1x micro USB OTG port, 1x micro USB port for UART
  • Expansion – 2x 15-pin Low speed connector with GPIO, UART, Analog inputs,SPI, I2C, PWM, and power signals; 3.3V I/O voltage
  • Debugging – SWD debug connectors, UART console via micro USB port
  • Misc – 6LEDs ( USR1, USR2, BT, PWR, RX, TX), 2x push buttons (BOOT0 and RESET)
  • Power Supply – 5V via micro USB port with fuse protect
  • Dimensions –  60 x 30 mm as per 96Boards IoT standards
Click to Enlarge
Click to Enlarge

You’ll find the software and hardware documentation on 96Boards Carbon page, as well as Seeed Studio Wiki, since they are the designer and manufacturer of the board.

As with other 96Boards specifications, 96Board IoT Edition (IE) specification defines requirement for multiple revision of boards either using Cortex-A or Cortex-R/M profile, and IE standard (60x30x9mm) or IE Extended (85x54x12mm) form factor. On top of that you’ll also have board with 3.3V I/Os, and others with 1.8V I/Os. That means that BLE Carbon board is compliant with “96Board IoT Edition standard using Cortex-R/M profile and 3.3V I/Os“.

96Boards IoT Edition Standard (3.3V) Dimensions
96Boards IoT Edition Standard (3.3V) Dimensions

The specifications also mandates at least one wireless interface such as Zigbee and Bluetooth LE, as well as optional Ethernet, USB, and micro SD card support.

Seeed Studio is now taking pre-orders for the BLE Carbon board for $27.95 with shipping planned for October 20th.

Share this:

Support CNX Software! Donate via cryptocurrencies, become a Patron on Patreon, or purchase goods on Amazon or Aliexpress

ROCK 5 ITX RK3588 mini-ITX motherboard
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
The comment form collects your name, email and content to allow us keep track of the comments placed on the website. Please read and accept our website Terms and Privacy Policy to post a comment.
6 Comments
oldest
newest
JM
JM
8 years ago

STM32F401 + nRF51822? Feels like I’ve gone back in time to 2014.

quillan
quillan
8 years ago
JM
JM
8 years ago

@quillan
That looks a lot more sensible

JM
JM
8 years ago


Actually Zephyr OS already supports the BLE Nitrogen board! So in terms of software it may even be better than the one you posted.

https://www.zephyrproject.org/doc/board/board.html

Khadas VIM4 SBC