96Boards compliant Rock960 Development Board Gets a 5.0MP MIPI CSI Camera

VAMRS Rock960 is a 96Boards compliant development board based on Rockchip RK3399 processor that was first unveiled in 2017, but last year it got a low-cost version with Rock960 model C selling for as little as $69.

All variants of Rock960 come with MIPI CSI signals exposed via the 60-pin high-speed connector defined in 96boards specifications. So it needs a MIPI adapter board to connect the camera, and a couple of years ago, instructions were posted explaining how to use a MIPI CSI camera on 96boards such as Rock960. It now appears the MIPI adapter board is not for sale on eBay anymore, but that not an issue as e-Con Systems has just launched e-CAM50_CU96 5.0 MP camera designed to work with Rock960 board, and by extension, I assume, other 96boards compliant SBCs that expose a MIPI CSI interface.

e-CAM50_CU96 is comprised of three main components:

• e-CAM55_CUMI0521_MOD camera module with an S-mount interchangeable lens holder an ON Semiconductor AR0521 5.0MP CMOS image sensor supporting:
  • Uncompressed UYVY streaming
  • Resolutions & Frame rates
    • HD (1280 x 720) @ 70 fps
    • FHD (1920 x 1080) @ 60 fps
    • QHD (2560 x 1440) @ 35 fps
    • 5MP (2592 x 1944) @ 25 fps
• eCAM130_TRICUTX2_ADAPTOR adaptor board to connect the above module
• ACC-96DEV_MIPICAMERA_ADP baseboard connecting to the low-speed and high-speed 96boards connector and to the above adapter board The photo above shows the kit connected to Rock960 SBC. The company provides a V4L2 Linux camera driver for the camera module as well as code samples using Gstreamer-1.0 for video recording and network streaming. You can find how to get started in the user guide. You’ll also find a shorter generic guide on 96boards website about using a MIPI CSI-2 camera on Rock960.

e-con Systems e-CAM50_CU96 5.0 MP camera for 96boards compliant Rock960 board is now sold for $99 as a promotional price until February 6, after which date the price will go up to $129.

Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.

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