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June 9, 2025June 9, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Arduino UNO SPE Shield adds Single Pair Ethernet and RS485 to Arduino boards

Arduino UNO SPE Shield adds Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) and RS485 to Arduino UNO and compatible boards, notably the Arduino UNO R4, via a Microchip LAN8651 SPE controller. Single Pair Ethernet relies on just two wires to carry data and power, allowing for much more compact designs and simpler wiring compared to traditional RJ45-based solutions with Cat 5 cables. It especially benefits IoT and IIoT applications for buildings, factories, and process automation. Arduino UNO SPE specifications: Networking – Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) via Microchip LAN8651B1 10BASE-T1S MAC-PHY Ethernet Controller with SPI Data rate: 10 Mbit/s over a single balanced pair T1SP and T1SN available on screw terminal block Dedicated T1S SPE connector Maximum Distance – Supports up to 25 meters in multidrop topology (multiple nodes on a single segment) Up to eight nodes in a multidrop network Serial – RS485 via MaxLinear XR33058 Half duplex RS485 Data rate: 20 Mbit/s […]

May 30, 2025May 30, 2025 by Debashis Das - No Comments

DFRobot Edge101 ESP32 industrial IoT controller offers isolated RS485 and CAN Bus interfaces

DFRobot Edge101 is an industrial-grade IoT controller built around the ESP32 MCU, designed as a bridge between development boards and industrial IoT systems. Housed in a full metal enclosure, it comes with various protection features including surge, ESD, lightning, overvoltage, and reverse polarity protection, and supports continuous 24/7 operation in harsh environments. It integrates RS-485, CAN bus, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and RTC, and supports expansion via a PCIe slot for 4G LTE cellular communication, making it suitable for automation, environmental monitoring, and remote data acquisition in industrial or outdoor settings. The IoT controller also offers flexible mounting options such as DIN rail or ear mounting. DFRobot Edge101 specifications: Wireless MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX6 microcontroller @ up to 240 MHz Memory – 520 KB SRAM, 16 KB RTC SRAM Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 4.2 Storage – 4MB SPI NOR flash, MicroSD card slot Connectivity […]

May 8, 2025May 8, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

HydraLink USB-to-Automotive Ethernet dongle works over a single twisted pair (Crowdfunding)

HydraLink is a compact USB-to-Automotive Ethernet dongle that supports 100BASE-T1 and 1000BASE-T1 standards over a single twisted pair (no large RJ45 connector needed) and provides a solution for diagnosing, testing, and prototyping automotive networks. The rationale behind HydraLink is that the automotive sector is undergoing a shift from CAN-based systems to advanced Automotive Ethernet networks like BroadR-Reach (802.3bw) that allow multiple in-vehicle systems to simultaneously access information over unshielded single twisted pair cables. So as I understand it, the HydraLink is the modern equivalent of OBD-II USB scanners relying on Ethernet instead. HydraLink specifications: Networking – 100 Mbps or 1000 Mbps automotive Ethernet via 2.54 mm pin header (Note: the board below features a Broadcom BCM89811 BroadR-Reach automotive Ethernet RGMII transceiver limited to 100BASE-T1 data rate) USB – USB 3.0 Gen 1 Type-C port Misc – Link activity and link speed LED indicators Power Supply – 5V via USB interface […]

April 20, 2025April 20, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

ESP-HDMI-Bridge is an ESP32-P4 HDMI streaming adapter with USB, Ethernet, WiFi, and microSD card

ESP-HDMI-Bridge is an ESP32-P4-based HDMI streaming adapter based on Lontium Semiconductors’s LT8912B MIPI-DSI to HDMI bridge chip outputting MIPI-DSI video signal of ESP32-P4 to HDMI devices. It allows the user to connect a computer to an HDMI display or projector through USB, Ethernet, or WiFi, or use it directly as a digital signage player or live dashboard connected to an HDMI display. The current solution is based on the ESP32-P4-Function-EV-Board connected via its MIPI DSI connector to a 50x40mm board with the LT8912B bridge, a MIPI DSI input connector, LVDS and HDMI video outputs, and a 12-pin header with I2C, I2S audio, etc., with everything housed in a plastic enclosure. The best is to watch the video below, which shows various demos: USB to HDMI up to 720p30 or 1080p15 Ethernet to HDMI WiFi to HDMI up to 1080p40 using the ESP32-C6 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 module on the ESP-P4 […]

April 15, 2025April 15, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Cervoz M.2 SFP Ethernet expansion modules support long cables (up to several kilometers) for robotics

Cervoz M.2 MEC-LAN-2001-SFP and MEC-LAN-2002-SFP are M.2 SFP Ethernet expansion modules delivering gigabit Ethernet speed over long distances for robotics using an Intel i210-IS controller compliant with IEEE 802.3x and 802.3z standards. Small Form-factor Pluggable (SFP/SFP+) cages are usually associated with high-speed Ethernet connections of over 10 Gbps, but another advantage of SFP cages over RJ45 jacks is that they allow for data transmission over several kilometers, while RJ45 Ethernet is typically limited to about 100 meters. The Cervoz M.2 SFP Ethernet expansion modules would allow laying out long cables in logistics centers, smart factories, transportation hubs, and energy management facilities where Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) operate across long distances. Cervoz M.2 MEC-LAN-2001-SFP and MEC-LAN-2002-SFP specifications: Ethernet 1x or 2x Gigabit Ethernet connectors via Intel i210-IS controller(s) Support Wake-on-LAN and Hot-Swap function 1x or 2x SFP cages via MEC daughter board Host interface – M.2 B+M Key edge connector with […]

April 14, 2025April 14, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

W6300-EVB-Pico2 board combines RP2350 MCU with WIZnet W6300 QSPI Ethernet controller for 80+ Mbps data rate

W6300-EVB-PICO2 board with Raspberry Pi RP23500 and W6300 QSPI Ethernet controller

WIZnet W6300-EVB-Pico2 is a development board that combines a Raspberry Pi RP2350 MCU with the company’s new W6300 QSPI Ethernet controller capable of 80+ Mbps data rates. WIZNet has made several 10/100Mbps Ethernet controllers over the years that connect to microcontrollers via SPI, but the speed is often limited to 15 to 70 Mbps due to a low SPI clock frequency and small buffers. The WIZNet W6300 Ethernet controller can deliver higher speed thanks to a 150MHz system clock, a QSPI interface with four data lines, 64KB SRAM, and 4KB TX/RX buffer for each of the 8 sockets. W6300 QSPI Ethernet controller W6300 features and specifications: Host Interface – High-speed QSPI (MODE 0/3), system bus with 2 address signals & 8-bit data Internal 32KB SRAM for Tx/ Rx buffers (64KB in total) 8x independent sockets with 64KB Memory 10BaseT / 10BaseTe / 100BaseTX Ethernet PHY Integrated Auto negotiation (Full and […]

March 5, 2025March 5, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

LILYGO T-Connect Pro industrial IoT controller offers Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth, LoRa, RS232, RS485, and CAN Bus

LILYGO T-Connect-Pro ESP32-S3 LoRa Industrial Controller

LILYGO T-Connect Pro is a DIN rail-mountable, ESP32-S3-based industrial IoT controller with Ethernet, WiFi 4, Bluetooth 5.0 LE, and LoRa connectivity, as well as CAN Bus, RS232, and RS485 interfaces. The controller also features a 2.33-inch touchscreen display, a 10A relay, a 12V to 24V DC screw terminal for power, 5V USB-C port for programming, a Qwiic connector for expansion, and BOOT and Reset buttons. LILYGO T-Connect Pro specifications: SoC – Espressif ESP32-S3R8 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller up to 240 MHz with vector instructions for AI acceleration Memory – 8MB PSRAM Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE + Mesh connectivity Storage – 16MB SPI flash Display – 2.33-inch RGB display with 480×222 resolution via ST7796 SPI display controller with touchscreen using CST226SE chip Networking 10/100Mbps Ethernet RJ45 port via W5500 4-wire SPI controller WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE via ESP32-S3 LoRa via HPD16A Semtech SX1262 […]

March 2, 2025March 6, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Citronics built a router based on the Fairphone 2 mainboard

Destore Citronics Fairphone 2 industrial gateway

Belgium-company Citronics has designed a router based on the mainboard of the Fairphone 2 smartphone, connecting the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 “system-on-module” to a carrier board with Ethernet, USB ports, and other connectors, while leveraging 4G LTE, WiFi, and Bluetooth connectivity from the phone’s core board. Citronics calls this type of hardware “Circular Microcomputers,” which refers to small computers focusing on sustainability and circular economy principles using parts from discarded devices like old smartphones. There’s actually more than one router, as Citronics designed its own development kit, and also partnered with other companies to design custom gateways based on the Fairphone 2 mainboard. Let’s have a look at the devkit first. Citronics devkit: Fairphone 2 mainboard SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (MSM8974AB) quad core Krait 400 processor @ up to 2.26 GHz with Adreno 330 GPU System Memory – 2 GB LPDDR3 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash Connectivity – 2G/3G/4G LTE, […]