CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

August 19, 2019August 19, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Socionext 24 GHz Radar Sensor for IoT Measures Distance and Angle (Video)

Last year, we wrote about Socionext MN87900 24 GHz radio wave radar module for IoT with Rx & Tx antennas and a crytal unit that measured just 12×7 mm. The module is made for IoT equipments, security systems, smart home appliances, autonomous vehicles and drones, medical devices, and more. Basically any application that requires distance measurement up to 8 meters (expandable to 30 meters with a radome horn), rough location, or motion detection may leverage the technology. The company has now uploaded a video showing a demo of their 24 GHz radar sensor. Socionext did not explain which exact solution they used, and it’s probably not the full module above, but either one of their sensors based on the link provided in the video description: SC1232AR3 – All-in-one RADAR sensor for Entry Motion & Distance Detection SC1233AR3 – All-in-one RADAR sensor for Entry Motion & 2D Detection I suspect SC1232AR3 […]

August 19, 2019August 19, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 43 Comments

Allwinner R328 Smart Speaker & System-on-Module Spotted in China

Earlier this year, Allwinner introduced some AIoT (AI + IoT) processors including Allwinner R328 dual-core Cortex-A7 processor for “low-cost voice interaction solutions” aka low-cost smart speakers. I did not pay too much attention at the processor at the time, but since then, the company has released a product brief with some more details about the processor. We can see it integrates 64MB to 128MB DDR3 memory which should be enough to run Linux without external memory, and truly provide a low-cost solution for smart speakers, and I was told the chip may cost around $3. I was also asked whether Allwinner R328 smart speakers were already shipping. A Google search in English did not help, so I had to switch to Chinese, and after visiting several sites, I could see some Allwinner A328 platforms including a smart speaker and a system-on-module were showcased at some event in China. We’ve got […]

August 19, 2019August 19, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Onenuts Nut 9 TV Box Runs Android TV, Doubles as a Smart Speaker

We’ve previously covered HF10 2-in-1 Android speaker and TV box that looks more like a speaker than a TV box, and since we’ve posted about it several years got improved to work as a smart speaker supporting Amazon Alexa. If you’re a distributor looking for something with the same functionalities, but in a more compact TV box form factor, Shenzhen Tomato got you covered with their Onenuts Nut 9 TV box that works as a traditional TV box running Android TV 7.1, as well as a smart speaker with support Google Assistant even when the TV is off thanks to a built-in microphone and a speaker placed on the bottom of the enclosure. Onenuts Nut 9 specifications: SoC – Amlogic S905X Arm Cortex-A53 processor up to 1.5GHz with penta-core Mali-450MP GPU up to 750Mhz+ System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash, micro SD card slot Video Output – […]

August 18, 2019August 17, 2019 by Tiwalade Joanna Okedara - 4 Comments

RAKWireless Introduces RAK7200 LoRa Tracker | Features & Specifications

RAK7200 is a LoRa Tracker node built around the AcSIP S76G chip. It integrates the ultra-low-power STM32L073 micro-controller, the SX1276 LoRa long range modem, and the CXD5603GF GPS receiver. The RAK7200, being a fully functioning LoRaWAN device, is particularly suited for IoT applications. Such as asset tracking, smart vehicle management, location-based service, etc. According to the device manufacturers, RAKWireless, a leading Chinese IoT solutions company, based in Shenzhen, RAK7200 requires minimal setup. Just pop in the included battery, close the housing and you can start sensing your GPS data over LoRaWAN. Furthermore, there are sensors built-into the board: a 9-axis accelerometer and pressure sensor. The new GPS Tracker node is an upgrade over the company’s earlier offering in the GPS tracker space, the RAK7205. Now, the earlier version, the RAK7205, was mostly aimed at developers, with its larger more robust casing and solar panel. But the RA7200 is more of […]

August 17, 2019August 17, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

M5Stack M5StickV is a Tiny AI Camera for Maker Projects

I’ve just started to play with Maixduino board based on ESP32 WiSoC and Sipeed M1 module that enables AI tasks such as object detection thanks to built-in AI accelerators found in Kendryte K210 RISC-V processor and noticed references to M5Stack M5StickV in firmware file names. Somehow I never wrote about M5Stack, but the company provides modular ESP32 IoT development boards that can be stacked with various modules to easily and quickly build prototypes. M5StickV is one of those modules and is similar to Maixduino kit with camera and display, minus WiFi + Bluetooth connectivity, except that everything nicely packed into a cute module. M5StickV hardware specifications: SoC – Kendryte K210 dual-core 64-bit RISC-V processor @ 400MHz with dual independent double-precision FPU, 8MB on-chip SRAM, Neural Network Processor (KPU) @ 0.8Tops, Field-Programmable IO Array (FPIOA), and more Storage – 16MB flash, microSD card slot Display -1.14″ SPI display with 240×135 resolution […]

August 16, 2019August 16, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Wear Estimation for Devices with eMMC Flash Memory

flash wear leveling & garbage collection

CNXSoft: This is a guest post by Marcel Ziswiler, Platform Manager – Embedded Linux, Toradex and Leonardo Graboski Veiga, Technical Marketing Engineer, Toradex related to Marcel’s upcoming talk “Wear Estimation for Devices with eMMC Flash Memory” at the Embedded Linux Conference 2019 later this month. Flash memory has been an important topic in embedded systems for decades. It allows for drastic improvements to the size and robustness of electronic devices compared to other storage technologies. Other benefits of flash storage include a lack of moving parts and reduced power consumption. However, the challenges that come with flash memory are not as widely publicized in consumer electronics. Among them are limited durability and greater software complexity. As shown in Figure 1, flash memory is everywhere in our daily lives, ranging from devices used specifically to store data, such as thumb drives, SD cards and SSDs, to other consumer electronics that use […]

August 16, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Variscite VAR-SOM-6UL System-on-Module Supports NXP i.MX 6UltraLite, i.MX 6ULL, or i.MX 6ULZ ARM Cortex-A7 Processor

Variscite has just announced the launch of the VAR-SOM-6UL System-on-Module (SoM) powered by a choice of NXP’s i.MX 6UltraLite / 6ULL / 6ULZ Arm Cortex-A7 processor clocked at up to 900MHz CPU clock and based on the company earlier DART-6UL module while integrating an additional LVDS bridge option, all packed in SO-DIMM200 form factor to fit the VAR-SOM Pin2Pin family. The module is optimized for power, size, and cost, and supports dual Ethernet, dual USB, audio, CAN Bus, camera, optional single or dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth BLE, Touch, ADC, PWM, as well as support for industrial temperature grades with -40 to 85°C range. Variscite VAR-SOM-6UL specifications & key features: SoC – NXP i.MX 6UltraLite / 6ULL / 6ULZ ARM Cortex-A7 with optional security features up to 900MHz CPU Clock with 2D Pixel acceleration engine System Memory – Up to 1024 MB DDR3L Storage – 512 MB NAND / 64 GB eMMC […]

August 16, 2019August 16, 2019 by Stephen Vicinanza - 14 Comments

CutiePi Open Source Tablet uses Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3

The announcement of the CutiePi, an open source tablet-based on the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3 comes a bit late for the Pi-based tablet/laptop space. We have reported on some of the more versatile tablets using the Raspberry Pi platform, the Diskio Pi 13.3” DIY Tablet and the RasPad tablet kit, with a few more Raspberry Pi-based tablet/laptop kits also listed in the same article. Timeline and Pricing CutiePi Tablet has no firm release date, but the company is saying late 2019 for launch. The development team is also saying everything is subject to change, but look for the pricing to be USD $150 – $250. Click to Enlarge How CutiePi is Different The tablet is different in its thinner design and in the software designed specifically to use Linux Raspbian OS for a touch screen platform. There are readily available source code and case plans for the ambitious developer […]