CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

February 23, 2018February 23, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Neutis N5 is a $49 Allwinner H5 SoM with WiFi and Bluetooth

Allwinner, Amlogic and Rockchip SoCs can be found in many single board computers or development boards, but contrary to processors from Texas Instruments, NXP or Atmel, there aren’t that many system-on-modules based on the low cost SoCs with companies like Pine64, Olimex, or Theobroma providing some options in that space. There soon will be more, as Emlid will launch Neutis N5 module based on Allwinner H5 processor in the next couple of months with the module also including WiFi and Bluetooth, beside the processor, memory, and storage. Neutis N5 specifications: SoC – Allwinner H5 quad core Arm Cortex-A53 processor with Arm Mali-450MP4 GPU System Memory – 512 MB DDR3 RAM Storage – 8 GB eMMC flash Connectivity – Wi-Fi: 802.11 b/g/n. BT: 4.0 dual-mode BLE with on-board antenna and U.FL connector for optional external antenna HW Security – Tamper-resistant dedicated crypto chip for storing cryptographic keys, unique ID, random number […]

February 22, 2018February 22, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Arm Kigen Puts SIM Card Functionality Right into IoT SoCs

Most cellular devices rely on SIM cards, and while with micro and nano SIM, the card has become smaller the electronics and connection remains the same. More recently, we’ve started to see boards featuring eSIM (embedded SIM), a chip soldered directly to the board that’s remotely provisioned by a local mobile network operator, so no more card needed, and the chip should not be tied to a single operator, so you can change plan whenever you want. But soon we won’t be able to find out if a board supports cellular connectivity by looking for a SIM card slot or eSIM chip – although the antenna(s) will still be there, and give a pretty obvious clue – , as Arm has now unveiled Kigen that integrates SIM identity directly into SoCs for the Internet of Things. This will enable what the company (the industry?) call integrated SIMs (iSIM) combining an […]

February 22, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Synthetic Sensors Combine Multiple Sensors and Machine Learning for General-Purpose Sensing

Sensors can be used to get specific data for example temperature & humidity or light intensity, or you can combine an array of sensors and leverage sensor fusion to combines data from the sensors to improve accuracy of measurement or detect more complex situation. Gierad Laput, Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon University, went a little further with what he (and the others he worked with) call Synthetic Sensors. Their USB powered hardware board includes several sensors, whose data can then be used after training through machine learning algorithms to detect specific events in a room, car, workshop, etc… List of sensors in the above board (at frequency at which data is gathered): PANASONIC GridEye AMG8833 IR thermal camera (10 Hz) TCS34725 color to digital converter (10 Hz) MAG3110F magnetometer (10 Hz) BME280 temperature & humidity sensor, barometer (10 Hz) MPU6500 accelerometer (4 kHz) RSSI data out of 2.4 GHz WiFi […]

February 22, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

3D Rendering and Video Composite Output on ESP32 Boards

A few years ago, we already saw it was possible to transmit color signals over NTSC using an ESP8266 board with the signal received on a TV with an analog tuner. CNLohr had to connect an antenna to the I2S pin of his ESP8266 module, and disable WiFi. But surely we should be able to do the same with ESP32, and potentially even better thanks to the two cores. That’s exactly what Bitluni successfully managed by connecting his LoLin32 board to the composite input of his TV with one handling the TV signal output (in grayscale) and the other core rendering 3D objects in real-time. But any ESP32 board could be use instead. The hardware connection is very easy. We just need two wires, one connected to the GND pin and outer part of the RCA connector, and the other connected to GPIO 25 (DAC1) and the inner part of […]

February 22, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Inforce 6320 Snapdragon 410E Powered IoT Edge Gateway Launched for $250

Inforce Computing launched several boards and modules based on Snapdragon 410/410E including 6301 SoM and 6309 micro SBC, which their customers can integrate into their own products. The company has now launched an “Application Ready Platform” with Inforce 6320 IoT/IoE (Internet of Everything) edge routers that can be deployed directly by their customers. Inforce 6320 comes with a Snapdragon 410E board with dual Gigabit Ethernet, a Wireless module with WiFi and Bluetooth, USB 2.0 ports, a micro HDMI port and other interfaces, as well as a rugged metal enclosure also used for cooling.Inforce 6320 IoT gateway specifications: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 410E processor (APQ8016E) with four ARM Cortex-A53 64-bit CPU @1.2GHz, Adreno 306 GPU with support for OpenGL ES 3.0, DirectX, and OpenCL, Hexagon QDSP6 @ 700MHz System Memory and Storage – 1GB LPDDR3 RAM + 8GB eMMC (eMCP package); MicroSD card connector Connectivity 802.11 b/g/n 2.4GHz WiFi, BT 4.1 […]

February 21, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Advantech ROM-7720 is a Qseven 2.1 Compliant i.MX 8 QuadMax Computer-on-Module

Many solutions based on NXP i.MX8 processors are likely to be announced during Embedded World 2018 next week. We’ve already seen several NXP i.MX 8M Cortex A53 based modules such as Variscite DART-MX8M or Compulab CL-SOM-IMX8 systems-on-module, and more are coming. One of those will be Advantech ROM-7720 computer-on-module (CoM) featuring the top of the line NXP i.MX 8 QuadMax Cortex A72/A53 processor and following QSeven 2.1 specifications / form factor. Advantech ROM-7720 CoM specifications: SoC – NXP i.MX 8QuadMax processor with 2x Cortex A72 cores @ up to 1.6GHz, 4x Cortex A53 cores, 2x Cortex-M4F real-time cores, a HiFi 4 DSP, and 2x Vivante GC7000XSVX GPUs System Memory – 2GB LPDDR4 @ 1600 MHz (optional 4GB RAM) Storage – 8 GB eMMC Flash for OS, 64 MB Quad SPI Flash for boot loader Video Output / Display I/F 2x 24-bit LVDS, 1366 x 768 for 1ch; 1920 x 1080 […]

February 21, 2018February 21, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

OOOOOO T-1 Desktop 3D Scanner Digitizes Objects in Full Color

My keyboard is working fine. Thanks for caring. 3D printing has taken off in recent years, but if you plan to copy an object, you’d have to reproduce it in digital form in AutoCAD or other program, which may be difficult and time consuming. An obvious solution is 3D scanning, and I initially thought that 3-in-1 3D printers that scan print, scan, and copy object would really bring such products into more household, so I wrote about somewhat affordable printers such as AIO Robotics Zeus or Blacksmith Genesis, that would sell for $2,200 and up. The company doing the latter appears to have closed business, and the Zeus is still for sale but some users reported various issues with 3D printing. So if you’d rather not put all your eggs into one basket, it may be smart to purchase a 3D printer and a 3D scanner separately. The price range […]

February 21, 2018February 21, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Microchip Launches $39 Industrial Grade System-on-Module with SAMA5D2 System-in-Package

Last fall, Microchip introduced four SAMA5D2 systems-in-package (SiP) combining the Cortex A5 processor with 16 to 128 MB DDR2 in a single package, and at the time, the company also offered ATSAMA5D27-SOM1-EK1, a fast prototyping and evaluation platform for the SiP that was designed with a baseboard and a soldered down ATSAMA5D27-SOM1 system-on-module. The kit was available for $245, and pricing for the SiP started at around $9 per unit for 5K order. The company has now started to offer ATSAMA5D27-SOM1 module separately with pricing starting at $39 each for 100 pieces order. ATSAMA5D27-SOM1 specifications: SiP – Microchip ATSAMA5D27C-D1G SiP with Cortex-A5 MPU @ 500 MHz, 128 MB DDR2 DRAM Storage Microchip SST26VF064BT 64Mb Serial Quad I/O (QSPI) flash memory for boot code (Linux kernel or RTOS) Microchip 24AA025E48 2Kb Serial EEPROM with EUI-48 Note Identity for the Ethernet MAC address Connectivity – Microchip KSZ8081RNAIA 10Base-T/100Base-TX Ethernet PHY for wired […]