Raspberry Pi Category - CNX Software

March 6, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Zant – An open-source Zig SDK for neural network deployment on microcontrollers

Zant neural network deployment microcontrollers

Zant is an open-source, cross-platform SDK written in Zig and designed to simplify deploying Neural Networks (NN) on microcontrollers. It comprises a suite of tools to import, optimize, and deploy NNs to low-end hardware. The developers behind the project developed Zant (formerly known as Zig-ant) after noticing many microcontrollers lacked robust deep learning libraries, and made sure it would be on various platforms such as ARM Cortex-M or RISC-V microcontrollers, or even x86 targets. Contrary to platforms like Edge Impulse that focus on network creation, Zant is about deployment and outputs a static, highly optimized library ready to be integrated into any existing work stack. Zant highlights: Optimized Performance – Supports quantization, pruning, and hardware acceleration techniques such as SIMD and GPU offloading. Low memory footprint – Zant employs memory pooling, static allocation, and buffer optimization to work on resources-constrained targets. Ease of Integration: With a modular design, clear APIs, […]

February 26, 2025February 26, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

TouchEye dual round touch display module features Raspberry Pi RP2040 or ESP32-S3 MCU (Crowdfunding)

TouchEye ESP32-S3 or RP2040 dual touch display board

Last December, Debashis wrote about the Waveshare Double Eye LCD module comprised of two round displays that can be useful for robotics or art projects since they can be made to look like googly eyes. The module is designed to be connected to a host MCU via an SPI interface. The TouchEye looks similar but offers larger 1.28-inch round displays (instead of 0.71-inch), and also adds a touch function. Instead of being connected to a host MCU via SPI like the Waveshare model, the TouchEye dual touch display module is a complete board with an onboard MCU that can be either a Raspberry Pi RP2040 or an Espressif ESP32-S3 that also offers WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity. Both boards also feature a USB-C port for power and programming, a microSD card slot, a GPIO breakout connector, and programmable buttons. TouchEye module specifications: MCU (one or the other) Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core […]

February 20, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Raspberry Pi Pico SDK 2.1.1 release adds 200MHz clock option for RP2040, various Waveshare boards, new code samples

The Raspberry Pi Pico SDK 2.1.1 has just been released with official 200 MHz clock support for the Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU, several new boards mostly from Waveshare, but also one from Sparkfun, as well as new code samples, and other small changes. Raspberry Pi RP2040 gets official 200 MHz clock support When the Raspberry Pi RP2040 was first released along with Raspberry Pi Pico in 2021, we were told the default frequency was 48 MHz, but the microcontroller could also run up to 133 MHz. Eventually, I think the Cortex-M0+ cores were clocked at 125 MHz by default, although some projects (e.g. PicoDVI) would boost the frequency up to 252 MHz. Frequencies higher than 133 Mhz were not officially supported so far, but the Pico SDK 2.1.1 changes that since the Raspberry Pi RP2040 has now been certified to run at a system clock of 200MHz when using a […]

February 17, 2025February 16, 2025 by Tomisin Olujinmi - No Comments

SPOKE capacitive touch sensor board targets interactive computer interfaces (Crowdfunding)

Spoke capacitive touch sensor controller

SPOKE is a Raspberry Pi RP2040-based capacitive touch sensor board for interactive computer interfaces. It is designed to simplify the integration of touch-based control into various projects. SPOKE features up to 27 sensor inputs and can “turn almost any conductive material into a sensor” to control almost any computer input. Potential applications include music making, video game controlling, typing, and general software controlling. The board was designed by Tom Fox, an educator, maker, and musician in the UK. According to him, the board is accessible to beginners getting started with touch sensing while retaining enough power and customizability for professional use. It works with several conductive materials, including copper pipes, conductive paint, aluminum foil, pencils, conductive filaments, fruits, fabrics with conductive threads, and metallic surfaces. It can also be used with a non-conductive material (such as plywood) if a conductive material (e.g. tinfoil) is behind it. The fully-featured SPOKE capacitive […]

February 10, 2025February 11, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

FlashMyPico – Raspberry Pi Pico / Pico 2 code editing and firmware flashing from a web browser

FlashMyPico website allows you to write C code, build the firmware, and flash it to your Raspberry Pi Pico, Pico W, Pico 2, or Pico 2 W directly from a web browser instead of having to check out the code from GitHub, build it in a terminal, and then manually copy the resulting binary. I’ve given it a quick with a Raspberry Pi Pico 2 board. The first step is to head over to flashmypico.com from your computer or even an Android smartphone. You’ll need a web browser that supports WebUSB, so for example, Firefox is not an option, and I eventually had to use Google Chrome instead. There’s a detect device link on the bottom left, so I clicked on that first, and my Raspberry Pi Pico 2 was detected as “RP2350 Boot” after I put it in bootloader mode. But it just told me that my board is […]

February 7, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

CPico RP2350 is another Raspberry Pi Pico 2 alternative with USB-C, 8MB flash, 2MB PSRAM, BConnect I2C & debug ports

iLabs CPico RP2350 is a Raspberry Pi Pico 2 alternative with the same form factor, still based on the Raspberry Pi RP2350 microcontroller but equipped with a USB-C port, 8MB flash, 2MB PSRAM, a Reset button, and Bconnect I2C and debug ports. Apart from that, the CPico RP2350 retains the other features of the Raspberry Pi Pico 2 including the two 20-pin PGIO headers, and BOOT button. It joins other Raspberry Pi Pico 2 alternatives like the Waveshare RP2350-Plus adding battery support. CPico RP2350 specifications: SoC – Raspberry Pi RP2350 CPU Dual-core Arm Cortex-M33 @ 150 MHz with Arm Trustzone, Secure boot Dual-core RISC-V Hazard3 @ 150 MHz Up two cores can be used at any given time Memory – 520 KB on-chip SRAM Security 8KB of anti-fuse OTP for key storage Secure boot (Arm only) SHA-256 acceleration Hardware TRNG Fast glitch detectors Package – QFN-60 Memory – 2 MP […]

February 7, 2025February 7, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

FOSSASIA 2025 – Operating systems, open hardware, and firmware sessions

The FOSSASIA Summit is the closest we have to FOSDEM in Asia. It’s a free and open-source event taking place each year in Asia, and FOSSASIA 2025 will take place in Bangkok, Thailand on March 13-15 this year. It won’t have quite as many speakers and sessions as in FOSDEM 2025 (968 speakers, 930 events), but the 3-day event will still have over 170 speakers and more than 200 sessions. Most of the sessions are for high-level software with topics like AI and data science, databases, cloud, and web3, but I also noticed a few sessions related to “Hardware and firmware” and “Operating System” which are closer to what we cover here at CNX Software. So I’ll make a virtual schedule based on those two tracks to check out any potentially interesting talks. None of those sessions take place on March 13, so we’ll only have a schedule for March […]

February 6, 2025 by Debashis Das - 2 Comments

Pimoroni Interstate 75 W (RP2350) board is designed for HUB75 LED matrix panels

Interstate 75 W RGB LED Matrix Driver board

Pimoroni Interstate 75 W (RP2350) is an all-in-one RGB LED matrix driver board designed for HUB75 LED matrix panels commonly used in video walls, advertising displays, and creative signage. Built around a Raspberry Pi RP2350 chip this board also uses the Raspberry Pi’s CYW43439 module for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and features user buttons, an RGB LED, and a Qw/ST connector for integration with Qwiic/STEMMA QT breakouts. The kit is compatible with various LED matrix sizes (32×32, 64×64, etc.) and comes in a starter kit with panels, cables, and magnetic feet for quick setup. All these features make this kit useful for applications including real-time data like bus times, air quality, or sensor outputs, dynamic signage, scrolling text, and more. Pimoroni Interstate 75 W (RP2350) specifications: SoC – Raspberry Pi RP2350A CPU Dual-core Arm Cortex-M33 @ 150 MHz with Arm Trust zone, Secure boot OR Dual-core RISC-V Hazard3 @ 150 MHz Up […]