PULPino Open Source RISC-V MCU is Designed for IoT and Wearables

lowRISC is not the only open source processor project based on RISC-V instructions, as researchers at ETH Zurich university and the University of Bologna have developed PULPino open-source processor based on RISC-V instructions set, optimized for low power consumption, and targeting wearables and the IoT applications. PULPino is a single core processor derived from the PULP project (Parallel Ultra-Low-Power Platform) featuring a quad core RISC-V SoC with new RI5CY Signal Processing ISA extensions designed by the universities. The core has an IPC (instructions per cycle) close to 1, full support for the base integer instruction set (RV32I), compressed instructions (RV32C) and partial support for the multiplication instruction set extension (RV32M). PULPino also features peripherals such as I2S, I2C, SPI and UART. PULPino has already been taped out as an ASIC in UMC 65nm at the beginning of the year, but the RTL code be run on Xilinx Zynq-7010 powered Zedboard, […]

Ultracker US360 360 Degrees Camera Features 4 Wide-Angle Lenses, Runs Android

We’ve already seen 360 degrees cameras with some rather expensive setups with multiple GoPros, as well as more affordable solutions (around $500) such as Gyroptic 360 Camera and ALLIe cameras. Taiwan based Ultracker Technology is now promising a 360 degree camera for around 300 dollars with their US360 model featuring four lenses for up to 1080p30 or 6144×1760 @ 6 fps video recording or live streaming. US360 camera specifications: FPGA implementation  Camera Image Sensors – 4x 2.4 MP Sony Exmor CMOS Sensor Lens – 4x 2.3mm wide angle lenses View angle – 360° x 200° Image Settings Image Adjustment – Brightness, Contrast, Saturation, Sharpness, DWDR, AEC, AGC, AWB, Noise Reduction (2D/3D) Image Orientation – Flip, Mirror, 360˚ Rotation Photo format – JPEG Video Codec – H.264 or MJPEG Resolution & frame rate – 6144 x 1792 @ 6 fps , 1920 x 1080 @ 30 fps , 1280 x 720 […]

Avnet Introduces Zynq Based MicroZed Industry 4.0 / IIoT Ethernet Kit

There’s a lot of buzz around IoT, and the industrial sector is also trying to build smarter factories using protocols or standards part of Industry 4.0 or Industrial IoT (IIoT) depending on the country or group you belong too. Avnet has just launched MicroZed Industry 4.0 Ethernet Kit (I4EK) based on Xilinx Zynq-7000 ARM & FPGA SoC to address this market with support for the most common industrial protocols such as EtherCAT, Powerlink, PROFINET RT/IRT, EtherNet/IP, and Modbus-TCP. The “brain” of the development board is MicroZed module powered by Zilinx Zynq-7020 dual core Cortex A9 processor with FPGA fabric, and coupled with 1GB RAM, 128 MB SQPI flash, a Gigabit Ethernet port, and various I/Os. The module is connected to MicroZed FMC Carrier board with the following features: 2x 100-pin board-to-board MicroHeaders Xilinx PC4 header for download/debug – Accesses PL JTAG 5x Digilent Pmod compatible interfaces 39 user I/O 1x […]

DAB Embedded OpenWrt Router Board Combines Atmel SAMA5D3 SoC and Altera MAX 10 FPGA

DAB Embedded, a Belgian engineering company specialized in research and development of electronic products, has designed DAB-OWT-SAM5 router board powered by Atmel SAMA5D36 Cortex-A5 processor and Altera MAX 10 FPGA, which runs OpenWrt or Windows Embedded Compact 7, and targets IoT applications. DAB-OWT-SAM5 board specifications: SoC – Atmel SAMA5D36 ARM Cortex-A5 processor @ 536MHz with Floating-Point Unit. FPGA – Altera MAX 10 FPGA with integrated ADC (Exact part number not disclosed) System Memory – Up to 512MB DDR2 Storage – Up to 2GB NAND flash, 1Mbit SPI flash, micro SD slot Connectivity – 2x Fast Ethernet ports, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi (Direct, station mode, and soft-AP) via Atmel ATWILC1000B module Display Interface – LVDS connected to FPGA USB – 1x USB 2.0 host, 1x USB 2.0 device Expansion Connectors Wired interfaces – RS232, CAN 2.0 A/B, KNX, RS-485/422, etc… Wireless connectivity – Zigbee, Z-Wave, KNX RF, etc… Power Supply – 5V DC […]

FOSDEM 2016 Schedule – Open Source Hardware and Software Event in Europe

FOSDEM (Free and Open Source Software Developers’ European Meeting) is a 2-day event that usually takes place on the first week-end of February in Brussels, but this year it will be on January 30-31. The event brings thousands of developers, hackers, and other person interested in open source technology who present their projects and share ideas. FOSDEM 2016 schedule is now available, and There will be 557 speakers, 612 events, and 50 tracks this year including 7 main tracks: Distros, Enterprise, Hardware, Communications, Miscellaneous, Office, Systems Administration, and Virtualization. So I’ve had a look at some of the talks, especially out of  “Embedded, Mobile and Automotive” and “IoT” devrooms, and prepared my own virtual schedule although I won’t be able to attend. Saturday 10:30 – 10:55 – MIPS, the other side of the embedded by Alexjan Carraturo For many years MIPS processors have been involved in the embedded market, particularly […]

Spartixed is a $34 FPGA Board Based on Xilinx Spartan 6 (Crowdfunding)

Spartixed is another low cost FPGA board launched on Kickstarter, powered by Xilinx Spartan 6 LX4 FPGA, with a 7-segment display, some headers and buttons, and targeting people who want to learn VHDL/Verilog on the cheap. Spartixed board specifications: FPGA – Xilinx Spartan 6 LX4 FPGA (exact part not disclosed) Storage – 16 Mbit flash for program, I2C or SPI EEPROM Display – 3 digit 7- Segment Display USB – 1x micro USB port for power and debugging Expansion – 26-pin unpopulated header, optional SPI Bus A/D Converter Debugging – 14-pin JTAG connector, UARt port via USB connector Misc – 3x push button switches, 8 slide switches for input, 2x user LEDs, 1x power LED, 1x config. ready LED. Power – 5V via Micro USB Connector or 5 to 12 V via external power supply. Dimensions – N/A You can follow the project via its blog, and already access some […]

Nandland Go Board is a $50 Board for Learning FPGA, VHDL & Verilog Programming (Crowdfunding)

There are many FPGA boards on the market at various price points, but many assume you already have the technical knowledge to program the bard with Verilog or VHDL, and may not be suited to beginners. Nandland Go Board is a $50 board that targets beginners with tutorials to get started with blinking LEDs, controlling buttons, received data through the UART interface, showing display patterns via the VGA interface and more. Go Board specifications: FPGA – Lattice ICE40 HX1K with 1280 logic cells, 64Kbit RAM, and one PLL. Storage – 1Mb flash Clock – 25 MHz on-board clock Video Output – VGA Connector Display – Dual 7-Segment LED Display USB – 1x micro USB connector for power, communication, and programming Expansion – PMOD connector Misc – 4x user LEDs, 4x push buttons Power – 5V via micro USB port Dimensions – N/A The board will be programmed using Lattice Semi […]

FleaFPGA Uno Board Combines a Lattice FPGA, Arduino UNO Form Factor, HDMI Output, and an ESP8266 WiFi Module

FPGA board with Arduino headers are not exactly a rarity, for example Digilent ARTY in a larger form factor, and some developers have designed FPGA boards using Arduino Mega form factor, such as Papilio DUO and Arduissimo. But FleaFPGA Uno is the first Arduino Uno like FPGA board I’ve seen and it includes HDMI output, one USB host port, as well as an optional WiFi module based on ESP8266. FleaFPGA Uno specifications: FPGA – Lattice Semi MachXO2-7000HC with 6864 LUTs, 256 Kbits flash, and 240+54 Kbits SRAM System memory – 512KB 10nsec User SRAM. Storage – 16MB User Flash ROM. Video Output 24-bit Digital Video out via HDMI port up to 800×600 Composite NTSC video via 3.5 mm jack Audio – Stereo audio out via 3.5mm jack. USB 1x micro USB port for power and slave serial port 1x USB 1.1 host port (PS/2 port) On-board USB JTAG for easy […]

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