u-blox XPLR-IOT-1 explorer kit is an all-in-one IoT evaluation platform with cellular IoT, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low Energy, and GNSS, plus some sensors to evaluate various IoT products and enable proofs of concepts such as logistics container trackers, industrial automation, sensor-to-cloud applications, and fleet management solutions. The device’s main module is the u-blox NORA-B106 with a dual-core Arm Cortex M33 microcontroller and Bluetooth LE 5.2 radio that host the application software and control the other modules, namely the SARA-R510S module for LTE-M and NB-IoT cellular connectivity, NINA-W156 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi module, and the MAX-M10S GNNS module. The XPLR-IOT-1 platform is also equipped with an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, and temperature, humidity, pressure, and ambient light sensors. u-blox XPLR-IOT-1 specifications: Main MCU – Nordic Semi nRF5340 dual-core Arm Cortex M33 @ 128/64 MHz with 512 + 64 kB RAM memory and 1024 + 256 kB flash (found in NORA-B106 module) Wireless […]
TI Sitara AM623 & AM625 Cortex-A53 SoCs offer low-power AI for HMI and IoT applications
Texas Instruments has just launched the new Sitara AM62 family with AM623 and AM625 single to quad-core Cortex-A53 processors designed to provide IoT gateways and HMI applications with AI processing at low power, in some cases with up to 50% reduction in power consumption. The AM623 processor specifically targets Internet of Things (IoT) applications and gateways that may benefit from object and gesture recognition, while the AM625, equipped with a 3D GPU, should power HMI applications with edge AI and up to two full-HD displays. Sitara AM623 and AM625 processors Sitara AM623/AM625 key features and specifications: CPU – Single, dual, or quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1,400 MHz with 512KB L2 shared cache, plus 32KB I+D cache per core Co-processor – 1x Arm Cortex-M4F real-time core at up to 400 MHz with 256KB SRAM with SECDED ECC GPU (AM625 only) – Unnamed 3D GPU with support for OpenGL […]
ARIES Embedded unveils OSM modules based on Renesas Arm or RISC-V microprocessor
In another case of “Arm or RISC-V? Why not both“, ARIES Embedded has introduced “MSRZG2UL” and “MSRZFive” OSM compliant system-in-packages (SIPs) based on respectively Renesas RZ/G2UL Arm Cortex-A55/Cortex-M33 and RZ/Five AX45MP RISC-V microprocessors and designed for industrial controllers, IoT devices, and embedded systems with a basic GUI. Both solder-on modules come in the OSM Size S form factor (30x30mm), 512MB to 4GB of DDR4 RAM, a 4GB eMMC NAND flash, various interfaces including Gigabit Ethernet and CAN-FD, and are available in either commercial (-0°C to +70°C) or industrial (-40°C to +85°C) temperature ranges. “MSRZG2UL” and “MSRZFive” specifications: SoC MSRZG2UL module – Renesas RZ/G2UL single-core Cortex-A55 processor @ up to 1GHz with Cortex-M33 real-time core @ up to 200MHz MSRZFive module – Renesas RZ/Five single-core RISC-V AX45MP processor @ to 1.0 GHz System Memory – 512MB – 4GB DDR4 RAM Storage – 4GB eMMC NAND Flash 332 contacts with Display I/F […]
5G RedCap leverages 5G features, limits bandwidth to 85Mbps for industrial IoT applications
5G is often associated with Gigabit speeds when found in mobile handsets or connected laptops, while there’s also 5G LPWA for battery-powered IoT devices. 5G RedCap, which stands for Reduced Capability, offers a middle ground for industrial IoT applications that keep some 5G features such as low latency, low power consumption, enhanced security, and network slicing while limiting the bandwidth to around 85 Mbps. 5G RedCap, also called NR Lite, will be part of 3GPP Release 17 scheduled for later in 2022, and further improved in Rel 18 in 2023. It will be first found in applications currently relying on LTE Cat 1 through Cat 4, and can be considered a light version of the 5G standard. An article on Telit says Rel 18 will specifically address the low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) segment currently carried seamlessly (e.g. no hardware changes required) in 5G by LTE-M and NB-IoT. I found out […]
Geniatech launches OSM Size-L modules with Renesas RZ/G2L, Rockchip RK3566
Geniatech has introduced LGA system-on-modules compliant with the SGET OSM (Open Standard Module) Size-L standard and designed to be soldered directly on the carrier board. Two models have been launched with the SOM-G2L-OSM equipped with Renesas RZ/G2L Arm Cortex-A55/M33 processor, and the SoM-3566-OSM powered by a Rockchip RK3566 quad-core Cortex-A55 SoC. SOM-G2L-OSM module Specifications: SoC – Renesas RZ/G2L dual-core Cortex-A55 processor, Cortex-M33 real-time core, Arm Mali-G31 GPU, H.264 video encoder/decoder System Memory – 1GB RAM (2GB/4GB optional) Storage – 8GB eMMC flash (16GB/32GB optional) 662 contacts with Display – 1x MIPI DSI, 1x RGB Camera – 1x MIPI CSI Audio – I2S Networking – 2x Gigabit Ethernet USB – 1x USB OTG 2.0, 1x USB 2.0 host Serial – 2x CAN bus SDIO 3.0 Low-speed I/Os – 5x UART including debug, 2x I2C, 3x SPI, 3x PWM, 16x GPIO, 2x ADC Dimensions – 45 x 45 mm (OSM Size-L form […]
Exo Sense RP – A Raspberry Pi RP2040-based multi sensor module
Sfera Labs Exo Sense RP is a multi-sensor module with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller and various sensors to report temperature, humidity, air quality (VOC), light intensity, audio, and motion. The module can work as a standalone unit but can also communicate with a host through RS485 and USB interfaces, and supports expansion via surge-protected digital inputs and outputs. The Exo Sense RP is designed for indoor residential and commercial applications such as environmental monitoring and data logging, people and assets tracking, room management, access control, and more. Exo Sense RP specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Arm Cortex M0+ @ 133 MHz with 264KB SRAM Storage – 16MB flash memory Communication ports RS485 half-duplex up to 115200 bps, with surge protection Micro USB 1.1 Type-B connector Sensors Sensirion SHT40 temperature and humidity sensor Sensirion SGP40 air quality (VOC) sensor Texas Instruments OPT3001 light intensity sensor TDK ICS-43432 digital […]
“ESP32-C3-0.42LCD” is a tiny WiFi & BLE IoT board with 0.42-inch display, Qwiic connector
01Space “ESP32-C3-0.42LCD” is a small (23.5 x 18 mm) board equipped with ESP32-C3 RISC-V WiFi and Bluetooth microcontroller, a 0.42-inch display, and a Qwicc I2C connector to easily add modules such as sensors. The first time I saw it, the form factor immediately reminded me of the nRF52840-based XIAO BLE Sense board I just used to test Edge Impulse machine learning framework. Both boards should have similar use cases, but XIAO BLE Sense includes a 6-axis IMU sensor, and I had to connect an OLED display, while the ESP32-C3 board already integrates a display, and I would have had to connect an external Qwicc module with an accelerometer. ESP32-C3-0.42LCD specifications: SoC – ESP32-C3FH4 SoC with RISC-V core @ 160 MHz, 4MB flash, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 5 LE with Long-Range support Ceramic antenna Display – 0.42-inch LCD USB – 1x USB Type-C port for power and programming Expansion Qwiic I2C connector […]
Embedded World 2022 – June 21-23 – Virtual Schedule
Embedded World 2020 was a lonely affair with many companies canceling attendance due to COVID-19, and Embedded World 2021 took place online only. But Embedded World is back to Nuremberg, Germany in 2022 albeit with the event moved from the traditional month of February to June 21-23. Embedded systems companies and those that service them will showcase their latest solution at their respective booths, and there will be a conference with talks and classes during the three-day event. The programme is up, so I made my own little Embedded World 2022 virtual schedule as there may be a few things to learn, even though I won’t be attending. Tuesday, June 21, 2022 10:00 – 13:00 – Rust, a Safe Language for Low-level Programming Rust is a relatively new language in the area of systems and low-level programming. Its main goals are performance, correctness, safety, and productivity. While still ~70% of […]