$349 AMD Kria KR260 Robotics Starter Kit takes on NVIDIA Jetson AGX Xavier devkit

AMD Kria KR260 Robotics Starter Kit

AMD Xilinx Kria KR260 Robotics Starter Kit features the Kria K26 Zynq UltraScale+ XCK26 FPGA MPSoC system-on-module (SoM) introduced last year together with the Kria KV260 Vision AI Starter Kit. Designed as a development platform for robotics and industrial applications, the KR260 is said to deliver nearly 5x productivity gain, up to 8x better performance per watt and 3.5x lower latency compared to Nvidia Jetson AGX Xavier or Jetson Nano kits. We’ll have a better look at the details below. Kria KR260 Robotics Starter Kit specifications: SoM – Kria K26 module with: MPSoC – Xilinx Zynq Ultrascale+ custom-built XCK26 with quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor  up to 1.5GHz, dual-core Arm Cortex-R5F real-time processor up to 600MHz, Mali-400 MP2 GPU up to 667MHz, 4Kp60 VPU, 26.6Mb On-Chip SRAM, 256K logic cells, 1,248 DSP slices, 144 Block RAM blocks, 64 UltraRAM blocks System Memory – 4GB 64-bit DDR4 (non-ECC) Storage – 512 Mbit […]

SONOFF Zigbee Bridge Pro gateway supports up to 128 sub-devices

SONOFF Zigbee Bridge Pro

ITEAD has just introduced the SONOFF Zigbee Bridge Pro WiFi <-> Zigbee gateway as an upgrade to the Sonoff ZBBridge gateway launched in 2020. Both devices look exactly the same, and the changes are under the hood with the EFR32MG21 and ESP8266/ESP8285 combo being replaced by Texas Instruments SimpleLink CC2652P and ESP32 chips to boost the number of supported sub-devices from 32 to 128. Other changes include the addition of a buzzer acting as an alarm or doorbell chime, as well as a “built-in high-precision local RTC” for gateway time synchronization of local scene schedules. SONFF Zigbee Bridge Pro (aka ZB Bridge-P) specifications: Wireless MCUs Texas Instruments CC2652P SimpleLink Arm Cortex-M4F multiprotocol 2.4 GHz wireless MCU with integrated power amplifier Espressif Systems ESP32-DOWN-V3 dual-core processor with WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE Wireless Connectivity – 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n WiFi 4 and Zigbee 3.0 Supports for up to 128 sub-devices Support for […]

Ultenic T10 review – A self-emptying 2-in-1 smart vacuum robot with mopping function

Ultenic T10 smart vacuum cleaner review

Ultenic T10 is a 2-in-1 smart vacuum cleaner and mopping system with a self-emptying base that’s quite similar to the Cybovac S31 robot I reviewed a little over a year ago. The Cybovac vacuum cleaner still works fine, but it has some shortcomings, so when Ultenic asked me whether I would be interested in reviewing their T10 unit, I accepted, and here I am with a new smart robot vacuum cleaner that I’ll review with the Android app in a larger house. Ultenic T10 unboxing The package and hardware are very similar to what I got with the Cybovac model. The robot comes with a charging base that’s pretty large since it includes its own dust bag for the self-emptying function. Key features listed for the T10 vacuum cleaner: Navigation Type – LDS laser for visual SLAM function Suction power Carpet pressurization – 2700 Pa Fixed-point cleaning – 2700 Pa […]

Kontron Pi-Tron CM4 mini PC leverages Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 for industrial applications

Kontron AL Pi-Tron CM4

Kontron Pi-Tron CM4 is a single-board computer and mini PC based on the Raspberry Pi Compute Module with a Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 processor, up to 8GB RAM, up to 32GB eMMC flash, HDMI video output, two Ethernet ports, optional WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, and an M.2 slot for AI or wireless expansion. Designed for industrial applications, the Pi-Tron CM4 is also equipped with RS232, RS485/CAN FD bus, and GPIO terminal blocks, supports 24V input voltage, and is optionally sold as AL Pi-Tron CM4 in a housing suited for challenging environments. Kontron Pi-Tron CM4 specifications: SoM – Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 (CM4) with Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 processor @1.5 GHz, VideoCore VI GPU, H.265 (HEVC) up to 4Kp60 decode, 1080p30 encode, up to 8GB LPDDR4, up to 32GB eMMC flash Storage – MicroSD card socket (only for Raspberry Pi CM4 Lite module) Display I/F HDMI 2.0 up to 4Kp60 […]

OASIS – ROS 2 based Smart Home operating system integrates with Kodi

OASIS Kinect 2 computer vision

OASIS is a Smart Home operating system based on ROS 2 that currently implements computer vision, input streaming, and general automation features, and can be integrated into Kodi media center. The operating system was recently released by Garrett Brown (a.k.a. garbear or eigendude), who is also known for being the RetroPlayer developer from Team Kodi/XBMC, and provides a complete implementation of the Firmata protocol for communicating with Arduino boards, plus additional support for temperature and humidity sensors, I2C, servos, sonar, SPI, stepper motors, and 4-wire CPU fans. Two main use cases are computer vision and input streaming at this time. The illustration above shows the former with the Kinect 2 driver ported to ROS 2, a background subtractor on all camera feeds using bgslibrary C++ background subtraction library, and Kodi as the visual interface. The second, input streaming, can be seen below with a Lego train (including a Falcon spaceship!) […]

Ai-Thinker Ra-08 LoRaWAN module features ASR6601 chip (Sponsored)

Ai Thinker Ra-08 LoRaWAN Module

Ai-Thinker Ra-08/08H are new LoRaWAN modules based on ASR Microelectronics ASR6601 module featuring a 48MHz ARM Cortex M4 microcontroller and Semtech SX1262 transceiver allowing long-range, low power communication for the Internet of Things. Both LoRaWAN modules share most of the same specifications, but the Ra-08 module operates in the 410-525MHz frequency band, while the Ra-08H module works in the widely used 803MHz to 930MHz band. Ai-Thinker also provides a development kit for each module. Ai-Thinker Ra-08/Rs-08H key features and specifications: Programmable embedded Arm Cortex-M4 MCU with 128 KB of Flash and 16 KB of SRAM LoRa radio Sensitivity – -138 dBm @ SF12/125KHz Tx power – Up to +22dBm Frequencies Ra-08 – 410 MHz to 525 MHz Ra-07H – 803 MHz to 930 MHz Spread spectrum factor – SF5, SF6, SF7, SF8, SF9, SF10, SF11, SF12 LoRa, (G)FSK, BPSK, and (G)MSK modulation Bit rate up to 62.5 Kbps in LoRa […]

Intel Xeon D network and edge processors find their way into COM Express & COM-HPC modules

Intel Xeon D: D-2700 and D-1700

Intel has recently launched the Intel Xeon D (Ice Lake-D) processor family with the D-2700 and the D-1700 models designed for software-defined network and edge applications with integrated AI and crypto acceleration, built-in Ethernet, support for Intel Time Coordinated Computing (TCC) and Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN), plus high reliability. The new processors are bringing data center-class hardware to the edge, and at least two embedded systems companies, namely ADLINK Technology and Congatec, have already launched COM-HPC server modules and COM Express Type 7 module based on the new Intel Xeon D family. Intel Xeon D processors Intel Xeon D-2700 and Intel Xeon D-1700 are designed for space- and power-constrained ruggedized environments, feature industrial-class reliability, hardware-based security, and up to 56 high-speed PCIe lanes to support networks with up to 100Gbps Ethernet. While the Intel Xeon D-1700 sub-family is scalable from 2 to 10 cores, the Intel Xeon D-2700 family goes up […]

Pigeon RB700 is a DIN Rail automation controller with RS-485, RS-232, Ethernet, CAN FD, 1-WIRE, RS-232, and more

Pigeon RB700 automation controller

We’re covered DIN-Rail industrial computers powered by Raspberry Pi CM4 module, but Kristech’s Pigeon RB700 automation controller may be the one with the most features so far thanks to two RS-485 ports, two Ethernet ports, CAN FD, 1-WIRE, RS-232, 12 digital inputs (8 optoisolated, 4 dry contacts), and 8 digital outputs. That’s for the common features present in all variants including RB700 Essense. The RB700 Standard model adds UPS, HDMI, analog I/Os, and TPM, while the RB700 Advance is further equipped with two M.2 sockets (for SSD and/or cellular modem) and two additional RS-232 ports. Pigeon RB700 specifications: Supported SoM- Raspberry Pi CM4 with up to 8GB RAM, up to 32GB flash, optional WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0 module Video Output (Standard and Advance) – HDMI port Networking – 2x Ethernet ports USB – 2x or 3x USB 2.0 ports Wired communication interfaces 3x RS-232, 2x RS-485, CAN FD, 1-Wire […]

UP 7000 x86 SBC