Entry-level Industrial Shields ESP32 PLC 14 sells for 100 Euros

ESP32 PLC 14

Boot & Work Corp has just introduced an entry-level PLC based on ESP32 wireless microcontroller with the “Industrial Shields ESP32 PLC 14” that comes with seven inputs and five outputs, as well as I2C, RS485, Ethernet, WiFi, and Bluetooth communication interfaces. We first covered “Industrial Shields” automation devices in 2017 when the company introduced panel PCs based on Banana Pi, Raspberry Pi, and Hummingboard (NXP i.MX 6) SBCs, as well as a few Arduino and Raspberry Pi PLCs. Boot & Work Corp then launched a Raspberry Pi 4-based PLC in 2021, and now the company has introduced the ESP32 PLC 14 part of a larger family of PLC devices as we’ll see further below. ESP32 PLC 14 specifications: Wireless module – ESP-WROOM-32U with ESP32 dual-core wireless microcontroller @ 240 MHz with 4MB SRAM, 4MB flash, 2MB PSRAM I/Os through terminal blocks 4x Digital Outputs 12/24 V DC (can also act […]

Waveshare ESP32-S3-LCD-1.28 development board with 1.28-inch IPS round LCD is available for $15

Waveshare ESP32 S3 LCD 1.28 Development Board

The Waveshare “ESP32-S3-LCD-1.28” is an ESP32-S3-based display board featuring a 1.28-inch round LCD screen with a 240×240 resolution, driven by the GC9A01 display driver chip. It also includes a Li-ion battery charger, a QMI8658 6-axis IMU (for motion tracking), a USB Type-C connector, and wireless capabilities. This board is quite similar to others like the Lilygo T-RGB, Round Display for XIAO, ESP32-S3 Round SPI boards. However, it’s thinner and more affordable. Waveshare ESP32-S3-LCD-1.28 development board specifications: Wireless MCU – ESP32-S3 Xtensa 32-bit LX7 dual-core, up to 240MHz frequency. Display: 1.28-inch round IPS LCD. Resolution – 240×240 pixels. 65K color. Display Chip – GC9A01A. IMU Parameters: Sensor – QMI8658 Accelerometer resolution – 16-bit; Range (Optional): ±2, ±4, ±8, ±16g. Gyroscope resolution – 16 bits; Range (Optional) – ±16, ±32, ±64, ±128, ±256, ±512, ±1024, ±2048°/sec. Memory: Built-in 512KB SRAM. 384KB ROM. Onboard 2MB PSRAM. External 16MB Flash memory (W25Q128JVSIQ). Wireless Connectivity: […]

FOSDEM 2024 schedule – Open-source embedded, mobile, IoT, robotics, RISC-V, etc..

FOSDEM 2024

FOSDEM – which stands for Free and Open Source Software Developers’ European Meeting – is a free-to-participate event where thousands of developers meet in Brussels on the first week-end of February to discuss open-source software & hardware projects. FOSDEM 2024 will take place on February 3-4 with 880 speakers, 818 events, and 66 tracks. Although I won’t attend, I’ve created a virtual schedule like every year with sessions most relevant to the topics covered on CNX Software from the “Embedded, Mobile and Automotive” and “Open Hardware and CAD/CAM” devrooms, but also other devrooms including “FOSS Mobile Devices”, “ Energy: Reimagining this Ecosystem through Open Source”, “RISC-V”, and others. FOSDEM Day 1 – Saturday, February 3, 2024 10:30 – 10:55 – Screen Sharing on Raspberry Pi 5 Using VNC in Weston and Wayland with the Yocto Project and OpenEmbedded by Leon Anavi In 2023, embedded Linux developers received eagerly awaited news: […]

LILYGO T-Panel – A 4-inch HMI display and WiFi, BLE, and 802.15.4 gateway based on ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2

T-Panel 4-inch ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2 gateway

LILYGO T-Panel is both a 4-inch HMI display and IoT gateway based on ESP32-S3 WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5 microcontroller and an ESP32-H2 module with Bluetooth LE 5 and an 802.15.4 radio for Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity. Last year, Espressif introduced the ESP-Thread Board Router/Zigbee gateway board with ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2 to show how both chips could be combined to create IoT gateways.  But I don’t think I had seen a company design a product based on both ESP32-S3 and ESP32-H2 until I saw the T-Panel which also includes an RS485 interface and Qwiic expansion connectors for good measure. T-Panel specifications: Wireless chips/modules Wireless SoC –  ESP32-S3R8 dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller @ 240 MHz 2.4 GHz 802.11n WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE connectivity Memory – 8MB PSRAM Wireless module – ESP32-H2-MINI-1 module MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32-H2 32-bit RISC-V microcontroller at up to 96 MHz with 320 […]

$16 Grove Vision AI V2 module features WiseEye2 HX6538 Arm Cortex-M55 & Ethos-U55 AI microcontroller

Grove Vision AI V2 XIAO ESP32-C3 OV5647 camera

Seeed Studio’s Grove Vision AI V2 module is based on the HiMax WiseEye2 HX6538 dual-core Cortex-M55 AI microcontroller with an Arm Ethos-U55 microNPU and features a MIPI CSI connector for an OV5647 camera. It is designed for AI computer vision applications using TensorFlow and PyTorch frameworks and connects to hosts such as Raspberry Pi SBCs, ESP32 IoT boards, Arduino, and other maker boards over I2C. We tested the previous generation Grove Vision AI module based on the 400 MHz HX6537-A DSP-based AI accelerator using the SenseCAP K1100 sensor prototype kit with LoRaWAN connectivity, and managed to have the kit perform face detection and send the data over LoRaWAN. The Grove Vision AI V2 builds on that but with a modern Arm MCU core and more powerful AI accelerator that can run models such as Mobilenet V1/V2, Efficientnet-lite, and Yolo v5 & v8 using the SenseCraft low-code/no-code platform. Grove Vision AI […]

Arduino Cloud Editor update brings the classic Arduino IDE experience to your web browser

Arduino Cloud Editor

Arduino has updated the Arduino Cloud Editor – which started as Arduino Create several years ago – to bring the web-based code editor closer to the appearance and functionalities of the “classic” Arduino 2.0 IDE. Arduino says the Cloud Editor simplifies the getting started process without having to go through the setups or maintenance required by the Arduino IDE installed on your computer and you can access your sketches easily from the cloud wherever you are. Considering the Arduino Cloud Editor has been around for a few years what has changed exactly? First, the Cloud Editor and the Arduino IDE now have a unified design (sort of), although the way the company frames it is a bit abstract: Traditionally, Arduino Cloud had two separate editors: an embedded simple one and the full editor. Users have long awaited a unified editor that gets the best of each one. The new Cloud […]

SB’s Dual Roundy and Squary Displays are powered by RP2040 or ESP32-S3 microcontrollers (Crowdfunding)

Dual Display Modules Roundy and Squary by SB Components

SB-Components has launched Dual Roundy and Dual Squary display modules powered by Raspberry Pi RP2040 or ESP32-S3 microcontrollers. These compact modules feature a 6-DoF IMU, interchangeable displays, and multiple storage and connectivity options. The Dual Roundy is equipped with two 1.28-inch round displays, with a 240 x 240 resolution, and uses the GC9A01 display driver IC. In contrast, the Dual Squary features two 1.54-inch square displays with a 240 x 240 resolution but utilizes the ST7789 display driver. Both displays offer a choice between a Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU and the ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 module catering to different needs in performance and wireless capabilities. We’ve previously explored other rounded displays like the MaTouch ESP32-S3, T-RGB ESP32-S3, and ESP32-S3 Round SPI TFT. We’ve also examined other products from SB Components such as the Cluster HAT, PiMecha, PiTalk 3G HAT, and Micro RP2040. Feel free to check these out for more interesting tech insights. […]

Espressif announces the ESP32-C61 WiFi 6 SoC with improved affordability and wireless connectivity

ESP32 C61 Block Diagram

Espressif has announced the ESP32-C61 SoC, a new ESP32-Cx chip with improved wireless connectivity, and expanded memory options. The ESP32-C61 builds upon the foundation laid by previous ESP32-Cx chips, such as the ESP32-C2 and ESP-C3, and its specifications appear to be quite similar to the ESP32-C6 launched in early 2023, but this SoC also adds support for the BLE Mesh 1.1 protocol and Quad SPI PSRAM at a frequency of up to 120MHz. It supports WiFi 6 on two modes (802.11ax and 802.11b/g/n) and includes a Bluetooth 5 (LE) radio with support for long-range operation through advertisement extension and coded PHY. The TWT (Target Wake Time) feature is supported in 802.11ax mode to save power, as well as OFDMA (Uplink/Downlink) and MU-MIMO (Downlink) for a high-quality, low-latency connection between devices. ESP32-C61 specifications: CPU – Single-core, 32-bit RISC-V microcontroller that can be clocked up to 160MHz Memory: 320KB on-chip SRAM 256KB […]

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