CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

February 6, 2013June 20, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Beyond Semiconductor BA25 Application Processor

You know ARM, MIPS, and maybe PPC processor cores, but have you ever heard about Beyond Semiconductor RISC architecture? I hadn’t, until I read an article on EETimes. Beyond Semiconductor, a company founded in 2005, and based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has apparently released its own embedded cores for a while including BA12, BA14 and BA22 which are respectively equivalent to ARM9, Cortex A9 and ARM11 in terms of performance. They count big names such as STMicro, Lattice Semi and Ericsson among their licensees. More recently, the company announced its first application processor called BA25, that equivalent to Cortex A8/A7 architecture with 1.7 DMIPS/MHz, and is clocked up to 800 MHz on 65nm LP. Beyond BA25 32-bit processor designed for systems running applications on general-purpose operating systems such as Linux and Android, and targets applications such as set-top boxes and media players, Image and video processing systems, and wireless, battery-powered, or […]

February 6, 2013February 6, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 40 Comments

U-boot, Linux Kernel, and Android Patches for Freescale i.MX6 HDMI TV Dongles

We can now get some quad core Android mini PCs (e.g. Hi802, GK802) featuring Freescale i.MX6Q processor, Freescale has released full documentation and source code its development platforms, Hi802 / GK802 HDMI TV dongles are easily hackable, and there’s even an Ubuntu image for the devices. So it looks pretty good ,right? Well almost.. there are some patches and config for GK802 that have not been released by Richtechie, so we can’t modify the bootloader and Linux kernel. But this may change, as ARMTvTech forum user hste noticed some Freescale i.MX6 HDMI dongle patches om IMX Community website. Even though I’m not sure those are fully compatible with Hi802 / GK802, this could be a starting point. Today, I’ll provide the instructions to build u-boot, the linux kernel and Android ICS with those patches in a machine running Linux 12.04 64-bit. Patch Sets Descriptions There are two set of patches that […]

February 5, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

linaro-android-tools Scripts Upgrade Android Kernel & Initrd via ADB

With Linaro 13.01 release, Linaro announced linaro-android-tools (aka Kernel Update Tools), a set of tools to improve development time for kernel developers. Today, they published a blog post explaining those scripts allow developers to update the kernel without having to take out the SD card from their development board, and instead update the firmware via ADB with a PC connected via the network or USB. Currently there are 2 shell scripts: update-android.sh – To update kernel files in boot partition such as boot.tar.bz2, single files (e.g. uImage) or kernel modules. Usage:

update-android.sh [--serial|-s serial] [--partition|-p boot-partition] &lt;boot.tar.bz2|uImage|board.dtb|...&gt;
Update the kernel files in the boot partition of the specified
android device with the specified boot.tar.bz2 file
update-android.sh [--serial|-s serial] kernel-source-directory
Push all the module files in the specified kernel directory
into the /system/modules directory of the specified android device

Update the kernel files in the boot partition of the specified

android device with the specified boot.tar.bz2 file

update-android.sh [--serial|-s serial] kernel-source-directory

Push all the module files in the specified kernel directory

into the /system/modules directory of the specified android device

For example:

./update-android.sh out/target/product/pandaboard/boot.tar.bz2

1	./update-android.sh out/target/product/pandaboard/boot.tar.bz2

update-uInitrd.sh – To update files in the initrd Usage:

update-uInitrd.sh [--serial|-s &lt;serial&gt;] [--partition|-p &lt;boot-partition&gt;] [--target|-t &lt;target-file&gt;] &lt;source-file&gt;
Update the target file in uInitrd of the specified device
with the specified source file
When the target file is not specified, will update the file in
the root directory that has the same file name of the source file

update-uInitrd.sh [--serial|-s <serial>] [--partition|-p <boot-partition>] [--target|-t <target-file>] <source-file>

Update the target file in uInitrd of the specified device

with the specified source file

When the target file is not specified, will update the file in

the root directory that has the same file name of the source file

For example:

./update-uInitrd.sh /tmp/init.rc

1	./update-uInitrd.sh /tmp/init.rc

Those 2 scripts are available in Linaro git repository:

git clone http://android.git.linaro.org/git-ro/platform/external/linaro-android-tools.git

1	git clone http://android.git.linaro.org/git-ro/platform/external/linaro-android-tools.git

Currently the scripts only support Pandaboard, Origen, Versatile Express, and Versatile Express A9 boards,but they could be easily modified to support other boards supporting linaro packages.

February 5, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Atmel Introduces SAMA5D3 Cortex A5 Embedded MPUs and Evaluation Kits

Atmel has recently announced the Atmel SAMA5D3 series, a family of high performance, low-power microprocessor units (MPUs) based on ARM Cortex-A5 core. The SAMA5D3 series is designed for embedded applications in the industrial space, including factory and building automation, smart grid, medical and handheld terminals, as well as consumer applications such as smart watches, outdoor GPS, and DECT phones. SAMA5D3 family has the following characteristics: ARM Cortex-A5 core up to 536MHz (850DMIPS). Floating point unit (FPU) with up to 3 times the performance of Cortex A8 FPU. 166MHz bus speed delivering up to 1328MB/s bandwidth. Power consumption: <200mW in active mode at 536MHz with all peripherals activated 0.5mW in low-power mode with SRAM, registers retention and <0.5ms wake-up time ~1.2µA in backup mode with RTC running Connectivity: Dual Ethernet and dual CAN ports (Only one model has both) Gigabit Ethernet MAC with IEEE1588 and 10/100 MAC Two CAN controllers 3x […]

February 5, 2013February 5, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Raspberry Pi Model A is Now Available (But Only in Europe)

The Raspberry Pi has just announced that RS Components and Premier Farnell/element14 have now Raspberry Pi Model A boards in stock. Raspberry Pi Model A is a cost down version of Model B using the exact same PCB but with less RAM (256 MB vs 512 MB), no Ethernet, and only one USB port. This model seems more suitable for embedded projects, and you can get connectivity via Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 3G… USB dongles. It consumes about a third of the power of the Model B, which will certain help with projects powered by solar panels or batteries. It could also be suitable as an even cheaper XBMC player, but if you need to add a USB Hub to connect extra peripherals, it may not really be worth it. Model A is only be available in Europe for now, but will eventually be available worldwide. It will cost UK customers 26.02 […]

February 4, 2013February 4, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Texas Instruments HG3352 Home Automation & Energy Gateway Reference Design

Texas Instruments has recently announced HG3352 Home Gateway Reference Design that can connect to home energy systems, or/and home automation systems. This reference design, powered by TI Sitara AM3352 Cortex A8 processor, supports ZigBee, Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth, and Ethernet connectivity to allow developers to create home gateways that can interface with multiple systems, products and applications within a smart home. Here are the key features and benefits of TI HG3352 Home Gateway Reference Design: SoC – TI Sitara’s AM3352 ARM Cortex-A8 processor running Linux OS System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 2GB NAND Flash memory Connectivity: Single ZigBee device (CC2530) supports ZigBee Home Automation and ZigBee Smart Energy standards. WiLink 8.0 solution supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Bluetooth low energy in a single chip. 6-channel power management integrated circuit (TPS650250) with dynamic voltage scaling provides high power efficiency. Expansion headers give developers flexibility to support power line communications (PLC) and […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

February 4, 2013February 4, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

How To Root Droid Stick A2 mini PC

Droid Stick A2 mini PC does not come rooted, so here’s a simple rooting guide for the device. First, make sure you’ve installed the latest firmware, then follow the instructions below (Source: ARMTvTech): Copy update_Superuser.zip to the root of a micro SD card. Insert the microSD card to Droid Stick A2, and power the device Go the Apps menu in Android, and launch “Upgrade” app. Select Local Upgrade Select update_Superuser.zip Select Reboot And Install Package Let the update go through, and let it boot to Android. You should now have root access. This method deleted old version of su and Superuser.apk, copies su to /system/bin & Superuser.apk to /system/app, and changes permissions on those files. It may also work on other AMLogic AML8726-M1 / M3 / MX based devices. If you are interested in knowing exactly what it does, unzip update_Superuser.zip, and open /META-INF/com/google/android/updater-script. For some reasons, the first time I […]

February 4, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Crazyflie Nano Quadcopter Open Source Development Kit

If you can’t wait until 2014 to get the MeCam, Seeedstudio has something for you: The Crazyflie Nano Quadcopter, which looks similar to the MeCam, but does not feature a camera, its control board is powered by STM32F103CB MCU @ 72 MHz with 128kb flash and 20kb RAM (so, no it won’t run Linux), and at $173 the price is significantly higher. Here are Crazyflie key features: Small and lightweight, around 19g and about 90mm motor to motor Flight time up to 7 minutes with standard 170mAh Li-Po battery Standard micro-USB connector for charging which takes ~20min for the stock 170mAh Li-Po battery On-board low-energy radio@1mW based on the nRF24L01+ chip. Up to 80m range (environment dependent) when using the Crazyradio 2.4 GHz USB dongle Radio bootloader which enabled wireless update of the firmware 32 bit Cortex M3 MCU: STM32F103CB @ 72 MHz (128kb flash, 20kb RAM) 3-axis high-performance MEMs […]