Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on Azul Systems’ Zulu Embedded is a Build of OpenJDK for ARM, MIPS, PowerPC, and x86 Compliant with Java SE standard

Azul Systems’ Zulu Embedded is a Build of OpenJDK for ARM, MIPS, PowerPC, and x86 Compliant with Java SE standard

Yesterday as I wrote about the Embedded Systems Conference 2017 schedule I came across a potentially interesting talk entitled “Building A Brain With Raspberry Pi and Zulu Embedded JVM” by Azul Systems that will explain how to build a brain emulator using a cluster of Raspberry Pi boards. I wanted to find more about it, but I have not been able to find any details about the project/demo at this stage. However, I could still learn a bit more about Zulu Embedded, which is said to be an open source Java Virtual Machine based on OpenJDK, compliant with Java SE standard, working on 32-bit & 64-bit ARM & x86, MIPS, and PowerPC, as well as  multiple operating systems. Some of the key features of Zulu Embedded include: Java Support – Java 6, 7, 8, and 9 when available Java Configurations – Headless, headful, or compact Java Compact Profiles Hardware – […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on UDOO BLU and BLU SENSE IoT Modules Integrate Bluetooth LE, Zigbee, and 6LOWPAN Connectivity

UDOO BLU and BLU SENSE IoT Modules Integrate Bluetooth LE, Zigbee, and 6LOWPAN Connectivity

UDOO is known for their Linux boards based on NXP and Intel processors for makers and the education market such as UDOO NEO or UDOO x86, but the company has now developed UDOO BLU and BLU SENSE battery powered modules based on Texas Instruments CC2650 ARM Cortex M3 microcontroller, both with Bluetooth LE, Zigbee, and 6LOWPAN connectivity, and the SENSE model adds some extra sensors. UDOO BLU and BLU SENSE specifications: Wireless MCU – Texas Instruments CC2650 ARM Cortex M3 MCU @ 48 MHz with 128KB flash, 8KB SRAM with 2.4 GHz radio Connectivity – Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), ZigBee, 6LoWPAN Sensors (BLU SENSE only) –  NXP FX0S8700CQ accelerometer & magnetometer sensor, NXP FXAS21002C gyroscope & temperature sensor Expansion 1x 5-pin sensors Snap-In I2C connector for UDOO Bricks 2x 10-pin headers with 8x Digital GPIOs, 6x ADCs, 1x I2C, 1x SPI, 1x UART Misc – 3x User Configurable LEDs (Red, […]

ArmSoM RK3588 AIModule7 NVIDIA Jetson Nano-compatible SOM
Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments on That USB Stick Looks Suspicious! Camera, Microphone and Battery Included.

That USB Stick Looks Suspicious! Camera, Microphone and Battery Included.

I had previously read about USB flash drives dropped on the parking with some malware, so that if you pick it up and use it it infects your computer in order to spy on your activity. But I browser new arrivals on DealExtreme, I found another nefarious use case thanks to U8 Mini USB drive / spy camera sold for around $10 shipped. If we look the picture below, it looks just like any other USB flash drives.But once we have a closer look at U8 mini specifications: USB – 1x USB 2.0 male port Storage – micro SD slot up to 32GB (no internal storage) Camera Video up to 720 x 480 @ 25~30fps recording to AVI/M-JPEG Photo up to 1280×1024 in JPG format Audio recording with built-in microphone Misc – Motion detection camera button, power button, picture button, status LED Battery – 300 mAh good for about 60 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments on Xiaomi Mi Pad 3 Tablet Launched with Mediatek MT8176 Hexa-Core Processor, 7.9″ Display

Xiaomi Mi Pad 3 Tablet Launched with Mediatek MT8176 Hexa-Core Processor, 7.9″ Display

Xiaomi Mi Pad 2 was powered by an Intel Cherry Trail, but the Chinese company has decided to go back to ARM for the third iteration of their MiPad tablet as they used Mediatek MT8719 hexa-core Cortex A72/A52 processor with 4GB RAM, 64GB flash, and the same 7.9″ display with 2048 x 1536 resolution. Xiaomi Mi Pad 3 specifications: SoC – Mediatek MT8176 hexa-core processor with 2x ARM Cortex A72 cores @ 2.1 GHz, 4x ARM Cortex A53 cores @ 1.7 GHz, and Imagination PowerVR GX6250 GPU System Memory – 4GB LPDDR3 Storage – 64GB eMMC flash, no micro SD slot Display – 7.9″ capacitive touch screen IPS LCD display with 2048 x 1536 resolution Audio – 3.5mm headphone jack, Connectivity – Dual band 802.11 b/g/n/ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.2 LE Camera – 5MP front-facing camera, 13 MP rear camera with auto-focus, dual LED flash USB – 1x USB type C […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments on Canonical Refocuses Ubuntu Development Efforts on Cloud and IoT, Drops Convergence and Mobile

Canonical Refocuses Ubuntu Development Efforts on Cloud and IoT, Drops Convergence and Mobile

Mark Shuttleworth has published a new blog post in Ubuntu Insights, and this is not all good news, as the title “Growing Ubuntu for Cloud and IoT, rather than Phone and convergence” implies. Canonical has decided to drop Unity8, and replace it with Gnome in Ubuntu 18.04, and by extension stop any investment in Ubuntu phone and convergence. The main reasons given for the drop were that few commercial partners were interested in the project, preferring to stick with the most popular mobile operating systems like Android, and the community did not see the work as innovation, but instead fragmentation, probably referring to the Mir vs Wayland saga. On the better news, Canonical is still committed to work on Ubuntu desktop, and will focus on the Cloud and IoT applications such as automotive, robotics, networking, and machine learning, for which the company has gone well so far with multiple commercial […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments on Microsoft is Working with Mediatek on Project Sopris Secure WiFi MCU

Microsoft is Working with Mediatek on Project Sopris Secure WiFi MCU

There are serious security issues with the Internet of Things at all levels: hardware, software, network, and end-users. Microsoft Research NExT Operating Systems Technologies Group has been tasked with “exploring the goal of securing the vast number of low cost Internet connected devices coming online” with Project Sopris. They have shared their first technical report that identifies “seven properties of highly secure devices”, and describes their experiments towards designing microcontroller based prototype devices adapted from Mediatek MT7687 MIPS microcontroller, and exhibiting those seven properties. The seven properties identifies by Microsoft team include: Hardware-based Root of Trust – Unforgeable cryptographic keys generated and protected by hardware. Physical countermeasures resist side-channel attacks. Small Trusted Computing Base – Private keys stored in a hardware-protected vault, inaccessible to software. Division of software into self-protecting layers. Defense in Depth – Multiple mitigations applied against each threat. Countermeasures mitigate the consequences of a successful attack on […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs and SoMs in 2025
Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on Embedded Systems Conference 2017 Schedule – May 3-4

Embedded Systems Conference 2017 Schedule – May 3-4

The Embedded Systems Conference 2017 will take place over two days in Boston, US on May 3-4, and the organizers have published the schedule of the event. Even if you’re not going to attend, you’ll often learn something or find new information by just checking out the talks and abstracts, so I’ve created my own virtual schedule with some of the most interesting sessions. Wednesday, May 3rd 08:00 – 08:45 – Combining OpenCV and High Level Synthesis to Accelerate your FPGA / SoC EV Application by Adam Taylor, Adiuvo Engineering & Training Ltd This session will demonstrate how you can combine commonly used Open source frameworks such as OpenCV with High Level Synthesis to generate a embedded vision system using FPGA / SoC. The combination of OpenCV and HLS allows for a much faster algorithm development time and consequently a faster time to market for the end application. 09:00 – 09:45 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on Alcatel Flash Android Smartphone Comes with 4 Cameras (Dual front, Dual rear Cameras)

Alcatel Flash Android Smartphone Comes with 4 Cameras (Dual front, Dual rear Cameras)

In recent years, we’ve seen smartphones with dual camera systems most of the time placed on the rear side of the phone, but Alcatel Flash smartphone features both  a dual front-facing camera for better selfies, and a dual rear camera, both coming with one color and one monochrome sensors. Alcatel Flash specifications: SoC – Mediatek Helipo X20 (MT6797) deca-core processor with 2x Cortex-A72 @ 2.3 GHz, 4x Cortex-A53 @ 1.9 GHz, 4x Cortex-A53 @ 1.4 GHz System Memory – 3GB RAM Storage – 32GB flash, micro SD slot up to 128 GB Display – 5.5” IPS display; 1920×1080 resolution; Dragontrail Glass; fingerprint-resistant Oleophobic coating Cellular Connectivity GPRS/EDGE –  850/900/1800/1900 MHz UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA –  850/900/1900/2100 MHz 34/39 band LTE – FDD: B1/3/5/7/8/20; TDD: 38/39/40/41 Dual Nano SIM Dual Standby Wireless Connectivity – Wi-Fi 802.11/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1, FM radio, GPS with A-GPS/Glonass/Beidou Cameras Dual rear cameras Dual 13MP Mono+RGB, Sony IMX258 1/3.06 sensor […]

Boardcon CM3588 Rockchip RK3588 System-on-Module designed for AI and IoT applications