Based on ARM9, Cortex-A Series High Performance SoC Wireless Core Board Design

This chapter mainly introduces high-performance embedded SoC wireless core boards based on ARM9 and Cortex-A series processors. This series of wireless core board onboard high performance application processor and integrated Wi-Fi, zigbee, LoRa or NFC wireless capabilities, equipped with AWorks IoT operating system, mainly for intelligent hardware, industrial 4.0 and the evolving IoT innovative applications.

4.1A280 Wireless Core Board (ARM9 Core)

4.1.1 Overview

A280 series wireless core board (abbreviation for A280-Z64F8AWI-T, A280-W64F8AWI-T, and A280-M64F8AWI-T) is a low-power, high-performance embedded SoC wireless core board carefully designed by ZLG Zhiyuan Electronics. The processor uses NXP's ARM9-based i.MX28 processor, clocked at up to 454MHz, integrated DDR2, SPI Flash, and hardware watchdog, and supports multiple communication methods such as Wi-Fi, zigbee, NFC, UART, I2C, I2S, Ethernet, USB, SSP, etc., and integrated internal power management unit PMU greatly simplifies the system power supply design and reduces product design costs.

A280 series wireless core board can work stably in industrial temperature range, can meet a variety of harsh industrial applications, such as industrial control, field communications, data acquisition and other fields. Figure 4.1 shows the core board with zigbee, Figure 4.2 shows the core board with Wi-Fi, and Figure 4.3 shows the core board with NFC. For an evaluation board, see Figure 4.4.

Figure 4.1 A280-Z64F8AWI-T

Figure 4.2 A280-W64F8AWI-T

Figure 4.3 A280-M64F8AWI-T

Figure 4.4 Front panel of AW280_EV_Board evaluation board (according to actual product)

4.1.2 Product Features

CPU: NXP i.MX28 processor;

Operating frequency: 454MHz;

Onboard 64MB DDR2;

Onboard 8MB SPI Flash;

Built-in power management unit PMU;

Onboard independent hardware watchdog;

Support AWorks operating system;

Support TCP/IP protocol stack;

Support multiple file systems, support SD/MMC card, U disk read and write;

Supports 1 way 10M/100M Ethernet interface;

Supports 1 channel SD Card interface;

Supports one USB2.0 Host and one USB2.0 OTG;

Optional zigbee, Wi-Fi, or NFC-enabled wireless communication;

Supports 4 serial ports;

Supports 2 I2C, 1 SPI, 8 12-bit ADCs (including 1 high-speed ADC);

Support JTAG debug interface;

6-layer PCB process;

Size 30mm×48mm;

Operating voltage: 3.3V ± 2%.

4.1.3 Product Function Block Diagram

A280 series wireless core board integrates i.MX28 processor, DDR2, SPI Flash, hardware watchdog, Wi-Fi, zigbee, NFC, etc. into a 30mm × 48mm module, making it an unbeatable value for money, A280 series The functional block diagram of the wireless core board is shown in Figure 4.5.

Figure 4.5 Block Diagram of A280 Series Core Board

4.1.4 Product Selection

The specific parameters of the A280 series wireless core board are detailed in Table 4.1. Users can select the appropriate core board for secondary development based on their project technical requirements.

Table 4.1 A280 Series Core Board Parameter Table

4.1.5 I/O Information

A280 series wireless core board In order to cooperate with standard driver software development, the factory firmware of the product is set to the default function of I/O. If you need to change the pin function attributes, the user can refer to the manual, carefully understand the drive architecture, and provide the SDK development kit. On the basis of self-revise the driver, adapt the required functions. After the configuration is complete, check that each pin configuration is correct and avoid driver conflicts.

Figure 4.6 A280 Series Connector Pin Arrangement

Figure 4.6 shows the layout of the core board product pins. The core board uses J1 (A1 ~ A80) and J2 (B2 ~ B80). Two precision board-to-board connectors draw the processor's resources from the back. The factory default functions of the corresponding pins of the J1 and J2 connectors are detailed in Table 4.2 and Table 4.3 respectively.

Table 4.2 A280 Wireless Core Board Pin Definitions (J1)

Table 4.3 A280 Wireless Core Board Pin Definitions (J2)

4.2A287 Wireless Core Board (ARM9 Core)

4.2.1 Overview

The A287 series wireless core boards (abbreviated as A287-W128LI, A287-WB128LI, and A287-W128F256LI-T) are ZLG's meticulously designed low-power, high-performance embedded wireless systems with board-to-board connector interfaces. The core board and processor use the i.MX287 based on ARM9 core from NXP, with a maximum frequency of 454MHz, integrated DDR2, NandFlash, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and hardware watchdog, etc., supporting multiple communication methods such as Wi-Fi, BT , UART, I2C, I2S, Ethernet, USB, and internal integrated power management unit PMU, reducing system power consumption, greatly simplifies system power supply design, and reduces product design costs.

A287 series wireless core board can work stably in industrial temperature range, can meet a variety of harsh industrial applications, such as industrial control, field communication, data acquisition and other fields. Figure 4.7 and Figure 4.8 are schematic diagrams of the A287-W128LI and A287-WB128LI wireless core boards. The industrial evaluation board is shown in Figure 4.9.

Figure 4.7 A287-W128LI front image

Figure 4.8 Front image of A287-WB128LI

Figure 4.9 Front panel image of A287 series wireless core board (actual product)

4.2.2 Product Features

CPU: NXP i.MX287;

Operating frequency: 454MHz;

Onboard 128MB DDR2;

Onboard 128MB NandFlash;

Built-in power management unit PMU;

Pre-installed Linux system, can support AWorks operating system;

Onboard independent hardware watchdog;

Support multiple file systems, support SD/MMC card, U disk read and write;

Supports 1 way USB2.0 HOST, 1 way USB2.0 OTG;

Supports 2 way 10M/100M Ethernet interfaces, support switch function;

Support up to 6 serial ports, 2 CAN;

Supports 1 channel SD Card interface;

1 I2C, 1 SPI, 1 I2S and 4 12-bit ADC;

Built-in LCD controller, resolution up to 800 × 480;

Support 4-wire resistive touch screen interface;

Supports wireless Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n) and Bluetooth 4.0 wireless communications;

Support JTAG debug interface;

Support multiple upgrade methods;

Adopt 6-layer PCB process;

Size 30mm×48mm;

Operating voltage: 3.3V±5%.

4.2.3 Product Function Block Diagram

The A287 series wireless core board integrates the i.MX287, DDR2, NAND Flash, Wi-Fi, BT, and hardware watchdog into a 30mm x 48mm module to provide an unmatched price/performance ratio. The A287 series wireless core board functions The block diagram is detailed in Figure 4.10.

Figure 4.10 Functional Block Diagram of A287 Series Wireless Core Board

4.2.4 Product Selection

The specific parameters of the A287 series wireless core board are detailed in Table 4.4. Users can select the appropriate core board for secondary development according to their project technical requirements.

Table 4.4 Product Selection Table of A287 Series Wireless Core Board

4.2.5 I/O Information

A287 series wireless core board In order to cooperate with the standard driver software development, the firmware of the product is set to the default function of I/O. If you need to change the pin function attribute, the user can refer to the manual, carefully understand the drive architecture, and provide the BSP. Based on the development package, you can modify the driver and adapt the function you need. After the configuration is complete, check that each pin configuration is correct and avoid driver conflicts.

Figure 4.11 A287 Series Wireless Core Board Connector Pinouts

Figure 4.11 shows the schematic layout of the core board product pins. The core board uses two precision board-to-board connectors A (A1 ~ A80) and B (B2 ~ B80) to draw the processor's resources from the back. The factory default functions of the corresponding pins of A and B connectors are detailed in Table 4.5 and Table 4.6 respectively.

Table 4.5 Pin Definitions for A287 Series Wireless Core Boards (A)

Table 4.6 A287 Series Wireless Core Board Pin Definitions (B)