Reference design and dev kit tackle timing-critical smart factory applications

By Gina Roos, editor-in-chief

Arrow Electronics in collaboration with Exor Embedded has launched gigaSOM gS01, a full-production design and development kit that features an energy-efficient system-on-module (SOM) for IoT edge deployments. The SOM gives designers a choice of processor and FPGA configurations, multiple high-speed interfaces, and a variety of features to build their real-time smart factory application.

The high-performance gigaSOM gS01 combines the Intel Atom E3900 processor with the Intel Cyclone 10 GX FPGA, connected with a high-bandwidth dual-lane PCIe interface. It’s available in four configurations. These include a choice of an E3930 processor with or without an 85,000 logic-element Cyclone 10 GX FPGA or an E3940 processor with or without 220,000 logic-element Cyclone 10 GX. Memory options include 4-GB or 8-GB DDR RAM, 32-GB or 64-GB flash disk, and 64-KB FRAM.

This CPU/FPGA board supports Intel’s time-coordinated computing (TCC), IEEE 802.1 time-sensitive networking (TSN) in the FPGA reference design, and real-time IoT. Thanks to these features, the gigaSOM gS01 ensures determinism for managing synchronized and real-time smart factory applications. The board can consolidate multiple devices such as industrial PCs, HMI controllers, and PLCs in a single module, said Arrow.

The SOM also delivers high performance per watt with the Intel Atom E3900 CPU series. In addition, the Intel SpeedStep technology dynamically adjusts the operating voltage and frequency to optimize efficiency at any CPU loading, said Arrow.

Graphics features include Intel HD Graphics 500, DirectX and OpenGL support, and Intel Clear Video HD Technology. The board also offers DisplayPort, eDP, HDMI, and MIPI-DSI outputs to connect up to three displays.

Other features include multiple high-speed interfaces including two USB2.0, two USB3.0, and two SATA3 ports; together with Gigabit Ethernet, PCIe, six 10-Gb FPGA transceivers, and 34 LVDS pairs. There are also SMBus, multiple I² C, CAN, SPI connections, and plenty of GPIOs on the processor and FPGA.

The SOM also allows users to connect to Exor’s sensor-to-cloud platform, Corvina Cloud, thanks to the support for MQ Telemetry Transport (MQTT) and Open Platform Communications — Unified Architecture (OPC UA) lightweight protocols. The cloud platform can be used to collect machine IoT data, orchestrate industrial assets, and derive visual trends and analytic apps, leveraging the collected data.

The module measures 81.6 × 54 mm with a low profile of 4.9 mm for compact designs. The FPGA and CPU are soldered directly to the board for greater reliability and ruggedness of the module for use in harsh environmental conditions over the temperature range of –40°C to 85°C.

The gS01-000xEE16EK-0011 evaluation kit and reference design are available now at www.arrow.com.