Pico-ITX vs. Q7 & SMARC form factors
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Presentation from the Embedded Conference Scandinavia (ECS2014) about the merits of the different embedded computing form factors... and the difficulties they have! There's one that we think comes out first among them!
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Pico-ITX vs. Q7 & SMARC form factors
- 1. Pico-ITX vs Q7 & SMARC Form Factor Giuseppe Amato European Technical Manager & Business Development 04 Nov 2014
- 2. •High-level of complexityin developing x86boards •I/O integration: lowbarrier to entry withstandard driver support Technical Support Hardware Software System Integration Core Technology Business Model Customer Resources Vendor Platform Traditional x86 Embedded Development Model
- 3. •SBC –Highly integrated solution canprovide smaller form factors •Module –Standard form factors allowquick I/O customization oncarrier board –Provides flexibility, greaterinventory control x86 Single Board vs Modular Approach
- 4. Changing Market Landscape •Increased application specific embedded computing tasks •Shorter product cycles •Faster time to market critical •Growing popularity of ARM SoC platforms
- 5. Embedded ARM Solutions: •Open standard developed by Q7 Consortium •7 x 7cm or 7 x 5cm modules + carrierboard •Non-standardized auxiliary connector •Open standard developed by SGETConsortium •8.2 x 5cm or 8.2 x 8cm modules + carrier board •Standardized Alternate FunctionalBlock (Auxiliary connector on Q7) Carrier Board presents high-level of integration challenges A Modular Approach
- 6. •10 x 7.2cm Pico-ITX form factor •Provides almost all connectivity required by embedded applications onboard •Extension cards allow for customers to quickly customize I/O ports VIA Approach: Single Board Pico-ITX •BSP fully optimized to take advantageof all the acceleration provided bythe main SoC allowing customers tofocus on their “Real Time HWDomain” No carrier board required
- 7. Modular Approach •In order to take advantage of multi- vendor offerings of Q7 or SMARC modules, carrier board must be designed considering only the minimum features forced by the standard. •Often requires resources by customer and module vendor to integrate a new Q7/SMARC module into an existing carrier board. The 80/20 Split Pico-ITX Approach •Low software development costswith highly optimized BSP •Easy expansion and I/O customizationthrough extension boards •Faster time to market Customer Customer Vendor Vendor
- 8. Embedded ARM Pico-ITX vs Q7 & SMARC Technical Support Hardware Software System Integration Core Technology Business Model Hardware Software System Integration Requirement Core Technology Business Model ARM Module VIA Pico-ITX Customer Resources High Speed Network Cloud Anything as a Service App Store
- 9. Android Open Accessory Device •Provides a way for externaldevices to connect through USBor Bluetooth (Pico-ITX with Android3.1 or later in BSP) •Designed for mobile devices notEmbedded •Heavy integration work left tothe customer Open Accessory Normal Control Power Control Power Device Device Host Host Open Accessory
- 10. Android and Pico-ITX VIA SMART ETK •Provides the easiest way for apps to access I/O andmanageability services –Input/Output •COM port, GPIO, I2C, CAN Bus, ... –Monitoring •CPU/system temperature, Fan speed,… •Memory usage, storage usage, CPU usage,… –System Management •Watchdog Timer, RTC, Auto power on/off, Remote power on/off,… •Benefits –Time to market •Save time from datasheet study, driver implementation, fine tuning and co-workbetween teams (including chip vender, BIOS, H/W, F/W and S/W). –Resource Concentration •Allows R&D resources to focus on high level applications and essential technologies.
- 11. VIA SMART ETK Features For Embedded Requirements (Many embedded components are not supported by the Android framework) Watchdog Timer GPIO RS-232 CAN BUS RTC I2C System Management
- 12. How VIA SMART ETK Works on Android VIA SMART ETK helps Android Apps to access embedded components. Keeps the integrity of framework for ease of maintenance US patent pending 13/835,249 VIA SMART ETK
- 13. Pico-ITX vs Q7 & SMAC Form Factor Conclusions •Standardized platform with easy expandability •Lower hardware and software development costs •Highly integrated BSP with optimization flexibility •Faster time to market •Allows customers to focus on high level applications andessential technologies