"Since arm launched the cortex-a7 processor, it has been widely used in the current multi-core SOC. Whether it is the application processor in mobile phones and tablets, or the SOC carried by open-source hardware platforms such as raspberry pie and banana pie, these products have the shadow of cortex-a7.
Recently, aiban.com has obtained an open-source hardware board based on multi-core cortex-a7 processor - fireprime built by firefly team. Its main application processor is rk3128 and 4-core cortex-a7 processor of Ruixin micro. This configuration should be comparable to the performance of the current mainstream open-source hardware board, but it seems nothing special. Besides, Some time ago, the firefly team has launched a high-performance 4-core development board firefly-rk3288 (evaluation, based on 4-core cortex-a17), so the author is particularly curious about where the firefly team's confidence in launching this fireprime open source hardware board comes from? With such questions, let's have a look.
Fireprime out of the box
The fireprime development board adopts the familiar simple kraft cardboard packaging, which is low-key and introverted. When you open the box, the first thing you can see is the fireprime development board.
The internal space can be said to be a two-layer structure. After taking out the development board, you can see the box of accessories. The internal accessories include a microusb cable, a wifi antenna and a light blue acrylic shell device (including fixed copper column). In addition, we also got a 5V / 2.5A output power adapter.
Seeing the matching card box, the author can't help assembling the fireprime development board. The assembly of the box doesn't provide direct instructions. However, people who have played with the board should easily distinguish between the front and back. There is a serial port opening on the front. The assembled fireprime board looks cool, making you feel that you are facing a product, not a development board, as shown in the figure below.
First, let's take a look at some configurations of the fireprime development board: (next page)
Rk3128 quad core arm cortex ™- A7, main frequency up to 1.3GHz, arm mali-400mp2 GPU
1GB dual channel lpddr2-533mhz, 8GB nandflash, microSD
10 / 100 / 1000m Ethernet
WiFi module - ap6212, 2.4GHz WiFi, 802.11 B / g / N protocol, Bluetooth 4.0 and ble
Video output / input: HDMI 1.4 output up to 1080P@60Hz MIPI、LVDS、CVBS
Audio output / input: HDMI, SPDIF, headset, microphone, line in
Camera interface supporting 500W pixels
USB2.0 HOST x 4， MicroUSB OTG x 1
Support infrared remote control function, start key x 1, upgrade key x 1, reset key x 1, programmable led x2
Reserved debugging serial port and expansion interface include Mipi, LVDS, PWM, SPI, UART, ADC, GPIO, I2C and I2S
Arm development board recommendations:
P1601-dk02 development board A price friendly platform for the development of open-source, energy-efficient, high-performance computers only the size of credit cards.
XCORE-XA ™ Core Module It allows you to explore a new kind of multi-core microprocessor and quickly develop complex embedded systems from a simple but powerful platform.
Mb9bf524k Starter Kit A low cost evaluation board based on span FM3 microcontroller mb9b520m series.
Fireprime hardware features
The fireprime development board adopts the combination of core board and bottom board. The bottom board mainly arranges some peripheral interface functions, the size of which is 117mm * 85mm, which is the size of an adult's palm. The core board is equipped with the main control of Ruixin micro rk3128, which has the smallest system function. The size is only 67.6mm * 31mm, which is not as big as an ID card, The core board and backplane adopt standard PCIe interface to facilitate flexible expansion.
The following figure shows some peripheral interface functions on the backplane:
From the perspective of peripherals, the fireprime development board is still very rich in functions, with audio and video input and output functions. In addition to Gigabit Ethernet, the board is also equipped with WiFi module, which is a great advantage for engineers who do not like to use wired networks or have restrictions on the use of wired networks, not to mention the Bluetooth 4.0 function, The four USB interfaces on the board can also meet the application of engineers. In addition, there are more expansion interfaces on both sides of the board. It is no longer necessary to make your favorite DIY.
It is also very easy to remove the backplane from the fireprime development board. At ordinary times, the connection between the core board and the backplane is more fixed by screws, which can effectively avoid the possible poor contact between the two. From the figure below, there are very few onboard devices on the core board. There are four major IC devices on the front and back, including Ruixin micro application processor rk3128, PMU rk818, 8GB flash and 1GB ram.
Let's focus on what's special about the rk3128 microcontroller of xiaruixin micro.
Rk3128 adopts a quad core arm cortex-a7 processor with a 1.3GHz main frequency, while GPU adopts arm mali-400mp2 and supports OpenGL es1.1/2.01080p video coding, which is almost the same as the performance of Quanzhi's A20 processor. At present, the main application market is the hardware solutions of tablet and intelligent set-top box, but in my opinion, in these products, This scheme is also outdated. For example, it is common for manufacturers to support 4K decoding, such as set-top box and tablet. However, as long as the product is not completely eliminated, it will always find its applicable position. Now we see it here. On the open source hardware board, especially the domestic manufacturers, Quanzhi A20, A21, Ruixin micro rk3128 and other application processors have also become Xiangmo, which can greatly facilitate the engineers' early development of the product.
After reading the features of the fireprime development board, to be honest, there is really nothing to attract the author from the performance or function of the hardware. You know, the firefly team has launched a stronger firefly-rk3288, just like you used the current i7 processor and went back to the era of Pentium CPU. Can you adapt? Of course, this is a bit extreme. It mainly depends on what characteristics the development board has and what fields it can be applied to. In the eyes of engineers, it is just as applicable, that is, it is the best solution.
Power on the fireprime development board
Let's take a look at the use of the development board. Connect the fireprime development board to the necessary peripherals, such as display, network cable, mouse, keyboard, etc. the display used by the author here is DVI interface, so a HDMI to DVI interface cable is used. We supply power through the adapter provided by firefly, as shown in the figure below.
After the display is lit up, a logo of the firefly team will appear, and then switch to the logo of Android. In fact, the board has built-in dual systems, version 5.1 Android system and Ubuntu system. After the system starts, it enters the first interface of Android, but the color looks a little strange. Pink theme? Is it for female engineers（ (next page)
Arm development board recommendations:
P1601-dk02 development board A price friendly platform for the development of open-source, energy-efficient, high-performance computers only the size of credit cards.
XCORE-XA ™ Core Module It allows you to explore a new kind of multi-core microprocessor and quickly develop complex embedded systems from a simple but powerful platform.
Mb9bf524k Starter Kit A low cost evaluation board based on span FM3 microcontroller mb9b520m series.
Since the board has been connected to the network, it actually opens the web page, tests, browses the web page, pulls down the web page and other operations are very smooth, without any sense of frustration, at least better than the experience of raspberry pie.
Then it tested the video files and game programs in the flash of the lower board, which can be completed very easily. As shown in the figure below, 1080p video playback and angry bird games can be handled.
However, a problem has also been found in the use. This pink color is obviously not a theme problem now? Is there a problem with the firmware? Immediately contacted the firefly team and had to praise their team's high efficiency and responsible attitude. They immediately debugged the user's problems. As a result, they found that there would be some problems with the DVI output display of the original firmware. Fortunately, the problem was solved after brushing the new firmware, as shown in the figure below.
For users who want to use DVI adapter output like the author, they must brush the latest firmware to achieve the best experience. In addition, if you want to switch to the Ubuntu system, click the shutdown button in the status bar to pop up the shutdown dialog box, while the dual system firmware will display the switch system option in the shutdown dialog box. Just click it to switch to the Ubuntu system, as shown in the figure below. Is it very convenient.
Fireprime system update
On the official website of firefly, we can find the system update process of the fireprime board. It is very simple. Just burn the image file to the flash memory of the development board through the micro USB OTG line. There are three main steps:
First, install the USB driver of rk3128
Then download the dual system image compressed package file, as shown in the last one in the figure below.
Finally, we download the image file through androidtool, open androidtool -- > click the upgrade tab -- > Click to select the upgraded firmware -- > Click upgrade to start burning. The tools used in this article are available on the official website of fireprime, and the specific process will not be introduced one by one（ This article takes windows system as an example. If it is a Linux system, you can also refer to the process of firefly's official website step by step)
Summary
The latest fireprime development board launched by firefly team is introduced. The board is equipped with Ruixin micro quad core cortex-a7 processor rk3128, 1GB ram, 8GB NAND flash and many peripheral interfaces, such as USB, HDMI, Ethernet, audio and video input and output. The hardware performance and peripheral functions have reached the ranks of mainstream open source hardware, What is more worthy of our appreciation is that the firefly team provides all-round support in software optimization, development materials and other links. It can be said that fireprime is not only a development tool and hardware solution, but also a good partner in office learning, games and entertainment, server construction and intelligent embedded development, Interested friends can visit firefly's official website to buy.
Arm development board recommendations:
P1601-dk02 development board A price friendly platform for the development of open-source, energy-efficient, high-performance computers only the size of credit cards.
XCORE-XA ™ Core Module It allows you to explore a new kind of multi-core microprocessor and quickly develop complex embedded systems from a simple but powerful platform.
Mb9bf524k Starter Kit A low cost evaluation board based on span FM3 microcontroller mb9b520m series.
reference material
Fireble Low Power Bluetooth development board evaluation > wearable Bracelet + Bluetooth anti loss device
High Performance Quad Core open source hardware platform -- evaluation of firefly rk3288 development board
Fireprime development board purchase link
Original statement: This article is original by Aiban. Reprint is declined“
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