RoadRunner - Linux embedded system on module

Linux embedded system on module designed around the Microchip SAMA5D27 Cortex-A5@500 MHz MPU

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CPU features

Microchip SAMA5D27 MPU (Cortex A5 single core @500MHz)
On-the-fly AES encryption/decryption on DDR and QSPI memories
32-Kbyte L1 data cache, 32-Kbyte L1 instruction cache
128-Kbyte L2 cache configurable to be used as an internal 32 bit single cycle SRAM
5 Kbytes of internal scrambled SRAM:
- 1 Kbyte non-erasable on tamper detection
- 4 Kbytes erasable on tamper detection
256 bits of scrambled and erasable registers
Up to seven tamper pins for static or dynamic intrusion detections
Secure Boot Loader
RTC including time-stamping on security intrusions
Programmable fuse box with 544 fuse bits including JTAG protection and BMS
NAND controller
ARM NEON (tm) SIMD Media Processing Engine
Hardware Floating Point Unit
Hardware cryptography
- SHA: SHA1, SHA224, SHA256, SHA384, SHA512; compliant with FIPS PUB180-2
- AES: 256, 192, 128 bit key algorithm; compliant with FIPS PUB 197
- TDES: two-key or three-key algorithms; compliant with FIPS PUB 46-3
- True Random Number Generator (TRNG); compliant with NIST Special Publication 800-22 Test Suite and FIPS PUBs 140-2 and 140-3

Microchip SAMA5D27 CPU

SOM features

RAM: 256 MBytes of DDR3L RAM @ 166MHz
FLASH: Up to 128 MBytes of QSPI flash memory @ 133MHz
Extended temperature range: -40°C to +85°C
Small form factor: 40 x 30 (3.5mm height over carrier board)
Weight: 5g
10 layers VIPPO technology PCB
Single power supply at 3.3 Volt DC
Ultra Low-power mode with fast wakeup capability
Low-power Backup mode with 5-Kbyte SRAM and SleepWalking (tm) features
Wakeup from up to eight wakeup pins, UART reception, analog comparison
Extended Backup mode with DDR in Self-Refresh mode
Low power consumption:
- 100% CPU (memtester): 120mA @ 3.3V (396mW)
- idle (at Linux prompt): 60mA @ 3.3V (198mW)
- Standby mode (resume in 159ms): 5.3mA @ 3.3V (17mW)
- Suspend To RAM mode (resume in 1.5s): 3mA @ 3.3V (10mW)
- Backup mode (poweroff with RTC and event wakeup, resume <14s with Debian; <6s with Buildroot): 0mA @ 3.3V (0mW)
- Read more about the RoadRunner power consumption
Low EMI (multiple ground planes and impedance controlled tracks)

Declarations of conformity

Signals on pins

Two Hirose 6Gbps 100-pin connectors 0.4 mm pitch, with all the CPU signals:

10/100 Mbit/s Ethernet MAC with IEEE1588 Precision Time Protocol (PTP)
RGB interface @ 24 bit for LCD TFT
Resistive and capacitive touch panel interface
Synchronous Serial Controllers SSC/I2S (up to 2)
TWI compatible I2C interface (up to 7 buses) up to 400 Kbits/s supporting I2C and SMBUS
SPI bus interface (up to 7 buses)
Quad Serial Peripheral Interfaces QSPI (up to 2)
One Stereo Class D audio amplifier integrated
Peripheral Touch Controller PTC with up to 8X-lines and 8Y-lines (64-channel capacitive touch)
Pulse Density Modulation Interface Controller PDMIC (digital microphone)
Two master CAN-FD MCAN controllers with SRAM-based mailboxes
GPIO lines (up to 128)
A/D converter @ 12 bit (up to 12)
Serial ports (up to 10: five USART and five UART)
One additional Rx only UART in backup area RXLP
One analog comparator ACC in backup area
2 high-speed USB Host, or 1 USB Host and 1 USB device
1 high-speed Inter-Chip HSIC USB port interface
Two high-speed memory card hosts (SDIO, SD or MMC):
- SDMMC0: SD 3.0, eMMC 4.51, 8 bits
- SDMMC1: SD 2.0, eMMC 4.41, 4 bits only
ITU-RBT.601/656/1120 Image Sensor Controller ISC supporting up to 5M-pixel sensors
Two 3-channel 32-bit Timer/Counters TC , supporting PWM modes (up to 6 out)
One full-featured 4-channel 16-bit PWM controller
Programmable clock (up to 3)
JTAG port
Debug serial port
Battery input for internal RTC, backup area and backup RAM

Software features

This board is fully supported inside the Linux Kernel main stream http://www.kernel.org. Thanks to this fact it is possible to try also the very latest Kernel releases. On this site we'll release up to the latest longterm versions.
All the kernel drivers are fully open source and available directly on the official Linux repository.
On RoadRunner (Microchip SAMA5D27) technical documentation is available the step-by-step documentation to install Linux from scratch.
Ready-to-use binary images of Debian and Buildroot Linux distribution are available on Download binary images for RoadRunner SOM page
Ready-to-use microSDs are also available on our Store

Berta D2 - Development kit

The Berta D2 is the basic evaluation board for the RoadRunner system-on-module. It provides the minimal peripherals to turn-on the RoadRunner, run Linux, try the network an USB host and device capabilities. It has also 160 pin 2.54 mm pitch pads with all the signals exposed by the RoadRunner module to try your own interface. The board is compatible with the Teko Tekal-3 case.

Features

Placement for one RoadRunner SoM
1 USB host port
1 USB device port on microUSB used also for 5 VDC power in
1 Ethernet port with etherney phy
1 MicroSD socket
Serial debug port pins
HSIC signals on pad
Test points for power consumption measurements @5V and @3.3V
4 placements for 20x2 pin headers or sockets 2.54mm pitch
1 Farad supercap for RTC and backup memory circuit
Reset push-button
Boot-off push-button for programming the onboard Quad SPI
Form factor compatible with Teko Tekal 31.29/30 enclosure

The Berta D2 board can be used as

Development kit to evaluate the RoadRunner features
Fast prototyping system for your application using it as a mother board and the Teko Tekal 31.29/30 enclosure as enclosure.
Hardware reference design for your custom project based on RoadRunner SOM

HSIC port

High-speed Inter-Chip HSIC USB port interface

USB 2.0 host port

High-speed USB 2.0 Host

Power-in 5V - microUSB client port

Use this port to power supply the board using a microUSB 5VDC wall adapter or an USB port of your PC. In this case the board is announced as an USB device. Using the SAM-BA utility will be possible to write on the QuadSPI memory.

Debug port

On this strip is possible to plug an USB to serial converter like the Debug Port Interface or USB to serial cable

Supercap for RTC circuitry

This supercap is instead of a backup battery to mantain the Real Time Clock when there is no main power supply. The RTC circuitry is embedded inside the RoadRunner MCU.

10/100 Mbit/s LAN port

10/100 Mbit/s Ethernet port. Please note that the RoadRunner doesn't have an its own MAC address. You have to add a MAC address chip like a Microchip AT24MAC402 on your carrier or save a MAC number on the Linux rootfs and provide it during the boostrap.

RoadRunner lines

Placements for 4 strip at 20x2 pins pitch 2.54mm. On this vias are available all the RoadRunner lines not used by the Berta D2. Each line is marked with the name of GPIO line or the type of signal.

Placement for RoadRunner SOM

Two Hirose 6Gbps 100-pin connectors 0.4 mm pitch where to plug the RoadRunner SOM. Pay attention to the module orientation to avoid SOM damages.

MicroSD socket

Placement for the microSD with Linux. Download the microSD demo image from this repository or buy a ready to use industrial microSD from Acme eShop. Up to 128 GB microSD can be used.

Push-buttons

BOOTOFF Keep pressed this button during the reset or power-on to disable the QuadSPI memory
RESET Board reset

Jumpers and test point

J1 Shutdown__
J12 EN SD\
- Position 1-2: microSD power controlled by external signal
- Position 2-3: microSD power always on
J13 CURR.MEAS The voltage measured on these pins is directly proportional to the absorbed current on 3V3. (1 mV = 10 mA)
J14 LED ON Open this jumper to turn-off all the led on board
J15 ENABLE ETHN Open this jumper to turn-off the ethernet port
J16 CURR.MEAS The voltage measured on these pins is directly proportional to the absorbed current on 5V. (1 mV = 10 mA)
TP5 ADVREF Analog to digital interface voltage reference
VBAT Voltage on RTC backup Battery pin
VBAT_SC Voltage on Super CAP
The voltage measured on these pins is directly proportional to the absorbed current on VBAT line (1 mV = 1 uA)
3V3ETH Voltage on ethernet circuitry
2V5 Voltage on 2V5 line
TP7 VDDSDMMC
3V3 VCC of logic
Ext 5V Power supply incoming from the microSD connector
5V Main VCC
GND Ground signal

For more in-depth information on the signals available on the Berta Board please check its schematic: