How much do you know about the Atmel SAMA5D3 Xplained development board? After reading this, it will suffice.

The SAMA5D3 series MPU based on ARM Cortex-A5 core increases performance while reducing power consumption, and is extremely easy to use and safe. It is very suitable for popular human-computer interaction, M2M, smart grid and other application fields. . The Atmel SAMA5D3 Xplained is another masterpiece based on this SAMA5D3 series MPU.

SAMA5D3 Xplained Development Board

SAMA5D3 Xplained is small and exquisite. It is different from Mill's MYD-SAMA5D21 development board. The SAMA5D3 Xplained is only 125mm*75mm, which is smaller than the Samsung note3 series. However, the space is limited. The wiring of the PCB, so the SAMA5D3 Xplained has 10 layers of board, it sounds like this development layer is really a bit cold, the smartphone based on MediaTek's 8-core MTK6592 solution (Huawei, Hongmi note series mobile phone) is widely used. It is also an 8-layer board or a 10-layer board, so you can imagine the rich and scalable features of SAMA5D3 Xplained.

For the board itself, the accessories of the SAMA5D3 Xplained development board are very poor. There is only one micro USB cable, which is used as the power supply of the 5V power cable and the serial port and download line. From the documentation, the board can be powered by the USB HOST interface of the computer. At least one problem can be explained, that is, the power consumption is relatively low. However, the SAMA5D3 Xplained development board also reserves a DC adapter socket that is not patched. Is it a compatible design that can be powered by the adapter if the input module is not used enough? There are several other unpatched areas on the board, such as the TF card holder next to the power adapter holder, several unpatched devices behind the board (mentioned later), etc. These are the extensions of the board itself. Space is reserved. OK, let's first take a look at some of the onboard resources of the SAMA5D3 Xplained development board.

SAMA5D3 Xplained development board front

SAMA5D3 Xplained development board back

SAMA5D3 Xplained development board hardware block diagram

Onboard resources:

SAMA5D36 Cortex-A5 MPU, up to 536MHz

256MB DDR2, 256MB NAND Flash; serial FLASH and 1-WIRE EEPROM (empty)

LCD connector, dual network port (100M network port + Gigabit network port); one SD card holder, one micro SD card interface (empty)

3 USB ports (HOST*2, Device*1), extended IO port, compatible with Arduino R3 Shield

A standard JTAG interface, a serial port DEBUG interface, three mechanical buttons (user, wake, reset)

MPU ATSAMA5D36

Of course, the design of the board in terms of function and power consumption also reflects the confidence of the core controller. According to Atmel officially, the SAMA5D3 series MPU can provide up to 536MHz (850DMIPS) of processing power with less than 150mW. Focus on this high-performance, low-power MPU SAMA5D36 on the board.

ATSAMA5D36 microcontroller

ATSAMA5D36 Microcontroller System Block Diagram

The SAMA5D3 Xplained development board is equipped with the highest specification of the Atmel SAMA5D3 series, the SAMA5D36 (see the table below for differences between the series). Based on the ARM Cortex-A5 core, the maximum frequency is 536MHz, 12mm*12mm. , 324ball BGA package. It integrates common functions such as dual Ethernet MAC, LCD controller dual CAN, USB controller, etc., and reserves a lot of IO ports for everyone to DIY, which is quite flexible.

SAMA5D3 Series MPU

By comparing the SAMA5D3 series with the SAM9X series MPU, you will find that the SAMA5D3 series supports a higher 32-bit DDR bit width, adds a MAC controller that supports Gigabit Ethernet ports, supports LCD controllers and ISI, and supports LCD display. The resolution is increased to 720p, and the SAM9X series can only support 16-bit wide DDR (except for areas with slower upgrades such as industrial control, or some low-end routers may still be used, basically Eliminating the edge of the product), only the 100M Ethernet port MAC, not a full range of support for LCD controllers and many other features that seem to be lagging behind, let users rest assured that the SAMA5D36 improves performance and reduces power consumption. Not only maintain compatibility with ARM classic processor applications, but also 100% compatibility with higher performance Cortex-A8, A9, A15 and other series in terms of instructions and functions.

Similarly, the Cortex-A5 processor-based SAMA5D3 is also commendable in terms of security, such as the well-known Trustzone, more secure encryption engine, secure hash algorithm, etc., plus Atmel's extensive ecosystem, whether it is function or performance. Or energy efficiency, cost, safety, SAMA5D3 gives you the reason to upgrade.

SAMA5D3 Xplained other hardware parts:

Hybrid design of Gigabit Ethernet port and one 100M Ethernet port

The power management section on the back is powered by Active-semi's ACT8865 PMU

summary:

In general, Atmel SAMA5D3 series MPU authors give high praise, in terms of performance and energy efficiency, the three major manufacturers Atmel, e-meeting, and the United Kingdom will jointly promote the SAMA5D3 Xplained development board may be quite strange in some designs. But whether it's work or the user-definable DIY function extension is impeccable, 10-layer board (rare in the development board), based on the Cortex-A5 processor (currently there are not many ARM A5 core-based products on the market) Performance, energy efficiency bursts Classic ARM processor, and has obvious advantages in system cost and security. Together with Atmel's extensive ecosystem, it is a geek, developer's love, and friends who like to challenge can try it. .