UNICA SBC/pdf

Getting started

Unboxing

Once you've received the UNICA SBC, please open the box and check the kit contents with the packing list included in the box, using the table here below.

The hardware components (SOM, carrier boards and display) are pre-assembled, as shown in the picture below:

Box Contents

The following table lists the kit components:

Component	Description
	UNICA Single board computer
	AC/DC Single Output Wall Mount adapter Output: +12V – 2.5 A
	Micro-USB to USB Type-A cable
	MicroSDHC card

Order codes

The UNICA SBC order code can be composed using the Part number composition page

microSD Layout

The microSD provided with the kit is used to store:

• a bootable partition (mmcblk0p1, vfat) containing:
  • binary images (u-boot and kernel images)
• root file system partition (mmcblk0p2, ext4)

Connections

This section describes how to quickly start the UNICA SBC:

UNICA first connections

The system is programmed to boot Linux at power-up, loading the bootloader, the kernel and device tree image and the root file system from the SD card memory:

• insert the micro-SD card in the J22 micro SD connector
• connect the 12Vcc power supply to J2 connector
• connect the micro USB to the J30 connector on the SBC and connect the USB side connector to a USB port on your computer
  • start your favorite terminal emulator software on PC (eg: PuTTY, Minicom, ...); communication parameters are 115200,N,8,1
• (optional) connect the ethernet cable from your LAN hub/switch to the J10 RJ45 connector
  • start SSH, using the following parameters:
    • ip address: 192.168.0.89
    • username: root
    • empty password

First boot

Once power has been applied, U-Boot bootloader will be executed and the debug messages will be printed on the serial console. U-Boot automatically runs the autoboot macro, which loads the kernel/dtb and launches it with the options for mounting the root file system from the SD card.

At the end of the boot process, a demo application is launched and you can interact with the system using the touchscreen. The Linux shell is available on the serial console. Moreover, both telnet and ssh services are available to connect to the system through the network.

Serial console

A simple Windows serial and SSH/telnet client and terminal can be downloaded from here.

The following picture shows the serial setup for connecting to the EVK:

PuTTY connection using Serial Port

once selected the COM[x] serial port, click the Open button which starts the terminal. Once powered, the EVK shows the U-boot debug messages printed on the serial console.

Connecting through SSH

The following picture shows the SSH connection to the EVK:

PuTTY connection using SSH

once selected the IP address, click the Open button which starts the terminal. Once connected, the EVK shows the linux kernel prompt login for inserting the login:

PuTTY SSH login

Then use the root login username without password:

PuTTY SSH connected

Boot Configurations

UNICA SBC can mount different SOM/SOC processors.

Available options

Boot mode - selected by S1 switch - acts directly on the SOM's BOOT configuration pins.

Boot options	S1 ON	S1 OFF
Boot Storage	SD	eMMC

S1 boot mode

Reset Button

UNICA SBC has a pushbutton connected to the SYS cold reset signal who drives a SOC hardware reset.

S3 is the hardware reset button.

Reset button

General Information

Product Highlights

The UNICA SBC platform presented here provides a compact solution for any industrial application and can be easily interfaced with Plant Automation Control thanks to IEC-61131 SW language environment and/or other plug-ins like nodeJS and web-based applications.

The following table summarizes the main hardware and software features available with UNICA SBC:

UNICA SBC hardware interfaces

Hardware

Subsystem	Characteristics
SOM	AURA (i.MX93) MITO 8M Mini (i.MX8M Mini) Texas Instruments DADA (AM62x)
Serial Ports	1x RS232 or RS485 1x CAN
Ethernet	1x 10/100/1000 Mbps
USB	1x USB 2.0 Host port 1x USB 2.0 OTG
Graphics and touch	1x LVDS channel with PCAP touchscreen
Audio	1x audio codec with headphone ouput
Camera	1x MIPI-CSI-2 interface connector
RTC	Battery backup
Connectivity	(optional) Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on M.2 socket (optional) LTE modem on miniPCIe socket
LED and Buttons	3 LED and 3 buttons
Expansion connectors	(optional) UART, I2C, SPI, CAN, ADC, GPIOs connections
PSU	12 to 24V DC
Mechanical Dimensions	154x82mm

Software

Subsystem	Options
Operating System	Linux
Distribution	Yocto, Debian, Buildroot
Applications	SoftPLC, IoT runtime, nodeJS

Block diagram

The following picture shows a simplified block diagram of the UNICA SBC.

Main functional subsystems and interfaces are depicted.

UNICA SBC Block diagram

The heart of the UNICA SBC is the i.MX6UL NXP System On Chip: please refer to the following Product Highlights page for the product highlights information.

Here below a summary for the main characteristics of the SBC.

Features Summary

Feature	Specifications
Supported SOM	AURA MITO8M Mini DADA
Serial Ports	1x UART RS232 or RS485 1x CAN
Connectivity	1x Gigabit Ethernet on RJ45 connector WiFi on M.2 (optional) LTE on miniPCIe (optional)
Storage	1x microSD slot
USB	1x USB 2.0 Host port 1x USB OTG port
Miscellaneous	One-piece connectors with GPIOs and other peripherals

Electrical, Mechanical and Environmental Specifications

Electrical / Mechanicals	Specifications
Supply voltage	12 to 24 V
Dimensions
Weight
Operating Temperature

Interfaces and Connectors

Power Supply interface

Description

The Power Supply interface is available on the SBC connector J2.

J2 is a two-pin MSTBA 2.5/2-G-5.08 Phoenix connector.

Power Supply connector

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

Pin#	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	VIN	+[12-24 V]
2	DGND	Ground

Connector - pin 1

CPU connector

Description

J1 is the 204-pins SODIMM-DDR3 mating connector for the SOMs in the DAVE's Industrial Line. This means that MITO 8M Mini, AURA, DADA can be installed on UNICA SBC.

CPU connector

For a detailed description of the SOM pinout, please refer to the related wiki page.

Ethernet interface

UNICA SBC has a gigabit Ethernet interface eth0 on J10 connector.

Description

J10 is an RJ45 shielded connector with link/activity leds.

Gigabit ethernet - J10 connector

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

• J10

Pin#	Pin name	Pin Notes
1	CT_TRD3	Center tap TRD3
2	TRD3-	-
3	TRD3+	-
4	TRD2+	-
5	TRD2-	-
6	CT_TRD2	Center tap TRD2
7	CT_TRD4	Center tap TRD4
8	TRD4+	-
9	TRD4-	-
10	TRD1-	-
11	TRD1+	-
12	CT_TRD1	Center tap TRD1
13,14,15,16	NC	-
17	ETH_LED2	-
18,19	3V3_IO	-
20	ETH_LED1	-
SH1, SH2	PCB_GND_RNG	Connector Shield

Device mapping

The network interface is mapped as eth0 device in Linux.

Device usage

The peripherals use the standard kernel interface and network protocol stack.

Console interface

Description

The Console interface is made available on the UNICA SBC through a micro USB connector: J30 is a ZX62D-AB-5P8(30) connector. On this connector is mapped the console interface.

An onboard FT234XD USB-to-serial interface provides an easy connection to the PC serial terminal for debug purposes. The included USB cable can be directly connected to a USB port in the host system.

USB console connector

Signals

The following tables describe the interfaces signals:

J30

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	VB	USB VBUS
2	D-	USB data negative signal
3	D+	USB positive data signal
4	ID	USB ID signal	Connected to DGND on UNICA
5	DGND	Ground signal
6,7,8,9	SH	Shield connector's connection

Device mapping

The SOM main UART console is mapped to /dev/ttyxxx device in Linux. The peripheral mapping depends on the SoC installed in the SBC and it is used as the default serial console, both for the bootloader and the kernel.

Device usage

To connect to the debug serial port:

1. connect a micro USB side to J30 and the USB Type-A side to the host workstation system
2. start your favorite terminal emulator software on PC (eg: PuTTY); communication parameters are: 115200,8N1
3. select the proper identify device which appears in the host system (for example, on Windows it will be somthing like COM7)

UARTs interface

Description

J24 connector The UARTs interfaces available on the UNICA SBC are mapped to the following connectors:

J24 is a Phoenix Contact 1707450 MCV 1,5/ 5-G-3,81 3.81mm connector. On this connector, a multiprotocol UART interface can be made available.

UART multprotocol - J24 connector

• standard mounting provides a 4-wires RS232 serial interface
• optional mounting provides an RS422/RS485 serial interface

Signals

The following tables describe the interfaces signals:

J66

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	SMP_P1	RS232_TX or RS422_485_A	optional RS422/RS485
2	SMP_P2	RS232_RX or RS422_485_Y	optional RS422/RS485
3	SMP_P3	RS232_RTS or RS422_485_B	optional RS422/RS485
4	SMP_P4	RS232_CTS or RS422_485_Z	optional RS422/RS485
5	GND	DGND	connected to DGND

For RS485 half-duplex mode, outputs are RS485_Y and RS485_Z: see THVD1424RGTR datasheet for the RS422 and RS485 transceiver.

Device mapping

UARTs are mapped to /dev/ttyxxx device in Linux depending on SoC peripherals and drivers: for example, NXP SoCs map UART devices as /dev/ttymxc<x>

Device usage

The RS232 and RS485 use the standard protocols.

micro SD interface

Description

The SD interface is available on the UNICA SBC J22 connector.

J22 is a micro-SD push-push card header present on the SBC bottom side. This interface is connected to the boot SD peripheral SOM installed.

micro SD connector

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	DAT2	Data 2
2	DAT3	Data 3
3	CMD	CMD
4	VDD	+3.3 V
5	CLK	Clock
6	DGND	Ground
7	DAT0	Data 0
8	DAT1	Data 1
10,11,12,13	SHIELD		Connected to PCB ring through a resistor
9	CD	Card detect

Device mapping

The microSD card is typically mapped to /dev/mmcblkxx device in Linux (depends on the kernel's listed mmc devices order).

Device usage

The device can be mounted/accessed as a standard block device in Linux.

USB

Description

UNICA SBC provides two USB ports, one HOST and one OTG:

• J19 is a standard USB HOST 2.0 Type A connector

USB HOST connector

• J21 is a micro-AB - Hirose ZX62D-AB-5P8(30) - type receptacle for a USB OTG connection: this interface can operate in Host mode and Device (peripheral) mode

USB OTG connector

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

USB HOST

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	USB_VBUS	VBUS	5V USB power supply
2	D-	USB Host Data -
3	D+	USB Host Data +
4	DGND	Ground
5, 6, 7, 8	PCB_GND_RNG	Shield

USB OTG

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	USB_OTG_VBUS	VBUS
2	D-	USB OTG Data -
3	D+	USB OTG Data +
4	ID	USB OTG ID
5	GND	Ground
6, 7, 8,9	PCB_GND_RNG	Shield

Device mapping

The USB Host port can be used under Linux for connecting USB peripheral devices: the related peripheral driver has to be integrated into the Linux kernel.

The USB OTG feature can be easily tested using the Mass Storage Gadget driver (or any other USB gadget driver).

LVDS

Description

UNICA provides one LVDS channel on J5 Hirose DF13EA-30DP-1.25V double row 1.25mm connector.

LVDS connector

Signals

The following tables describes the interface signals

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
7, 9	3.3V	3.3 V
1, 3, 5	+VBL_LCD	+5V or +VIN
2, 4, 6, 17, 18, 23, 24 29, 30	-	DGND
19	LVDS_A_TX0_N	LVDS Data 0 -
21	LVDS_A_TX0_P	LVDS Data 0 +
25	LVDS_A_TX1_N	LVDS Data 1 -
27	LVDS_A_TX1_P	LVDS Data 1 +
20	LVDS_A_TX2_N	LVDS Data 2 -
22	LVDS_A_TX2_P	LVDS Data 2 +
13	LVDS_A_CLK_N	LVDS Clock -
15	LVDS_A_CLK_P	LVDS Clock +
26	LVDS_A_TX3_N	LVDS Data 3 -
28	LVDS_A_TX3_P	LVDS Data 3 +
8	LCD_GPIO	GPIO	general purpose gpio
10	LCD_PWM	PWM	PWM for brightness control
12	LCD_VBL_EN		gpio to enable the VBL power supply
14	LCD_VCC_EN		gpio to enable the LCD for the LCD power supply
16	LCD_BL_EN		gpio to enable the backlight (on LCD)

Device mapping

LVDS is mapped to LVDS-1 DRM "connector".

Power sequence

Most of the LCD panels have many supplies and need a specific timing to power the rails and start the signals.

UNICA power rails can be controlled both at the bootloader and kernel level to meet any specifications.

The following sections describe the available rails and gpio:

• +3V3_LCD: the most common voltage to supply the LCD panel internal rail is enabled by LCD_VCC_EN gpio
• +VBL_LCD: the voltage to supply the LCD panel backlight rail is enabled by LCD_VBL_EN gpio
  • VBL backlight voltage can be selected from +5V or fomr +VIN (hardware mounting option)

GPIO

• LCD_BL_EN: used to enable the backlight on some LCD panels wich require this signal
• LCD_PWM: PWM signal to control the LCD brightness

Device usage

The associated framebuffer device is accessed in Linux through the standard framebuffer or DRM kernel device.

Touchscreen

Description

A PCAP touch controller can be connected to J16, which is a 6-pin Molex 53398-0671 connector. The touch controller will be enabled via the SOC I²C bus.

PCAP touchscreen connector

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function
1	+V_TOUCH	Touch power supply
2	TOUCH_SDA	Touch SDA signal
3	TOUCH_SCL	Touch SCL signal
4	TOUCH_INT	Touch interrupt signal
5	TOUCH_RST	Touch reset signal
6	DGND	Ground

Power control

The touch controller can be powered with the following signals and levels:

• TOUCH_PWREN: used to enable the touch power supply using a GPIO in the GPIO expander
• +V_TOUCH: the touch power supply can be 3V3 or 5V with an hardware mounting option (3V3 by default)

Device mapping

The device is typically mapped to /dev/touchscreen0 device in Linux.

The touch controller is attached to the generic Linux input event interface (evdev).

Device usage

The touchscreen device is often passed as a parameter to the user interface application or is automatically discovered.

The touchscreen can be tested with the evtest tool that prints the finger coordinates to the console.

Camera

Description

J17 is a 22x0.5 mm FPC camera connector matching the 22-pin Raspberry PI camera input interface.

Camera connector

This connector can be used as a camera interface to connect a PCAM-5C MIPI CSI-2 camera device.

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function
2	CAM_D0_N	CSI Data 0 -
3	CAM_D0_P	CSI Data 0 +
5	CAM_D1_N	CSI Data 1 -
6	CAM_D1_P	CSI Data 1 +
8	CAM_CLK_N	CSI Clock -
11	CAM_D2_N	CSI Data 2 -
12	CAM_D2_P	CSI Data 2 +
14	CAM_D3_N	CSI Data 3 -
15	CAM_D3_P	CSI Data 3 +
17	CAM_IO0	Power Enable
18	CAM_IO1	Power Enable
20	CAM_SCL	I2C SCL
21	CAM_SDA	I2C SDA
1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19	DGND	Ground

Device mapping

The MIPI CSI peripheral is mapped to the corresponding /dev/video<X> device in Linux. The device mapping depends on the device tree configuration.

CAN

Description

The CAN interface is optionally available on UNICA SBC at the connector J18.: the availability depends on the SOM installed (and to the SoC peripheral presence).

J18 is a Phoenix 1844223 MC 1,5/ 3-G-3,5 3 pins 3.5mm connector.

CAN - J18 connector

CAN interface is connected to the SoC CAN controller (if available in the system-on-chip).

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	CAN_H	CAN_P
2	CAN_L	CAN_M
3	DGND	Ground	connected to DGND

Device mapping

CAN devices are typically mapped to the can0 device in Linux. The device mapping depends on the device tree configuration.

Device usage

The peripheral can be configured using ifconfig and ip link utilities and can be tested with the can-utils utilities.

Audio

Description

The Audio interface is available on UNICA SBC through the J15 and J26 connectors. The audio codec is a TLV320AIC3100 device connected to the I²S interface.

• J25 is a 3.5mm female jack connector for headphone usage
• J26 is a 4x2x2.54mm header with microphone input and class-D line 1.6W power output

Headphone connector

J26 Audio connector

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals for J26:

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
2, 4, 6	AGND Analog	Analog Ground
1	SP_P	Speaker+
3	SP_M	Speaker.
5	MICDET	Microphone detection
7	MIC1LP	Microphone and line input P
8	MIC1LM	Microphone and line input M

Device mapping

The Audio interface is mapped to card0 ALSA device in Linux. The ALSA peripheral can be accessed via alsa-utils with hardware address 0.

Device usage

For example, it is possible to play a file using aplay device access.

RTC

Description

UNICA SBC uses an external I2C RTC device, i.e. DS3232MZ+.

An external coin cell battery (like Panasonic CR1220 battery) can be optionally installed on the UNICA SBC battery holder.

CR1220 battery holder

Signals

The following table describes the interface signals:

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	Pin Notes
1	CELL	VRTC	coin cell battery positive pin
2	GND	Ground

Device mapping

RTC is mapped to /dev/rtc0 device in Linux.

Device usage

The peripheral can be accessed through the date and hwclock linux commands.

M.2 WiFi/BT

The M.2 connector supports an add-on providing WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity.

Description

The Wifi/Bluetooth interfaces are available on the UNICA SBC at the J11 connector.

J11 is a M2. NGFF standard connector (key-E ). This connector is dedicated to a M.2 wifi module commonly available on the market.

M.2 NGFF connector

Signals

The M.2 connector uses the standard interface signals.

• Wifi subsystem has an SDIO interface operating at 1V8 voltage level
• BT subsystem has an UART interface operating at 3V3 voltage level

WiFi

Device mapping

The WiFi peripheral is mapped to the corresponding xlan<0> device in Linux. The network peripheral is visible under the ifconfig network configuration utility.

Device usage

The peripheral uses the standard kernel interface and network protocol stack.

Bluetooth

Device mapping

The BT peripheral is mapped to the /dev/ttyxxx serial port in Linux. It can be mounted as an hci device with the hci tools commands.

Device usage

The peripheral uses the standard kernel interface and the Bluetooth protocol stack.

MiniPCIe

The MiniPCIe connector supports an add-on providing 4G/LTE modem connectivity.

Description

The modem interface is available on the UNICA SBC at the J12 connector.

J12 is a miniPCIe standard connector (TE-1759546-1). This connector is dedicated to an LTE module commonly available on the market.

MiniPCIe connector

The 4G/LTE modem then uses the J13 SIM card connector for the network operator connection.

SIM card connector

Signals

The miniPCIe connector uses the standard interface signals:

• USB host interface for standard 4G/LTE
• Nano SIM card connector for the standard USIM interface

Device mapping

The modem peripheral is typically mapped to the corresponding /dev/ttyx device in Linux. The network peripheral is visible under the ifconfig network configuration utility.

Device usage

The peripheral uses the standard kernel interface and network protocol stack.

Led and buttons connector

Description

UNICA SBC has three LEDs and three buttons that can be used at the user-space level: with special mounting options, they can be connected to SOM's GPIOs and drive them by software.

LEDs

Buttons

Signals

As a default mounting option, some of them are connected to dedicated signals.

Led#	SOM SO-DIMM pin #	Default function
DL3	(optional) 37 I/O expander P00	led0 (*)
DL4	(optional) 34 I/O expander P01	led1 (*)
DL5	-	3V3 carrier board power monitor

(*) led0 and led1 labels in sysfs

The three buttons are connected - by default - to the main SoC power and reset signals. The following table describes the interface signals:

Button#	Default function	SO-DIMM pin# (option)
S2	Cold reset	32
S3	Warm reset	126
S4	OnOff - standby	39

Device mapping

The leds are mapped to a sysfs led class interface.

• led0 can be accessed through /sys/class/leds/led0/brightness sysfs interface
• led1 is enabled as heartbeat funtion in the device tree

The buttons are mapped to the input event device handler.

Device usage

The LEDs can be manipulated via /sys/class/leds/ syfs interface

mikroBUS

The J28/J29 are mikroBUS™ connector socket supporting many extension add-on boards.

Description

J28 and J29 are two 1x8x2.54mm pin female headers that support mikroBUS boards for many standard peripherals and developer solutions. For example, the Click boards have many ready-to-use solutions; the interface sub-section has a collection of interfaces.

mikroBUS connector

Signals

The mikroBUS™ connector exposes the interface signals:

J28

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	SO-DIMM pin #
1	ADC		111 or 113
2	RST	reset signal	GPIO exp P05 or POR (optional)
3	CS	Chip select	191 or SPI_A SS0
4	SCLK		SPI_A SCLK (optional)
5	MISO		SPI_A MISO (optional)
6	MOSI		SPI_A MOSI (optional)
7	+3V3	Carrier board 3V3
8	GND	Ground

J29

Pin#	Pin name	Pin function	SO-DIMM pin #
1	PWM		36 or 28 (optional)
2	INT	interrupt signal	GPIO exp P01
3	RX	UART RX signal	89
4	TX	UART TX signal	91
5	SCL		I2C_A SCL (optional)
6	SDA		I2C_A SDA (optional)
7	+5V	Carrier board 5V
8	GND	Ground

Device usage

UNICA SBC/Interfaces and Connectors/GPIOs

Electrical and Mechanical Documents

Schematics

Please note that UNICA SBC is based on an Industrial product, its schematics are not available. For more information, please contact Sales department

Layout

• UNICA SBC Assembly view

Mechanical specifications

This page describes the UNICA SBC board's mechanical characteristics.

Board layout

Assembly view: top

Assembly view: bottom

CAD drawings

• STEP (3D): UNICA.step

Mechanical data

Dimension	Value
Width	154 mm
Depth	82 mm
Max component height (top)
Max component height (bottom)
PCB height