Congatec Introduces SMARC 2.0 Starter Kit for NXP i.MX 8 Designs

The leading vendors of customized and standardized embedded computer modules and boards, Congatec, recently introduced the SMARC 2.0 Quick Starter Kit for the new family of NXP i.MX 8 QuadMax processors. It is a complete kit that caters all developers requirements related to evaluation of latest NXP i.MX 8 processor generation.

Fig. 1: Representative Image Showing SMARC 2.0 Quick Starter Kit

On a more narrow basis, it will be highly beneficial for vision-based AI applications who will get the best from natively supported integrated MIPI interfaces along with the optional pre-configured software backing to AI.

Features

● It integrates conga-SMX8 computer modules either with the low-power consuming NXP i.MX 8X or the high-end NXP i.MX 8 series.

● Provides access to all kind of functions and interfaces for every NXP i.MX 8 designs based on SMARC 2.0.

● Its evaluation carrier provides strong backing to an extensive range of interfaces going from 4x USB 2.0 to 4x PCle x 1, 1x mini PCle, as well as 2x USB 3.0 for generic extensions.

● Apart from the regular offerings, Congatec also offers 2x RJ45 for Gigabit Ethernet, 12 GPIOs, and 1x CAN buses.

● Ability to establish connection between displays and 2x MIPI-DSI, dual channel LVDS, DP, eDP along with extra storage media through the SD/MMC socket as well as 1x SATA 6G.

● An ATX power supply, WLAN antenna, LVDS adapter, USB cable, SATA, Conga-ACA2 MIPI CSI-2 dual camera module, and ATX power supply are the other few noteworthy features that users can count on.

● On software front, you can have a certified bootloader package as well as board support package for Android, Yocto, and Linux.

In Maker’s Words

Martin Danzer, the Director of Product Management at Congatec puts it as, “Developers of highly integrated IIoT, industrial and embedded vision applications can reach the next technology level very quickly and easily with the new NXP i.MX 8 based SMARC 2.0 modules, because they can immediately integrate a credit card sized off-the-shelf module into their applications with minimum space requirements. The starter kit is a key complement to our comprehensive i.MX 8 ecosystem of products and services. It enables the rapid evaluation of this brand-new processor architecture, which will open up many new application fields for us iin the real-time industrial area as well as in vision-based AI sectors. Thanks to the comprehensive design-in services of our Technical Solution Center that come with the starter kit, it really couldn’t be any easier to start developing SMARC 2.0 based i.MX 8 applications.”