Code & Modules PixieBoard User manual

PixieBoard
UserGuide
REVISION1.1

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

TableofContents 
Disclaimers.............................................................................................................................4
Trademarks............................................................................................................................5
Preface............................................................................................................................6
Introduction...........................................................................................................................6
Documentlayout....................................................................................................................6
Conventionused.....................................................................................................................6
Recommendedreading...........................................................................................................7
RevisionHistory......................................................................................................................7
1. Pixieboardataglance...........................................................................................8
1.1. Overview....................................................................................................................8
1.2. Specifications.............................................................................................................9
1.3. Features...................................................................................................................11
1.3.1. Operatingsystem.................................................................................................11
1.3.2. Graphics...............................................................................................................12
1.3.3. Display.................................................................................................................12
1.3.4. Storage..............................................................................................................12
1.3.5. Video...................................................................................................................13
1.3.6. Audio................................................................................................................13
1.3.7. USB...................................................................................................................13
1.3.8.I/O.......................................................................................................................13
1.3.9. WiredNetworking...............................................................................................13
1.3.10. WirelessNetworking............................................................................................13
1.3.10.1. WiFi.....................................................................................................................................13
1.3.10.2. Bluetooth®..........................................................................................................................14
1.3.10.3. MobilebroadbandLTEorUMTS/HSPA+3GModule............................................................14
1.3.11. Sensors................................................................................................................15
1.3.12. ThermalManagement.........................................................................................15
1.3.13. Debug...............................................................................................................15
1.3.14. Expansionport..................................................................................................16
1.4.Contents................................................................................................................18
2. Mechanicaldrawings............................................................................................19
3. WWsalesandServiceSupport...............................................................................19
4. Certifications.........................................................................................................20

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4.1. UnitedStatesFCC.....................................................................................................20
4.2. FCCExposurewarningstatements...........................................................................20

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
Disclaimers

Warranty and liability
Information in this document is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, Code & Modules
Incorporated (“Code & Modules”) does not give any representations or warranties, expressed or
implied, as to the accuracy or completeness of such information and shall have no liability for the
consequences of use of such information. In no event shall Code & Modules be liable for any
indirect, incidental, punitive, special or consequential damages (including without limitation, lost
profits, lost savings, business interruption, costs related to the removal or replacement of any
products or rework changes) whether or not such damages are based on tort (including
negligence), warranty, breach of contract or any other legal theory.
Right to make changes
Code & Modules reserves the right to make changes to information published in this document,
including without limitation, specifications and product descriptions, at any time and without
notice. This document supersedes and replaces all information supplied prior to the publication
hereof.
Suitability for use
Code & Modules products described herein are not designed, authorized or warranted to be
suitable for use in life support, life-critical or safety-critical systems or equipment, nor in
applications where failure or malfunction of a Code & Modules product can reasonably be
expected to result in personal injury, death or severe property or environmental damage. Should
Buyer purchase or use Code & Modules product described herein for any such unintended or
unauthorized application, Buyer shall indemnify Code & Modules and its officers, employees,
subsidiaries, affiliates, and distributors harmless against all claims, costs, damages, and expenses,
and reasonable attorney fees arising out of, directly or indirectly, any claim of personal injury or
death associated with such unintended or unauthorized use, even if such claims alleges that Code
& Modules was negligent regarding the design or manufacture of the part.
Applications
Customers are responsible for the design and operation of their applications and products using
Code & Modules products, and Code & Modules accepts no liability for any assistance with
applications or customer product design. It is customer’s sole responsibility to determine whether
the Code & Modules product is suitable and fit for the customer’s applications and products
planned, as well as for the planned application and use of customer’s third party customer(s).
Customers should provide appropriate design and operating safeguards to minimize the risks
associated with their applications and products.
Code & Modules does not accept any liability related to any default, damage, costs or problem
which is based on any weakness or default in the third-party customer(s). Customer is responsible
for doing all necessary testing for the customer’s applications and products using Code & Modules
products in order to avoid a default of the applications and the products or of the application or
use by customer’s third party customer(s). Code & Modules does not accept any liability in this
respect.
Typical values
“Typical” parameters that may be provided in Code & Modules data sheets and/or specifications
can and do vary in different applications and actual performance may vary over time. All operating
parameters, including “Typicals”, must be validated for each customer application by customer’s

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technical experts.
No offer to license
Nothing in this document, including the software, may be interpreted as a conveyance or
implication of any license under any copyrights, patents or other industrial or intellectual property
rights.
Export control
This document aswell asthe item(s)describedherein may besubjectto exportcontrolregulations.
Export might require a prior authorization from competent authorities.
Trademarks
Code & Modules and Pixieboard name and logo are trademarks of Code & Modules Inc. Reg.
U.S. Pat. & Tm. Off. All other product or service names are the property of their respective owners.
© 2017 Code & Modules, Inc.

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Preface
Introduction

This chaptercontains general information that will be useful to know before usingPixieboard. The
topics discussed in this section include:
‐Document layout
‐Conventions used in this guide
‐Additional recommended reading
‐ Revision history
Documentlayout

This document describes Pixieboard product family and its main components and interfaces.
The document is organized as follows:
Conventionused

Table 1. Convention used along the document.

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Recommendedreading
NXP® i.MX6 Fact Sheet (http://www.nxp.com/assets/documents/data/en/fact‐sheets/IMX6SRSFS.pdf)
NXP® i.MX6 DualPlus/QuadPlus Datasheet (http://www.nxp.com/assets/documents/data/en/data‐
sheets/IMX6DQPIEC.pdf)
NXP® i.MX6 Dual/Quad Datasheet (http://www.nxp.com/assets/documents/data/en/data‐
sheets/IMX6DQCEC.pdf)
NXP® i.MX6 Solo/DualLite Datasheet (http://www.nxp.com/assets/documents/data/en/data‐
sheets/IMX6SDLIEC.pdf)
RevisionHistory

Revision 1.1 (September 2017)
Revision 1.0 (April 2017)
Initial release of this document (5/1/2017)

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1. Pixieboardataglance
1.1. Overview
Pixieboard is a single-board computer based on the NXP® i.MX6 application processors, which
provide a great balance between power and performance. Its wide feature set accelerates product
design for a broad range of applications, including those with the most demanding requirements,
such as graphics, wireless connectivity, high performance, and thermally constrained applications,
all delivered into a form factor small enough to hold in your palm. It is available in four variants
that easily adapt to different needs: Pixieboard Pro+, Pixieboard Pro, Pixieboard Duo, and
Pixieboard Core.
Pixieboard Pro+ is ideal for graphic demanding applications that need higher mobile broadband
than 3G.
Figure 1.Main components.
Figure 2. Dimensions

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1.2. Specifications
There are four versions of Pixieboard.
Table 2. Specifications for Pixieboard Core, Pixieboard Duo, Pixieboard Pro, and Pixieboard Pro+

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Figure 3. Block diagram PixieBoard CORE
Figure 3. Block diagram PixieBoard DUO

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Figure 3. Block diagram PixieBoard PRO
Figure 3. Block diagram PixieBoard PRO+
1.3. Features
Pixieboard’s main features are listed below by category.
1.3.1. Operatingsystem
A custom Linux image is used to providehardware abstraction and device driver management.

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Available hardware:
Primary SD Card Port.
1.3.2. Graphics
The module provides three independent, integrated graphics processing units, depending on the
processor included:
Table 3. Graphic processing units.
1.3.3. Display
The module generates the signals required to drive compatible display devices and render
application visual output. The available resolutions and delivered frame rates depend on the
connected display panel and OS configuration.
Available hardware:
The board includes a micro HDMIconnector that provides audio and video driven by the
processor.
 LCD LVDS supported via the expansion port connector.
1.3.4. Storage
The performance will be affected by the mass storage system used and any parallel tasks running
at the time.
Available hardware:

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Micro SD Card Port (with a bus of up to 104 MB/s)
USB can host common storage devices.
SATA-II1 (up to 3 Gb/s) can be used to connect a Hard Disk Drive. It is available via the
expansion port connector
1.3.5. Video
Pixieboard provides encoding anddecoding functions for many common formats, including h.264
and numerous MPEG / JPEG derivatives.
1.3.6. Audio2
Digital audio is available via the mini TOSLINK® optical port.
Analog audio is available through the 3.5 mm line out.
1.3.7. USB
Pixieboard provides the following hardware for USB connections with current demand of up to
500 mA:
2 Type-A Host USB 2.0
1 microUSBOTG 2.0
 1 USB 2.0 HS is available via the expansion port connector.
1.3.8. I/O
I2C – Two ports are available via the expansion port connector.
GPIO – Available via the expansion port, unused interface pins can be reconfigured to be
GPIO.
UART – Two ports are available via the expansion port connector.
SDIO – One serial data interface is available via the expansion port connector.
CSI – One Camera Serial Interface is available via the expansion port connector.
DSI – One Display Serial Interface is available via the expansion port connector.
SPI – One port is available via the expansion port connector.
1.3.9. WiredNetworking
CAN – One port is available via the expansion port connector.
 GbE – One Gigabit Ethernet interface is exposed in the expansion port connector.
1.3.10. WirelessNetworking
1.3.10.1. WiFi
Pixieboard offers 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac @ 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 2x2MIMO.
Available Hardware:
WiFi module is embedded within Pixieboard and connected over PCIe. The PCIe interface
complies with PCIe specification Gen2 x1 lane and supports the PCI Express 1.1/2.0
standard.
1
SATA-II is only available for Pixieboard Pro and Pixieboard Pro+.
2
Available only for Pixieboard Pro and Pixieboard Pro+.

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4 Available for Pixieboard Pro and Pixieboard Duo.
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WiFi/BT Antenna U.FL Connector (main)
WiFi/BT Antenna U.FL Connector (MIMO)
Output power:
WLAN G band:
11b: 15dBm ± 2dBm
11g: 13dBm ± 2dBm
11n HT20: 12dBm ± 2dBm
11n HT40 11dBm ± 2dBm
WLAN A band:
11a: 11dBm ± 2dBm
11n HT20: 11 dBm ± 2dBm
11n HT40: 9 dBm ± 2dBm
11ac VHT_20: 11dBm ± 2dBm
11ac VHT_40: 9dBm ± 2dBm
11ac VHT_80: 8dBm ± 2dBm
1.3.10.2. Bluetooth® 
Pixieboard offers Bluetooth Low Energy 4.2
Available Hardware:
Bluetooth module is embedded within Pixieboard and connected over PCIe. The PCIe
interface complies with PCIe specification Gen2 x1 lane and supports the PCI Express
1.1/2.0 standard.
WiFi/BT Antenna Connector (main). See previous section “WiFi”.
1.3.10.3. MobilebroadbandLTE3orUMTS/HSPA+3GModule4
Available Hardware:
Mobile broadband module is embedded within Pixieboard.
One Nano SIM card slot is available.
3G Antenna U.FL connector (RX Diversity).
 3G Antenna U.FL connector (Main)

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Figure 4. Nano SIM card installation.
Worldwide LTE, UMTS/HSPA+ and GSM/GPRS/EDGE coverage, according to the
module included.
LTE FDD B2, B4, B12; WCDMA: B2, B4, B5
 UMTS: 800/850/900/1900/2100MHz; GSM: 850/900/1800/1900MHz
1.3.11. Sensors
Several interfaces are available to support sensors and accessory device connections in either slave
or master mode.
Available Hardware:
One 9-axis IMU5 (magnetometer, gyro, and accelerometer)
GPS/GLONASS6 embedded in Mobile broadband module.
 GPS Antenna U.FL connector7.
1.3.12. ThermalManagement
The BSP includes a temperature sensor module which software can use to monitor the on-die
temperature of the processor and take appropriate actions, such as throttling back the core
frequency when a specified threshold is reached.
1.3.13. Debug
System debug available via USB-UART cable or OTG serial interface.
5 Available only for Pixieboard Pro and Pixieboard Pro+.
6 Available for Pixieboard Pro+, Pixieboard Pro and Pixieboard Duo.

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Figure 5. Debug connector schematic diagram.
1.3.14. Expansionport

Via the Expansion port, Pixieboard exposes the following interfaces:
USB 2.0 HS
 CAN
SDIO
SPI
PCIe (used by the WiFi module)
UART
I2C
GPIO
GbE
MIPI
RGB666
 SATA8
The pinout is described in the following diagrams:

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Figure 6. Expansion Port A Pinout.

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Figure 7. Expansion Port B Pinout.
1.4. Contents

Pixieboard

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2. Mechanicaldrawings

Figure 8. Pixieboard mechanical drawings. Units: mm (in)
3. WWsalesandServiceSupport
WW Sales:
Tel: [phone]
Technical support:
codeandmodules.com/support

Web address:
codeandmodules.com

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
4. Certifications

4.1. UnitedStatesFCC
The PixieBoard complies with Part 15 of the FCC rules and regulations. Compliance with the
labeling requirements, FCC notices and antenna usageguidelines is required. To fulfill FCC
Certification, the OEM must comply with the following regulations:
The system integrator must ensure that the text on top side of the module is placed on the outside
of the final product.
PixieBoard platform may only be used with antennas approved. See FCC-approved antennas.
NOTE: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital
device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable
protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates,
uses and can radiate radio frequencyenergy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the
instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause
harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the
equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of
the following measures:
‐Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
‐Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
‐Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the
receiver is connected.
‐Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
The FCC requires the user to be notified that any changes or modifications made to this device
that are not expressly approved by Code & Modules Inc. may void the user’s authority to operate
the equipment.
FCCExposurewarningstatements:
This equipment complies with FCC radiation exposure limits set forth for an uncontrolled
environment. End users must followthe specific operating instructions for satisfying RF exposure
compliance. This transmitter must be at least 20 cm from the user and must not be co‐located or
operating in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter.
The information in this guide may change without notice. The manufacturer assumes no
responsibility for any errors that may appear in this guide.