Digi ConnectCore 6 Quick user guide

ConnectCore® for i.MX6
Hardware Reference Manual

Revision history—90001394
Revision Date Description
N January 2019 Added backdrive caution.
P May 2019 Added NVCC-MIPI supply range, updated I/O supply
operating range values.
R October 2019 Added vapor-phase caution and ten-zone reflow oven
bullet item, added signal usage limitations by variant and
ALT multiplexing signals.
S May 2020 Added operating temperature statement.
T August 2020 Revised MCA pinout comments, added MCA functionality
note.
Trademarks and copyright
Digi, Digi International, and the Digi logo are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United
States and other countries worldwide. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the
property of their respective owners.
© 2020 Digi International Inc. All rights reserved.
Disclaimers
Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a
commitment on the part of Digi International. Digi provides this document “as is,” without warranty of
any kind, expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of fitness or
merchantability for a particular purpose. Digi may make improvements and/or changes in this manual
or in the product(s) and/or the program(s) described in this manual at any time.
Warranty
To view product warranty information, go to the following website:
www.digi.com/howtobuy/terms
Customer support
Gather support information: Before contacting Digi technical support for help, gather the following
information:
Product name and model
Product serial number (s)
Firmware version
Operating system/browser (if applicable)
Logs (from time of reported issue)
Trace (if possible)
Description of issue
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 2

Steps to reproduce
Contact Digi technical support: Digi offers multiple technical support plans and service packages.
Contact us at +1 952.912.3444 or visit us at www.digi.com/support.
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ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 3

Contents
About the ConnectCore 6
Features and functionality 7
Block diagram 8
Power supply architecture 9
Bootstrap 12
Wireless interfaces 13
WLAN standard 14
Data rates 14
Antenna ports 15
Modulation 17
Security/Interoperability 17
Frequency bands 18
5 GHz HT20 and HT40 channel available 19
Receive sensitivity 20
Transmit power 20
Bluetooth 20
Module variants 20
MCA hardware 21
Supported devices 21
MCA pinout 22
Shared I2C bus 31
Shared SPI bus 32
Modules without eMMC flash 33
Module pinout 34
Signal usage limitations 87
Specifications for the ConnectCore 6
Electrical characteristics 90
Voltage supplies 90
Power consumption 90
Power consumption use cases 90
Global power consumption 91
Mechanical specifications 91
Host PCB footprint 94
Environmental specifications 94
Linux - Android users 95
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 4

ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 5
Assembly instructions
Moisture sensitivity and shelf life 97
Mounting 97
Coplanarity 97
Solder paste print 97
Stencil 97
SMT pick and place 98
SMT process parameter reference 98
Reflow profile 98
Regulatory information and certifications
Maximum power and frequency specifications 101
United States FCC 101
Labeling requirements 101
For WiFi/Bluetooth variant 101
For WiFi only variant 101
FCC notices 102
FCC-approved antennas 102
RF exposure 103
Canada (IC) 104
Labeling requirements 104
Transmitters with detachable antennas 104
Europe ETSI 105
OEM labeling requirements 106
CE labeling requirements 106
Declarations of Conformity 106
Approved antennas 106
Bluetooth SIG-qualified hardware and firmware 106
Japan 108

About the ConnectCore 6
The ConnectCore 6 is an ultra-compact and integrated system-on-module solution based on the NXP
i.MX6 Cortex-A9 processor family.
With processor speeds up to 1.2 GHz and fully interchangeable single-/dual-/quad-core variants, the
ConnectCore 6 offers a truly future-proof platform solution with scalable performance and pre-
certified wireless 802.11a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, including Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity.
Cloud Connector integration, as part of the Digi Linux and Android software platform support, offers
secure remote management and web services capabilities through Digi Remote Manager. Digi also
offers custom Remote Manager hardware and wireless design services as well as end-to-end
solutions for cloud integration and app development.
Features and functionality 7
Block diagram 8
Power supply architecture 9
Bootstrap 12
Wireless interfaces 13
Module variants 20
MCA hardware 21
Modules without eMMC flash 33
Module pinout 34
Signal usage limitations 87
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 6

About the ConnectCore 6 Features and functionality
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 7
Note To serve our customers most effectively, Digi International Inc. is consolidating its cloud
services, Digi Device Cloud and Digi Remote Manager®, under the Remote Manager name. This phased
process does not affect device functionality or the functionality of the web services and other
features. However, you will find instances of both Device Cloud and Digi Remote Manager in some
documentation, firmware, and user interfaces.
Features and functionality
The ConnectCore 6 module is based on the i.MX6 processor from NXP. This processor offers a high
number of interfaces. Most of these interfaces are multiplexed and are not available simultaneously.
The module has the following features:
ni.MX6 duallite/dual/quad ARM Cortex-A9 cores operating at speeds up to 1.2 GHz
l32 Kbytes L1 instruction cache
l32 Kbytes L1 data cache
lUp to 1 MB unified instruction/data L2 cache
lNEON MPE (Media Processing Engine) co-processor
nGraphical hardware accelerators:
lIPU (Image Processing Unit)
lOptional VPU (Video Processing Unit)
lOptional 2D/3D GPU (Graphics Processing Unit)
n64-bit DDR3-1066 memory interface with a density up to 2 GBytes
n8-bit eMMC support
nDialog DA9063 power management IC (PMIC)
l6x DC/DC buck converters
l11x LDO regulators
lRTC with rechargeable coin cell battery support
l10-bit ADC channels
lGPIO pins
nOptional IEEE802.11a/b/g/n WLAN interface with spatial diversity support
lSoftAP (Software Access Point) support
nOptional Bluetooth 4.0 dual mode
nOptional Cortex-M0+/Cortex-M4 MCA (Microcontroller Assist) subsystem
nDebug interfaces:
lStandard JTAG controller IEEE 1149.1
lETM/ETB support
nSupport of i.MX6 typical interfaces:
l16/32-bit data/address bus
lSATA II, 3.0 Gbps (24-bit parallel bus, LVDS, HDMI, MIPI/DSI)
lDisplay support
oHDMI
o24-bit parallel bus

About the ConnectCore 6 Block diagram
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 8
oDual LVDS
oMIPI/DSI
l2x camera (20-bit parallel bus, MIPI/CSI)
lMMC/SD/SDIO
l1x USB OTG with integrated PHY
l3x USB Host
lPCI Express Gen 2.0 lane
l10/100/1000 M Ethernet MAC
lUART, SPI, I2C, PWM, CAN, I2S and GPIO
nUltra-miniature SMT module (50x50mmx5mm) based on 400-LGA pads
nSecurity accelerators:
lARMTrustZone
lCAAM (Cryptographic Acceleration and Assurance Module)
lSNVS (Secure Non-volatile Storage)
lCSU (Central Security Unit)
lA-HABv4 (Advanced High-assurance Boot)
Block diagram
The figure below shows the block diagram of the NXP i.MX6 application processor.
Not all functions are available on all processor variants.

About the ConnectCore 6 Power supply architecture
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 9
Power supply architecture
The ConnectCore 6 provides a primary 5 V power supply input. This supply is the main power domain
to the on-module Dialog DA9063 power management IC (PMIC), which generates all required supply
voltages for the module components as well as the carrier board.

About the ConnectCore 6 Power supply architecture
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 10
The module provides support for a backup battery (coin-cell or super cap) powering the real-time
clock (RTC) on the module. In addition, rechargeable backup batteries (ML414, others) are also
supported.
The PMIC generates the following power domains that are available on the module pads:
n3.3 V (VGEN_3V3)
nMoreover, 5x PMIC LDO outputs are also available on the module pads:
lVLDO3
lVLDO4
lVLDO6
lVLDO7
lVLDO8
Power
domain
Regulator
type
Output
accuracy
Maximum
current
Dropout
voltage
(MAX)
Turn on
time
(MAX)
Turn
off
time
(MAX)
Quiescent
current in
OFF mode
(TYP)
3.3 V DC/DC +/-3% 1500 mA - 1 µA 1.2 ms -
Note The maximum current consumption mentioned in the previous table is a combination of the
current consumed by the module (max 500 mA) and by the carrier board for external use (1000 mA).
The table below provides the characteristics of the optional LDO outputs:
Primary
5V
power
supply
input
Input
voltage
Output
voltage
Output
accurac
y
Default
voltage
Maximu
m
current
Drop
output
voltage
(MAX)
Quiescen
t current
in OFF
mode
(TYP)
Turn
on
time
(MAX)
Turn
off
time
(MAX)
VLDO2 +5VDC 0.6-
1.86V
+/-3% 1.8 V 200 mA 150 mV 1 µA 150 µs 1 ms
VLDO3 +5VDC 0.9-
3.44V
+/-3% 3.3 V 200 mA 150 mV 1 µA 300 µs 1 ms
VLDO4 +5VDC 0.9-
3.44V
+/-3% 3.3 V 200 mA 150 mV 1 µA 300 µs 1 ms
VLDO6 +5VDC 0.9-
3.6V
+/-3% 3.3 V 200 mA 150 mV 1 µA 200 µs 1 ms
VLDO8 +5VDC 0.9-
3.6V
+/-3% 3.3 V 200 mA 150 mV 1 µA 300 µs 1 ms
Note For information about using the LDO options, please contact Digi. VLDO3 is used for supplying
MCA processor on the module.
The power management IC located on the module is responsible for generating all required i.MX6
processor supply voltages. The following i.MX6x supplies are available on the module pads:

About the ConnectCore 6 Power supply architecture
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 11
Some of the I/O supplies are set on the module. See the following table:
Power domain Connection
NVCC_GPIO VGEN_3V3
NVCC_JTAG VGEN_3V3
NVCC_NANDF VGEN_3V3
NVCC_SD1 VGEN_3V3
NVCC_SD2 VGEN_3V3
NVCC_SD3 VGEN_3V3
PCIE_VPH 2.5V (VDDHIGH_CAP_2V5)
The remaining I/O voltages must be set externally and are left open on the ConnectCore 6 module.
See the following table for operating ranges of the remaining I/O supplies.
Power domain Min Typical Max
NVCC_ENET 1.8 V 2.5 V 3.3 V
NVCC_EIM 1.8 V 2.5 V 3.3 V
NVCC_LCD 1.8 V 2.5 V 3.3 V
NVCC_CSI 1.8 V 2.5 V 3.3 V
NVCC_MIPI 2.25 V 2.5 V 3.3 V
NVCC_RGMII in HSIC 1.2 V mode 1.15 V - 1.30 V
NVCC_RGMII in RGMII 1.5 V mode 1.43 V - 1.58 V
NVCC_RGMII in RGMII 1.8 V mode 1.70 V - 1.90 V
NVCC_RGMII in RGMII 2.5 V mode 2.25 V - 2.625 V
As shown in the table above, the supplies have a wide operating range. In order to provide the most
cost-effective and flexible solution for a given use-case, the supplies listed in the table need to be
provided by the carrier board integrating the ConnectCore 6 module. However, PMIC power domains
3.3 V—and LDO3/4/6/7/8 options—are dedicated power sources for supplying i.MX6 power domains.
The MCU-assist-specific power domain (LDO3_MCA) available on the ConnectCore 6 LGA pads is a
power supply output that powers the on-module Kinetis processor.

About the ConnectCore 6 Bootstrap
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 12
The following diagram outlines the ConnectCore 6 power supply. Inputs are marked red; blue marks
are outputs.
Bootstrap
The ConnectCore 6 is configured by default to boot in “Internal boot” mode. See the following table:

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 13
BOOT_MODE [1:0] Boot type
00 Boot from fuses
01 Serial downloader
10 Internal boot (default)
11 Reserved
Note 10K pull-up populated on BOOT_MODE1
10K pull-down populated on BOOT_MODE0
By default, the boot media configured on the ConnectCore 6 module is the on-module eMMC. This is
achieved by having the following resistors populated on the module:
n10K pull-down on EIM_DA4 (BOOT_CFG1[4])
n10K pull-up on EIM_DA5 (BOOT_CFG1[5])
n10K pull-up on EIM_DA6 (BOOT_CFG1[6])
n10K pull-down on EIM_DA7 (BOOT_CFG1[7]
n10K pull-up on EIM_DA11 (BOOT_CFG2[3])
n10K pull-up on EIM_DA12 (BOOT_CFG2[4])
When selecting “Internal Boot”, bootstrap pins shall be protected to insure a proper boot process.
“Internal Boot” has the benefit that multiple boot media can be supported. For mass production, Digi
recommends to use “Boot from fuses” for more security.
For booting from the on-module eMMC, following resistors must be populated on the carrier board:
ConnectCore 6 signal (pad) Boot configuration Resistor Comment
EIM_DA13 (V20) BOOT_CFG2[5] 1K pull-up to
NVCC_EIM
Selecting 4-bit bus
width
EIM_DA14 (W21) BOOT_CFG2[6] 1K pull-down Selecting 4-bit bus
width
Make sure that the following signals are not pulled high during boot:
nEIM_EB3 (pad AA18)
nEIM_A18 (pad AB15)
nEIM_A20 (pad AB16)
nEIM_A21 (pad AC16)
Pulling these lines up during booting will prevent the system from booting.
Wireless interfaces
The ConnectCore 6 system-on-module combines a wireless local area network (WLAN) and Bluetooth
dual solution to support IEEE802.11 a/b/g/n WLAN standards and Bluetooth 4.0, enabling integration

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 14
of WLAN/Bluetooth and Low Energy technology.
Digi also offers a non-wireless variant of i.MX6 module.
The following sections include specifications for the wireless interfaces available on the i.MX6 module.
WLAN standard
nIEEE 802.11a/b/g/n standards
nHT20, and HT40 IEEE 802.11n
Data rates
n802.11b: 1, 2, 5.5, 11 Mbps
n802.11a/g: 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 35, 48, 54 Mbps
n802.11n HT20 FGI: 6.5, 13, 19.5, 26, 39, 52, 58.5, 65 Mbps
n802.11n HT20 HGI: 7.2, 14.4, 21.7, 29.9, 43.3, 57.8, 65, 72.2 Mbps
n802.11n HT40 FGI (5GHz only): 13.5, 27, 40.5, 54, 81, 108, 121.5, 135 Mbps
n802.11n HT40 HGI (5GHz only): 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 135, 150 Mbps

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 15
Antenna ports
ConnectCore 6 module variants supporting both Bluetooth and WLAN are populated with one single
antenna port covering both 2.4 and 5 GHz frequencies.
Module variants supporting only WLAN provide additionally antenna diversity feature. Two antenna
ports supporting the same transmit and receive signals are populated on the product. The software
running on the ConnectCore 6 SOM switches from one antenna port to the other depending on the
RSSI (Receive Signal Strength Indication) of the received beacon, which guarantees that the antenna
with the best signal is always used and thus improve the quality and reliability of the wireless link. The
interval between comparisons of RSSI values on the two antennas is by default 10 seconds, but can be
configured in software. Furthermore, when the RSSI measured is too low, the software will
automatically switch to the other antenna regardless of the 10 second interval. Hence, antenna
diversity is an option and it is absolutely safe to mount only one antenna in the system, connected for
instance to the primary antenna port.
The following image shows the location of the primary antenna.

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 16
Note Modules with Bluetooth capabilities will not support spatial diversity.

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 17
Modulation
Mode
Data
rate Modulation Mode
Data
rate Modulation Mode
Data
rate Modulation
802.11b 1 DBPSK 802.11g 6 BPSK 802.11a 6 BPSK
2 DQPSK 9 BPSK 9 BPSK
5.5 CCK 12 QPSK 12 QPSK
11 CCK 18 QPSK 18 QSPK
24 16-QAM 24 16-QAM
35 16-QAM 35 16-QAM
48 64-QAM 48 64-QAM
54 64-QAM 54 64-QAM
Mode MCS Modulation Data rate
802.11n HT20 (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) HT40 (5 GHz only)
FGI HGI FGI HGI
MCS0 BPSK 6.5 7.2 13.5 15
MCS1 QPSK 13 14.4 27 30
MCS2 QPSK 19.5 21.7 40.5 45
MCS3 16-QAM 26 29.9 54 60
MCS4 16-QAM 39 43.3 81 90
MCS5 64-QAM 52 57.8 108 120
MCS6 64-QAM 58.5 65 121.5 135
MCS7 64-QAM 65 72.2 135 150
Security/Interoperability
nWPA-PSK
nWPA-Enterprise
nWPA2-Personal
nWPA2-Enterprise
nWi-Fi Direct
nSoft AP

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 18
nWAPI (optional, China)
nCisco CCXv4 ASD certification ready (optional)
nWi-Fi Alliance Logo certification ready
The listed capabilities are dependent on software platform in use. Refer to the corresponding
software platform documentation for additional information.
Contact Digi if your end product requires a Wi-Fi Alliance Logo and/or Cisco CCX certification.
Frequency bands
US, Canada
n2.412 to 2.462 GHz; 11 channels
n5.180 to 5.320 GHz; 8 channels
n5.500 to 5.700 GHz, 8 channels (excludes 5.600 to 5.650 GHz)
n5.745 to 5.825 GHz; 5 channels
Europe
n2.412 to 2.472 GHz; 13 channels
n5.180 to 5.320 GHz; 8 channels
n5.500 to 5.700 GHz, 8 channels (excludes 5.600 to 5.640 GHz)
Australia, New Zealand
n2.412 to 2.462 GHz; 11 channels
n5.180 to 5.320 GHz; 8 channels
n5.745 to 5.825 GHz; 5 channels
Japan
n2.412 to 2.472 GHz; 13 channels
n5.180 to 5.320 GHz; 8 channels
n5.500 to 5.700 GHz; 11 channels
Ad-hoc mode channels
n2.4 GHz Band - Channels 10 and 11
n5 GHz Band US, Australia, New Zealand - Channels 36, 40, 44, 45, 149, 157, 161, and 165
Channels 36, 40, 44, and 45 are for indoor use only
n5 GHz Band Europe and Japan - per 802.11d

About the ConnectCore 6 Wireless interfaces
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 19
5 GHz HT20 and HT40 channel available
Channel number Frequency (MHz) Mode Secondary channel allowed
36 5180 HT40 PLUS
38 5190 HT20
40 5200 HT40 MINUS
44 5220 HT40 PLUS
46 5230 HT20
48 5240 HT40 MINUS
52 5260 HT40 PLUS
54 5270 HT20
56 5280 HT40 MINUS
60 5300 HT40 PLUS
62 5310 HT20
64 5320 HT40 MINUS
100 5500 HT40 PLUS
102 5510 HT20
104 5520 HT40 MINUS
108 5540 HT40 PLUS
110 5550 HT20
112 5560 HT40 MINUS
116 5580 HT40 PLUS
118 5590 HT20
120 5600 HT40 MINUS
124 5620 HT40 PLUS
126 5630 HT20
128 5640 HT40 MINUS
132 5660 HT40 PLUS
134 5670 HT20
136 5680 HT40 MINUS
140 5700 HT20

About the ConnectCore 6 Module variants
ConnectCore® for i.MX6 Hardware Reference Manual 20
Channel number Frequency (MHz) Mode Secondary channel allowed
159 5745 HT40 PLUS
151 5755 HT20
153 5765 HT40 MINUS
157 5785 HT40 PLUS
159 5795 HT20
161 5805 HT40 MINUS
165 5825 HT20
Receive sensitivity
Network type Sensitivity
802.11b -88 dBm
802.11g -88 dBm
802.11n (2.4 GHz) -89 dBm
802.11a -90 dBm
802.11n (5 GHz, HT20) -90 dBm
802.11n (5 GHz, HT40) -86 dBm
Transmit power
Network type Transmit power
802.11b 10.5 dBm
802.11g/n 11 dBm
802.11a/n 13 dBm
Bluetooth
nBluetooth 4.0
nBluetooth 3.0 + HS (BT3.0 + HS)
nClass 1.5 Bluetooth with integrated TX/RX switch
Module variants
The ConnectCore 6 module supports population options such as network interface (Wi-Fi), memory
(flash, RAM), MCU-assist, processor (single, dual and quad-cores), and others.
See the ConnectCore 6 product page for information on available variants.