Kontron SMARC-sAL28 User manual

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USER GUIDE
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SMARC-sAL28
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
SMARC
-SAL28 – USER GUIDE
Disclaimer
Kontron would like to point out that the information contained in this manual may be subject to alteration,
particularly as a result of the constant upgrading of Kontron products. This document does not entail any guarantee
on the part of Kontron with respect to technical processes described in the manual or any product characteristics
set out in the manual. Kontron assumes no responsibility or liability for the use of the described product(s), conveys
no license or title under any patent, copyright or mask work rights to these products and makes no representations
or warranties that these products are free from patent, copyright or mask work right infringement unless otherwise
specified. Applications that are described in this manual are for illustration purposes only. Kontron makes no
representation or warranty that such application will be suitable for the specified use without further testing or
modification. Kontron expressly informs the user that this manual only contains a general description of processes
and instructions which may not be applicable in every individual case. In cases of doubt, please contact Kontron.
This manual is protected by copyright. All rights are reserved by Kontron. No part of this document may be
reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language or computer
language, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the
express written permission of Kontron. Kontron points out that the information contained in this manual is
constantly being updated in line with the technical alterations and improvements made by Kontron to the products
and thus this manual only reflects the technical status of the products by Kontron at the time of publishing.
Brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
©2020 by Kontron S&T AG
Kontron S&T AG
Lise-Meitner-Str. 3-5
86156 Augsburg
Germany
www.kontron.com

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Revision History
Revision Brief Description of Changes Date of Issue Author
1.0 Initial Issue 2020-January-20 hjs
Intended Use
THIS DEVICE AND ASSOCIATED SOFTWARE ARE NOT DESIGNED, MANUFACTURED OR INTENDED FOR USE OR RESALE
FOR THE OPERATION OF NUCLEAR FACILITIES, THE NAVIGATION, CONTROL OR COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS FOR
AIRCRAFT OR OTHER TRANSPORTATION, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL, LIFE SUPPORT OR LIFE SUSTAINING APPLICATIONS,
WEAPONS SYSTEMS, OR ANY OTHER APPLICATION IN A HAZARDOUS ENVIRONMENT, OR REQUIRING FAIL-SAFE
PERFORMANCE, OR IN WHICH THE FAILURE OF PRODUCTS COULD LEAD DIRECTLY TO DEATH, PERSONAL INJURY, OR
SEVERE PHYSICAL OR ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE (COLLECTIVELY, "HIGH RISK APPLICATIONS").
You understand and agree that your use of Kontron devices as a component in High Risk Applications is entirely at
your risk. To minimize the risks associated with your products and applications, you should provide adequate design
and operating safeguards. You are solely responsible for compliance with all legal, regulatory, safety, and security
related requirements concerning your products. You are responsible to ensure that your systems (and any Kontron
hardware or software components incorporated in your systems) meet all applicable requirements. Unless
otherwise stated in the product documentation, the Kontron device is not provided with error-tolerance capabilities
and cannot therefore be deemed as being engineered, manufactured or setup to be compliant for implementation or
for resale as device in High Risk Applications. All application and safety related information in this document
(including application descriptions, suggested safety measures, suggested Kontron products, and other materials) is
provided for reference only.
Handling and operation of the product is permitted only for trained personnel within a work
place that is access controlled. Please follow the “General Safety Instructions for IT
Equipment” supplied with the system.

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Customer Support
Find Kontron contacts by visiting: http://www.kontron.com/support.
Customer Service
As a trusted technology innovator and global solutions provider, Kontron extends its embedded market strengths
into a services portfolio allowing companies to break the barriers of traditional product lifecycles. Proven product
expertise coupled with collaborative and highly-experienced support enables Kontron to provide exceptional peace
of mind to build and maintain successful products.
For more details on Kontron’s service offerings such as: enhanced repair services, extended warranty, Kontron
training academy, and more visit http://www.kontron.com/support-and-services/services.
Customer Comments
If you have any difficulties using this user guide, discover an error, or just want to provide some feedback, contact
Kontron support. Detail any errors you find. We will correct the errors or problems as soon as possible and post the
revised user guide on our website.
Terms and Conditions
Kontron warrants products in accordance with defined regional warranty periods. For more information about
warranty compliance and conformity, and the warranty period in your region, visit http://www.kontron.com/terms-
and-conditions.
Kontron sells products worldwide and declares regional General Terms & Conditions of Sale, and Purchase Order
Terms & Conditions. Visit http://www.kontron.com/terms-and-conditions.
For contact information, refer to the corporate offices contact information on the last page of this user guide or visit
our website CONTACT US.

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Symbols
The following symbols may be used in this manual
DANGER indicates a hazardous situation which, if not avoided,
will result in death or serious injury.
WARNING indicates a hazardous situation which, if not avoided,
could result in death or serious injury.
CAUTION indicates a hazardous situation which, if not avoided,
may result in minor or moderate injury.
NOTICE indicates a property damage message.
Electric Shock!
This symbol and title warn of hazards due to electrical shocks (> 60 V) when touching
products or parts of them. Failure to observe the precautions indicated and/or prescribed by
the law may endanger your life/health and/or result in damage to your material.
Please refer also to the "High-Voltage Safety Instructions" portion below in this section.
ESD Sensitive Device!
This symbol and title inform that the electronic boards and their components are sensitive
to static electricity. Care must therefore be taken during all handling operations and
inspections of this product in order to ensure product integrity at all times.
HOT Surface!
Do NOT touch! Allow to cool before servicing.
This symbol indicates general information about the product and the user manual.
This symbol also indicates detail information about the specific product configuration.
This symbol precedes helpful hints and tips for daily use.

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For Your Safety
Your new Kontron product was developed and tested carefully to provide all features necessary to ensure its
compliance with electrical safety requirements. It was also designed for a long fault-free life. However, the life
expectancy of your product can be drastically reduced by improper treatment during unpacking and installation.
Therefore, in the interest of your own safety and of the correct operation of your new Kontron product, you are
requested to conform with the following guidelines.
High Voltage Safety Instructions
As a precaution and in case of danger, the power connector must be easily accessible. The power connector is the
product’s main disconnect device.
Warning
All operations on this product must be carried out by sufficiently skilled personnel only.
Electric Shock!
Before installing a non hot-swappable Kontron product into a system always ensure that
your mains power is switched off. This also applies to the installation of piggybacks. Serious
electrical shock hazards can exist during all installation, repair, and maintenance operations
on this product. Therefore, always unplug the power cable and any other cables which
provide external voltages before performing any work on this product.
Earth ground connection to vehicle’s chassis or a central grounding point shall remain
connected. The earth ground cable shall be the last cable to be disconnected or the first
cable to be connected when performing installation or removal procedures on this product.
Special Handling and Unpacking Instruction
ESD Sensitive Device!
Electronic boards and their components are sensitive to static electricity. Therefore, care
must be taken during all handling operations and inspections of this product, in order to
ensure product integrity at all times.
Do not handle this product out of its protective enclosure while it is not used for operational purposes unless it is
otherwise protected.
Whenever possible, unpack or pack this product only at EOS/ESD safe work stations. Where a safe work station is
not guaranteed, it is important for the user to be electrically discharged before touching the product with his/her
hands or tools. This is most easily done by touching a metal part of your system housing.
It is particularly important to observe standard anti-static precautions when changing piggybacks, ROM devices,
jumper settings etc. If the product contains batteries for RTC or memory backup, ensure that the product is not
placed on conductive surfaces, including anti-static plastics or sponges. They can cause short circuits and damage
the batteries or conductive circuits on the product.

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General Instructions on Usage
In order to maintain Kontron’s product warranty, this product must not be altered or modified in any way. Changes
or modifications to the product, that are not explicitly approved by Kontron and described in this User Guide or
received from Kontron’s Technical Support as a special handling instruction, will void your warranty.
This product should only be installed in or connected to systems that meet all necessary technical and specific
environmental requirements. This also applies to the operational temperature range of the specific board version,
which must not be exceeded. If batteries are present, their temperature restrictions must be taken into account.
In performing all necessary installation and application operations, only follow the instructions supplied by the
present User Guide.
Keep all the original packaging material for future storage or warranty shipments. If it is necessary to store or ship
the product then re-pack it in the same manner as it was delivered.
Special care is necessary when handling or unpacking the product. See Special Handling and Unpacking Instruction.
Environmental Protection Statement
This product has been manufactured to satisfy environmental protection requirements where possible. Many of the
components used (structural parts, printed circuit boards, connectors, batteries, etc.) are capable of being recycled.
Final disposition of this product after its service life must be accomplished in accordance with applicable country,
state, or local laws or regulations.
Environmental protection is a high priority with Kontron.
Kontron follows the WEEE directive
You are encouraged to return our products for proper disposal.
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive aims to:
Reduce waste arising from electrical and electronic equipment (EEE)
Make producers of EEE responsible for the environmental impact of their products, especially when the product
become waste
Encourage separate collection and subsequent treatment, reuse, recovery, recycling and sound environmental
disposal of EEE
Improve the environmental performance of all those involved during the lifecycle of EEE

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Table of Contents
Symbols .................................................................................................................................................................................................................6
Table of Contents ...............................................................................................................................................................................................9
List of Tables......................................................................................................................................................................................................10
List of Figures .....................................................................................................................................................................................................11
1/ Introduction..........................................................................................................................................................................................12
2/ Description............................................................................................................................................................................................13
2.1. SMARC™ Computer-on-Modules........................................................................................................................................................13
2.2. Standard Variants ....................................................................................................................................................................................14
2.3. Network Configuration Options...........................................................................................................................................................15
2.4. SMARC-sAL28 Feature Set....................................................................................................................................................................16
3/ System Specifications.......................................................................................................................................................................17
3.1. Component Main Data.............................................................................................................................................................................17
3.2. Environmental Conditions .....................................................................................................................................................................18
3.3. Functional Block Diagram.....................................................................................................................................................................20
4/ Board and Connectors ......................................................................................................................................................................21
4.1.1. Connectors ...............................................................................................................................................................................................21
4.2. Mainboard view and I/O locations .....................................................................................................................................................21
4.3. Mechanical Drawings ............................................................................................................................................................................23
5/ Pin Definitions.....................................................................................................................................................................................24
5.1. Processor Support ...................................................................................................................................................................................24
5.2. System Memory Support ......................................................................................................................................................................24
5.3. SPI NOR Flash............................................................................................................................................................................................24
5.4. I2C Buses.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 25
5.5. SPI Interfaces ............................................................................................................................................................................................25
5.6. eMMC NAND Flash Memory................................................................................................................................................................. 25
5.7. SD-Card Interface ....................................................................................................................................................................................26
5.8. SerDes Interfaces.................................................................................................................................................................................... 27
5.9. CAN Interfaces..........................................................................................................................................................................................29
5.10. USB Interfaces ........................................................................................................................................................................................29
5.10.1. USB OTG Port........................................................................................................................................................................................29
5.11. UART Interfaces ......................................................................................................................................................................................29
5.12. Ethernet Interfaces ...............................................................................................................................................................................30
5.12.1. GBE0 ........................................................................................................................................................................................................30
5.12.2. GBE1.........................................................................................................................................................................................................30
5.12.3. MDIO .......................................................................................................................................................................................................30
5.12.4. QSGMII....................................................................................................................................................................................................30
5.13. Audio Interfaces ......................................................................................................................................................................................31
5.14. SMARC Connector...................................................................................................................................................................................31
5.15. Pinout of SMARC sAL28 Connector..................................................................................................................................................32
5.15.1. Pinout of SMARC sAL28 Topside Connector ..............................................................................................................................32
5.15.2. Pinout of SMARC sAL28 Bottom Side Connector ..................................................................................................................... 36
5.16. JTAG Debug connector .........................................................................................................................................................................40
6/ Configuration .......................................................................................................................................................................................41
6.1. Boot Mode ...................................................................................................................................................................................................41
6.2. Configurable Watchdog..........................................................................................................................................................................41
6.3. RTC current consumption......................................................................................................................................................................41
6.4. Power Control...........................................................................................................................................................................................42
6.4.1. Power Supply.........................................................................................................................................................................................42

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6.4.2. Power Button (POWER_BTN#) .......................................................................................................................................................42
6.4.3. Power Management Signals............................................................................................................................................................42
6.4.4. Battery Control Signals......................................................................................................................................................................43
7/ Installation and Setup Procedures..............................................................................................................................................44
7.1. Building BSP images (rootfs, kernel, device tree) .........................................................................................................................44
7.2. Deploying created images to SD card or USB flash/disk and booting from it .................................................................... 45
7.3. Booting from NFS server.......................................................................................................................................................................46
7.4. Deploying created images to on-board eMMC and booting from it.......................................................................................46
8/ Implementation Notes.....................................................................................................................................................................48
8.1. GPIO ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................48
8.2. UART ............................................................................................................................................................................................................49
8.3. PCI.................................................................................................................................................................................................................50
8.4. I2C Buses....................................................................................................................................................................................................50
8.5. SPI Buses....................................................................................................................................................................................................50
8.6. Watchdog....................................................................................................................................................................................................51
8.7. CAN................................................................................................................................................................................................................51
8.8. Video Output (DP and LVDS).................................................................................................................................................................51
8.9. Fan Monitoring and Control................................................................................................................................................................. 52
8.10. Thermal Management ......................................................................................................................................................................... 52
8.10.1. Heatspreader and Cooling Solutions ........................................................................................................................................... 52
8.10.2. Operating with Kontron Heatspreader Plate (HSP) Assembly ........................................................................................... 52
8.10.3. Operating without Kontron Heatspreader Plate Assembly................................................................................................. 53
8.11. TSN Switch................................................................................................................................................................................................ 53
9/ Bootloader Operation.......................................................................................................................................................................54
9.1. Copyrights and Licensing of U-Boot ..................................................................................................................................................54
9.2. Bootloader Quickstart............................................................................................................................................................................54
9.3. Bootloader Commands.......................................................................................................................................................................... 55
9.4. Kontron Bootloader Command Extensions.................................................................................................................................... 55
9.4.1. kboardinfo - Kontron Board Information ..................................................................................................................................... 56
9.4.2. Wdt – CPU Watchdog Control.......................................................................................................................................................... 56
9.5. Bootloader Environment.......................................................................................................................................................................56
9.6. Bootloader Environment Update ........................................................................................................................................................57
9.7. Bootloader Mass Storage Support .....................................................................................................................................................57
9.7.1. QSPI flash.................................................................................................................................................................................................58
9.7.2. SD Card and eMMC Devices ..............................................................................................................................................................58
9.7.3. USB Storage Device .............................................................................................................................................................................58
9.8. Bootloader File System Support ........................................................................................................................................................58
9.9. Bootloader Network Support..............................................................................................................................................................58
9.10. Bootloader Boot Counter ....................................................................................................................................................................59
9.11. U-boot Files for the Kontron SMARC sAL28 Module on Github.com .................................................................................... 59
10/ Technical Support .............................................................................................................................................................................60
10.1. Warranty ...................................................................................................................................................................................................60
10.2. Returning Defective Merchandise ...................................................................................................................................................60
List of Acronyms..............................................................................................................................................................................................62
About Kontron ..................................................................................................................................................................................................63
List of Tables
Table 1: Product Numbers of SMARC-sAL28...........................................................................................................................................14
Table 2: Product Variants of SMARC-sAL28............................................................................................................................................15

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Table 3: SMARC-sAL28 Feature Set ...........................................................................................................................................................16
Table 4: Component Main Data ...................................................................................................................................................................17
Table 5: Environmental Conditions.............................................................................................................................................................18
Table 6: Connectors of SMARC-sAL28 ......................................................................................................................................................21
Table 7: Processor Support..........................................................................................................................................................................24
Table 8: DDR3L memory options................................................................................................................................................................24
Table 9: SPI NOR Flash...................................................................................................................................................................................24
Table 10: I2C Buses.......................................................................................................................................................................................... 25
Table 11: SPI Buses .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 25
Table 12: eMMC NAND Flash........................................................................................................................................................................26
Table 13: SD-Card Interface .........................................................................................................................................................................26
Table 14: SerDes Interfaces.......................................................................................................................................................................... 27
Table 15: CAN Interfaces................................................................................................................................................................................29
Table 16: USB Interfaces................................................................................................................................................................................29
Table 17: UART Interfaces .............................................................................................................................................................................29
Table 18: Network variants ..........................................................................................................................................................................30
Table 19: MDIO Interfaces.............................................................................................................................................................................30
Table 20: Audio Interface...............................................................................................................................................................................31
Table 21: Pinout of SMARC sAL28 Topside Connector ........................................................................................................................ 32
Table 22: Pinout of SMARC sAL28 Bottom Side Connector ............................................................................................................... 36
Table 23: JTAG Debug connector................................................................................................................................................................40
Table 24: Boot Options on the carrier board...........................................................................................................................................41
Table 25: Maximum current consumption of RTC.................................................................................................................................41
Table 26: Power Supply Specifications....................................................................................................................................................42
Table 27: GPIO...................................................................................................................................................................................................48
Table 28: Heatspreader Test Temperature Specifications ............................................................................................................... 52
Table 29: Bootloader Command Extensions .......................................................................................................................................... 55
Table 30: Standard Environment Variables.............................................................................................................................................57
List of Figures
Figure 1: Half-size Card with SMARC interface.......................................................................................................................................13
Figure 2: Block Diagram.................................................................................................................................................................................20
Figure 3: Top View............................................................................................................................................................................................21
Figure 4: Bottom View....................................................................................................................................................................................22
Figure 5: Dimensions of SMARC-sAL28 ...................................................................................................................................................23
Figure 6: Thickness from side view ...........................................................................................................................................................23
Figure 7: SerDes Interface Matrix in LS1028A with SMARC PCIe Lanes Connections ............................................................... 27
Figure 8: 314-pin SMARC Connector, .........................................................................................................................................................31

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1/ Introduction
This manual describes the Smart Mobility Architecture (SMARC) sAL28 (NXP LS1028) board. The Advanced RISC
Machines (ARM) based module is equipped with a NXP i.MX7 processor. The dual core SoC take advantage of the
optimized power consumption and performance ratio.
The use of this Users Guide implies a basic knowledge of PC hard- and software. This manual is focussed on
describing the special features and is not intended to be a standard PC textbook. New users are recommended to
study the short installation procedure stated in the following chapter before switching on the power.
All configuration and setup of the CPU board is either done automatically or manually by the user via the BIOS setup
menus.
Latest revision of this manual, datasheet, BIOS, drivers and BSP’s (Board Support Packages) can be downloaded
from Kontron Web Page.

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2/ Description
The SMARC-sAL28 is a SMARC half-size module using the NXPs LS1028 processor with dual core ARM. It is designed
on the latest SMARC 2.0 specification. The SMARC-sAL28 is a highly integrated, embedded computer board
incorporating the edge technology with a dual core SoC from NXP to take advantage of the very optimized power
consumption/performance ratio. Due to the integrated Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) capabilities of the LS1028
and the integrated 4-port Ethernet switch, this board will allow to build very cost effective TSN capable Ethernet
gateways for greenfield and brownfield applications.
Figure 1: Half-size Card with SMARC interface
2.1. SMARC™ Computer-on-Modules
The SMARC™ standard was developed especially for new modules with ARM- and SoC-processors. Boards with this
interfaces are characterized by the extremely flat form factor. The SMARC or MXM 3.0 connector comes with 314
pins and a construction height of just 4.3 millimeters. The connector is also available in a shock- and vibration-
resistant version for rough environmental conditions.
Furthermore, the standard integrates dedicated interfaces for the latest ARM, x86 and SoC processors like LVDS,
24-bit RGB and HDMI support. OEMs profit from minimized design effort and low Bill of Material (BoM) costs.
SMARC™ defines two different module sizes in order to offer a high level of flexibility regarding different
mechanical requirements.
Main characteristics of the SMARC-sAL28 are:
Dual-Core Cortex A-72 on a SMARC short size form factor
Based on LS1028 from NXP – one SKU with configurable Serialiser/Deserialiser SERDES lines (5 W target
TDP)
Up to 4 GB DDR3L non-ECC and ECC memory down, ECC as default, 8 GbE as option
One PCIe line can be used as QSGMII port to drive 4x 1 GB TSN capable Ethernet ports
3D GPU
DP support (default)
LVDS Display support (resistor option)
Alternative eDP (resistor option)
2x Gigabit Ethernet, Wake on LAN (WoL) support, TSN capable
Support for Audio and common features (SPI, I2C, SMB etc.)
Chip integrated security solution support
Full industrial grade temp. range E2 (-40°C up to +85°C) for standard SKUs, commercial version possible
eMMC flash onboard
Optional APPROTECT (security chip) support on request, more information under
https://www.kontron.de/products/solutions/security/approtect.html

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2.2. Standard Variants
Following standard variants are available:
Table 1: Product Numbers of SMARC-sAL28
Product Number Board Description
51011-0208-13-2-2 SMARC-sAL28, LS1028
dual, 2E/8S, NW 2
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1,3 GHz dual core; 2 GB
DDR3L ECC, 8 GB eMMC SLC, Networkconfig 2, 2x PCIe,
audio, DP, industrial temperature
51011-0408-13-2-3 SMARC-sAL28, LS1028
dual, 4E/8S, NW 3
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1,3 GHz dual core; 4 GB
DDR3L ECC, 8 GB eMMC SLC, Networkconfig 3, 2x PCIe,
audio, DP, industrial temperature
51011-0432-13-2-4 SMARC-sAL28, LS1028
dual, 4E/32S, NW 4
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1,3 GHz dual core; 4 GB
DDR3L ECC, 32 GB eMMC SLC, Networkconfig 4, 2x
PCIe, no audio, DP, industrial temperature

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2.3. Network Configuration Options
Table 2: Product Variants of SMARC-sAL28
Variant Description
Network Variant 1
(Single PHY module, optional)
Available on customer request
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1.3 GHz dual core; 2 GB DDR3L ECC,
8GB eMMC SLC, DP, industrial temperature
GBE0 PHY connected to RGMII (L0) to CPU (not TSN capable)
GBE1 not connected on module, GBE1 could be used on custom
carrier to support 2.5 GBE
no audio
"TSN" variant, although GBE0 is not TSN capable, thus the TSN
function needs a TSN carrier.
TSN-on-carrier (board provides the 4 TSN capable ports on
PCIe D by QSGMII lane)
4 lanes available towards the carrier
Possible PCIe options (lane AB/CD), one of
o2x PCIe x1
o1x PCIe x1 + 1x SATA
o1x PCIe x2 + 1x PCIe x1
o2x PCIe x2 (no TSN-On-Carrier)
o1x PCIe x4, with custom carrier, because special lane
order (CDAB instead of ABCD), (no TSN-On-Carrier)
Network Variant 2
(Dual TSN port module)
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1.3 GHz dual core; 2 GB DDR3L ECC,
8GB eMMC SLC, DP, industrial temperature
GBE0 PHY connected to SGMII (L0) to the internal switch
GBE1 PHY connected to SGMII (L1) to the internal switch
no direct network operation without switch up and running
Dual port TSN Endpoint (no need of additional PHYs on Carrier)
Audio
no QSGMII lane
Possible PCIe options (lane A/B), one of
2x PCIe x1
1x PCIe x2
1x PCIe x1 + 1x SATA
Network Variant 3
(Single PHY module)
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1.3 GHz dual core; 4 GB DDR3L ECC,
8GB eMMC SLC, DP, industrial temperature
GBE0 PHY connected to SGMII (L0) to CPU (TSN capable)
GBE1 PHY not connected, GBE1 could be used on custom carrier
to support 2.5 GBE
5 ports in total
audio
TSN-on–Carrier (board provides the 4 TSN capable ports on
PCIe D by QSGMII lane)
Possible PCIe options (lane A/B), one of
2x PCIe x1
1x PCIe x2
1x PCIe x1 + 1x SATA
Network Variant 4
(Dual PHY module)
SMARC with NXP LS1028, 1.3 GHz dual core; 4 GB DDR3L ECC,
32
GB eMMC SLC, DP, industrial temperature

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Variant Description
 GBE0 PHY connected to SGMII (L0) to CPU (TSN capable)
GBE0 PHY could be connected to switch
GBE1 connected to RGMII to CPU
6 ports in total
no audio
TSN-on–Carrier (board provides the 4 TSN capable ports on
PCIe D by QSGMII lane)
Possible PCIe options (lane A/B), one of
2x PCIe x1
1x PCIe x2
1x PCIe x1 + 1x SATA
Following accessories are available:
SMARC 2.0 Evaluation Carrier
SMARC Starter Kit
KBOX-A-230-LS, including a SMARC-sAl28 Module and a S1914 Carrier exposing the TSN switch Interfaces
2.4. SMARC-sAL28 Feature Set
Table 3: SMARC-sAL28 Feature Set
SMARC™ Feature
specification
SMARC™
Specification
Maximum Number
Possible
SMARC-sAL28
Feature support
Description
LVDS Display
support
2 2 LVDS option disabled
Default option is DP
CSI Camera
support
2 No
USB Interface 6x USB 2.0
with 2x USB 3.0
included
6x USB 2.0
with 1x USB 3.0
included
USB0 without OTG support
USB3 with USB 3.0 and OTG support
PCIe Interface 4 2 maximum 2 PCIe controller
GbE Interface 2 Yes
SDIO Interface 1 Yes
SPI Interface 2 Yes Each bus with one chip select at
standard modules
I2S Interface 2 1
I2C Interface 5 3 I2C_PM, I2C_GP, I2C_LCD
CAN 2 2 Second CAN interface as option with
abandonment of one I2C interface

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3/ System Specifications
3.1. Component Main Data
The table below summarizes the features of the motherboard.
Table 4: Component Main Data
SMARC-sAL28
Form factor Smart Mobility Architecture (SMARC) Hardware with 82 mm x 50 mm, max. thickness
6
mm
Processor NXP LS28 Layerscape SoC 1.3 GHz, 488 balls FC-BGA, 17x17 mm, 28 nm CMOS
Memory DDR3L memory down. Maximum DDR3L memory size 8 GB.
Standard products with 2 GB and 4 GB are available.
For cost reductions lower memory sizes are possible.
Boot Flash 2 MB to 32 MB SPI NOR flash
Bootloader/BIOS U-Boot Bootloader, Flash for Bootloader connected on SPI1(eSPI).
embedded
Multimedia Card
(eMMC)
8 GB pSLC and 32 GB pSLC on standard products
option for up to 64GB pSLC
EEPROM 24C32, 4k x 8 (32 kbit)
Temperature
Monitoring
Thermal Monitoring Unit (TMU) with +/- 5°C accuracy (CPU internal)
Thermal sensor measurement temperature range is 0°C to 125°C.
Onboard Controllers
Ethernet Controller 2x 1 GBE PHY Qualcomm AR8031-AL, WOL support
1st PHY via SGMII or RGMII BOM option
2nd PHY as BOM option via SGMII
Watchdog CPU internal watchdog
CPLD watchdog for WDT_TIME_OUT#
RTC High accuracy (+/-3 ppm)
Low power consumption: current consumption typical below 1 μA
USB HUB 7 port USB HUB Microchip USB2517I
Display bridge Optional: Display Port to LVDS converter PTN3460I
System
Management
Controller
CPLD Intel/Altera MAX V 5M570Z
Security Optional: APPROTECT Key 1504-03 connected via USB, no SPI connection
Power
management
CPLD controls payload power down state
Operating System
Support
Linux Yocto
Buildroot (https://github.com/kontron/buildroot-external-smarc-sal28)
other Operating Systems on customer request
Interfaces via Smarc I/O
USB USB0, USB1, USB2, USB3, USB4, USB5: USB Standard 2.0
USB3: USB Standard 3.1 GEN1 with OTG support
PCIe 4x configurable SERDES lines. Line A and B always present. C and D either used for on
module LAN PHYs or as SGMII/XGMII on the carrier (resistor BOM options)
Up to 2x PCIe controller
Audio I2S0

SMARC-sAL28 User Guide. Rev. 1.0
www.kontron.com // 18
Display Display port as standard option, FHD (1920x1080) and UHD (3840x2160)
Optional: Dual channel LVDS up to 1920x1200 with NXP PTN3460I
SD-Card 1x SDIO
UART SER0 with RTC/CTS hardware flow control to CPU
SER1, SER2 RX/TX
Serial Peripheral
Interface (SPI0)
One chip select available at standard module
Optional: second chip select possible with abandonment of USB3 power control from CPU
eSPI/SPI1 XSPI_A with CS0#, CS1# – CS0# to module SPI-flash (default)
Optional: CS0# to edge Connector (for Carrier uboot booting without SPI flash on module)
ALERT0#, ALERT1#, SPI_RESET# from CPLD
GPIO 12 GPIOs
CAN 1x CAN
Optional: Second CAN interface with abandonment of one I2C interface
Power
Consumption Maximum Power consumption of the board is estimated to 15 W
Input Voltage Wide range VCC 3.0 V to 5.25 V
vripple_p-p (0-20 MHz) = 200 mV 0.1 – 20 ms input voltage rise ramp to 10% nominal VCC
Miscellaneous
Panel Signal Display Port
Optional: dual channel LVDS or eDP
Features On
Request
2x PCIe x2 or 1x PCIe x4 configuration
eMMC 5.1 Flash onboard up to 64 GByte pSLC, up to 128 GByte (MLC)
Dual Channel LVDS or eDP instead of DP
3.2. Environmental Conditions
Table 5: Environmental Conditions
Operating industrial: -40°C to 85°C
relative humidity (non-condensing) 10
%
to 93% at 40°C (acc. to IEC 60068-2-78)
Storage industrial grade: -40°C to +85°C
relative humidity (non-condensing) 10 % to 93 % at 40°C (acc. to IEC 60068-2-78)
Electromagnetic
Compatibility
(EMC)
according to
EN 55032:2015 Electromagnetic compatibility of multimedia equipment - Emission
requirements (CISPR 32:2015); German version EN 55032:2015
EN 55024:2010 + A1:2015 Information technology equipment - Immunity
characteristics - Limits and methods of measurement (CISPR 24:2010 + Cor.:2011 +
A1:2015); German version EN 55024:2010 + A1:2015
CE CE according to
EN62368-1:2014 + AC:2017
EN610000-6-3:2007 + A1:2011
CISPR 32: Edition 1.0 2012-01, class B, 1-6 GHz
EN55032:2015
EN55024:2010 + A1:2015
UL according to IEC 62368-1 (ed.2)
Shock Pulse: half sinus
Period: 11 ms
Acceleration: 15 g
Cycles: three shocks per axis, three axes

SMARC-sAL28 User Guide. Rev. 1.0
www.kontron.com // 19
Vibration Sinus from 10 Hz -3000 Hz
Amplitude: 10 Hz-57,6 Hz: +/- 0,15 mm
Acceleration: 57,6 Hz – 3000Hz: 2 g
Cycles: 10 per axis, three axes
Theoretical MTBF estimated 10 years at 40°C
RoHS II Compliance The product is RoHS II compliant

SMARC-sAL28 User Guide. Rev. 1.0
www.kontron.com // 20
3.3. Functional Block Diagram
The block diagram shows all available interfaces on the sAL28 module.
Figure 2: Block Diagram
Clock generator
SAIx
DDR3L
memory down
5 x8 devices
SMARC 2.0 pinout connector
NXP LS1028A
DDR3L
memory down
5 devices x8
x36
USB[1] 3.0 OTG
USB[2] 2.0
eMMC
WIBU
Key
1G
PHY
PCIe 3.0/SATA Lane D
PCIe A
PCIe B
PCIe C
eSDHS2
eSDHC1
SDIO Card
x4
1588/GPIO/ RGMII/SAI
Display port 1.3 and eDP 1.4
LVDS0/eDP
eDP to
LVDS
x8
GBE0
DDR3 + ECC
SPI[3] (CS0#)
SPI0
XSPI1_A CS0#
eSPI/SPI1
SER[1],SER[3] DUART[1:2]
FLEXCAN[1]
CAN[0]
I2C_LCD
I2C_GP
I2C_PM
I2C[4] / FLEXCAN[2]
RCW 0x50
EEPROM
RTC
TAMPER
Standard
component Connector Option
LVDS1
PCIe D
SATA
PCIe 3.0/10G-SXGMII/SGMII Lane A
PCIe 3.0/QSGMII/SGMII Lane B
PCIe 3.0/SGMII Lane C
SPI NOR
boot flash
CS#
MDC/MDIO
I2S0
USB0
USB1
USB2
USB3
USB5
USB4
USB HUB
USB0 USB1 USB2 USB3 USB4
DP
1G
PHY
GBE1
GPIOs
Power
USB5
USB-up
0R
VDD_IN_5V0
VDD_RTC_3V0
TD1 (Thermal Diode)
SD1_REF_CLK2
SD1_REF_CLK1
100MHz w/ SSC
125MHz/156.25MHz w/o SSC
SYSCLK
100MHz w/o SSC
BOOT_SEL
SYSTEM
CPLD
GPIOs
cfg[3:0]
3
JTAG
JTAG chain
GP 0x50
EEPROM
DP_REF_CLK
27MHz w/o SSC
SER[0] LPUART[2]
USB6
0R
RSVD
0R
0R
CAN[1]
XSPI1_A and CS1#
I2C_LOCAL
0R
0R
0R
I2C[5]
PCIE_A_CLK 100MHz w/o SSC
PCIE_B_CLK 100MHz w/o SSC
PCIE_C_CLK 100MHz w/o SSC
USB hub 24MHz
JTAG header
TAG connect
JTAG chain
JTAG chain
JTAG chain
I2C_LOCAL
V2.02
0R
0R
I2C[1]
0R