Assignment No: - A-1

Title: - Study of Raspberry-Pi, Beagle board, Arduino and other micro controller
(History & Elevation)

Assignment Name: - Study of Raspberry-Pi, Beagle board, Arduino and other micro
controller (History & Elevation)
Objectives: -
 To study various small single-board microprocessors and microcontrollers kits.

 To study their characteristics, features and usage

Outcomes: -
 Students will able to understand the schematic and usage of various single-board
microprocessors and microcontrollers kits.

Prerequisites-
 Fundamentals of Operating Systems

 Fundamentals of Computer Organization

Hardware Requirement-
 Raspberry Pi Starter Kit

 Unit of Beagle Black Board

 Ardunio Basic Kit

Software Requirement-
None
Introduction: -
 Single Board Computer
o A single-board computer (SBC) is a complete computer built on a single
circuit board, with microprocessor(s), memory, input/output (I/O) and
other features required of a functional computer. Single-board computers
were made as demonstration or development systems, for educational
systems, or for use as embedded computer controllers. Many types of
home computers or portable computers integrate all their functions onto
a single printed circuit board.
o Unlike a desktop personal computer, single board computers often do not
rely on expansion slots for peripheral functions or expansion. Single
board computers have been built using a wide range of microprocessors.
Simple designs, such as those built by computer hobbyists, often use
static RAM and low-cost 8 or 16-bit processors. Other types, such as blade
servers, would perform similar to a server computer, only in a more
compact format.
o A computer-on-module is a type of single-board computer made to plug
into a carrier board, baseboard, or backplane for system expansion.
o Single board computers were made possible by increasing density of
integrated circuits. A single-board configuration reduces a system's
overall cost, by reducing the number of circuit boards required, and by
eliminating connectors and bus driver circuits that would otherwise be
used. By putting all the functions on one board, a smaller overall system
can be obtained, for example, as in notebook computers. Connectors are
a frequent source of reliability problems, so a single-board system
eliminates these problems.
o Single board computers are now commonly defined across two distinct
architectures: no slots and slot support.
o Embedded SBCs are units providing all the required I/O with no provision
for plug-in cards. Applications are typically gaming (slot machines, video
poker), kiosk, and machine control automation. Embedded SBCs are
much smaller than the ATX-type motherboard found in PCs, and provide
an I/O mix more targeted to an industrial application, such as on-board
digital and analog I/O, on-board bootable flash memory (eliminating the
need for a disk drive), no video, etc.
o The term "Single Board Computer" now generally applies to an
architecture where the single board computer is plugged into a backplane
 to provide for I/O cards. In the case of PC104, the bus is not a backplane
in the traditional sense but is a series of pin connectors allowing I/O
boards to be stacked.

o Single board computers are most commonly used in industrial situations

where they are used in rackmount format for process control or
embedded within other devices to provide control and interfacing.
They've been to the ocean depths (ALICE deep sea probes), into outer
space (ARRIANE, Pegasus Rocket, and Shuttle), and to every continent on
the planet. Because of the very high levels of integration, reduced
component counts and reduced connector counts, SBCs are often smaller,
lighter, more power efficient and more reliable than comparable multi-
board computers.
o The primary advantage of an ATX motherboard as compared to an SBC is
cost. Motherboards are manufactured by the millions for the consumer
and office markets allowing tremendous economies of scale. Single-board
computers are a market niche and are manufactured less often and at a
higher cost. Motherboards and SBCs now offer similar levels of feature
integration meaning that a motherboard failure in either standard will
require equivalent replacement.
 Various Types of SBCs
o Detailed types of SBCs are available in URL
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_single-board_computers
o As per curriculum, we stick with 3 most popular SBCs used nowadays:
 Raspberry Pi 3

 Beagle Board

 Ardunio

Raspberry Pi 3
 The Raspberry Pi is a mini-computer, like the one inside your laptop
but with a lot less power (which is why it costs just $35). What it
lacks in oomph it makes up for in its “tinker-ability”—with just a
little know-how you can use the Pi as the basis for all kinds of
computing and electronics projects. It essentially gives you the raw
basics of a computer.
 Those basics include a processor, a graphics chip, some RAM, a few
USB ports, an HDMI output, an Ethernet port, and (in the latest
version) integrated wifi and Bluetooth. As you would expect for the
Pi’s paltry price, you can’t run very advanced software on it,
though you can install Linux and a stripped-down Internet-of-Things
version of Windows 10.
 Figure: Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Overview

Figure: Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Block Diagram

 Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Features

o CPU: Raspberry Pi 3 uses Broadcom BCM2837 SOC 64-bit quad-core
ARM Cortex A53 (ARMv8 CPU) with 512KB shared L2 cache.
o Memory: Provided with 1 GB of RAM
o Wi-Fi Support: 802.11n Wireless LAN
o Bluetooth: Supports Bluetooth 4.1 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)
o USB Ports: 4-USB ports which allow attaching four different USB
devices like keyboard, mouse, etc.
o Ethernet Port: Standard Ethernet port to quickly setup and access
internet. This can be very useful when we want to setup raspberry pi
for the first time without a monitor.
o GPIO Pins: Raspberry Pi 3 supports 40 GPIO Pins General Purpose
Input Output. These digital input/output pins can be used to drive LED,
Switches, and Sensors etc.
o Full HDMI Port: Support HDMI port (High-Definition Multimedia
Interface) which can be used to quickly connect raspberry pi to HDMI
Monitor. With HDMI Cable and Monitor we can add Screen to Raspberry
Pi.
o Micro SD card slot: The Micro SD Card will hold the operating
system which will boot while we power on Raspberry Pi 3. In next
tutorial, we will learn how to setup and prepare SD card with Raspbian
OS.
o Audio/Video: Combined 3.5mm audio jack and composite video
o Display interface (DSI): enable us to interface Display Module
o Camera interface (CSI): enable us to interface Camera Module
o Graphics Support: VideoCore IV 3D graphics core for advance
graphics capabilities.
Beagle Board
 Arduino
o Arduino is an open-source electronics platform based on easy-to-use
hardware and software. Arduino boards are able to read inputs - light on a
sensor, a finger on a button, or a Twitter message - and turn it into an
output - activating a motor, turning on an LED, publishing something
online. You can tell your board what to do by sending a set of instructions
to the microcontroller on the board. To do so you use the Arduino
programming language (based on Wiring), and the Arduino Software
(IDE), based on Processing.
o Over the years Arduino has been the brain of thousands of projects, from
everyday objects to complex scientific instruments. A worldwide
community of makers - students, hobbyists, artists, programmers, and
professionals - has gathered around this open-source platform, their
contributions have added up to an incredible amount of accessible
knowledge that can be of great help to novices and experts alike.
o Arduino was born at the Ivrea Interaction Design Institute as an easy tool
for fast prototyping, aimed at students without a background in
electronics and programming. As soon as it reached a wider community,
the Arduino board started changing to adapt to new needs and
challenges, differentiating its offer from simple 8-bit boards to products
for IoT applications, wearable, 3D printing, and embedded environments.
All Arduino boards are completely open-source, empowering users to
build them independently and eventually adapt them to their particular
needs. The software, too, is open-source, and it is growing through the
contributions of users worldwide.
o The Arduino Uno is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328. Arduino is
an open-source, prototyping platform and its simplicity makes it ideal for
hobbyists to use as well as professionals. The Arduino Uno has 14 digital
input/output pins (of which 6 can be used as PWM outputs), 6 analog inputs, a
16 MHz crystal oscillator, a USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header, and a
reset button. It contains everything needed to support the microcontroller;
simply connect it to a computer with a USB cable or power it with a AC-to-DC
adapter or battery to get started.
o The Arduino Uno differs from all preceding boards in that it does not use the
FTDI USB-to-serial driver chip. Instead, it features the Atmega8U2
microcontroller chip programmed as a USB-to-serial converter.
o "Uno" means one in Italian and is named to mark the upcoming release of
Arduino 1.0. The Arduino Uno and version 1.0 will be the reference versions of
Arduino, moving forward. The Uno is the latest in a series of USB Arduino
boards, and the reference model for the Arduino platform.
o Features of the Arduino UNO:
o Microcontroller: ATmega328
o Operating Voltage: 5V
o Input Voltage (recommended): 7-12V
o Input Voltage (limits): 6-20V
o Digital I/O Pins: 14 (of which 6 provide PWM output)
o Analog Input Pins: 6
o DC Current per I/O Pin: 40 mA
o DC Current for 3.3V Pin: 50 mA
o Flash Memory: 32 KB of which 0.5 KB used by bootloader
o SRAM: 2 KB (ATmega328)
o EEPROM: 1 KB (ATmega328)
o Clock Speed: 16 MHz
Assignment Question:
1. Enlist the other competitive boards related to popular SBCs
2. Differentiate between Raspberry Pi 3 Model B, Beagle Board and Arduino
3. State the suitability of Each popular SBC according to application areas.
References: -
• https://www.raspberrypi.org/education/
• https://beagleboard.org/Support/bone101
• https://www.arduino.cc/en/Guide/HomePage

Conclusion:
Hence, we learn the fundamentals of Single-Board Computer along with popular
SBCs introduction.