Today Qualcomm is introduced an replace to its robotics platform, upgrading the growing old RB3 with a Snapdragon 845-based SoC with the brand new RB5 platform which is predicated on a more moderen Snapdragon 865 chipset. Qualcomm is aiming for gaining market share within the fast-growing trade that’s projected to achieve $170B by 2025.
What’s is perhaps extra fascinating for AnandTech customers, is the RB5’s potential as an Arm single-board laptop platform, because the inclusion of the latest silicon right here ought to signify a big benefit for designs primarily based on the RB5 platform and the Snapdragon 865 derived “QRB5165” chipset.
The design of the RB5 platform comes within the type of a service board and a system-on-module board. The SOM incorporates the precise SoC alongside core elements reminiscent of RAM, NAND storage chip, the PMIC powering the SoC and board elements, in addition to a Wi-Fi/BT module.
The module sits on a service board, on this case the Qualcomm Robotics RB5 service board includes a ton of connectivity, supporting 4x HDMI outputs, SD card slot by way of SDIO, USB 3.1 hub, USB-C connector, Gigabit-Ethernet, DSI and CSI connectors for attaching shows and cameras, and numerous different common objective I/O. We additionally see inclusion of two lanes of PCIe included.
It’s attainable to increase the “core kit” with numerous different add-ons within the type of further mezzanine boards. Qualcomm can be providing a Vision, Sensor, Motor Control, Industrial, and Communications mezzanine boards for increasing the capabilities of the system.
The fascinating facet of the platform after all is its software program assist. Qualcomm can be providing OS assist for each Ubuntu and Yocto Linux. The firm can be sustaining its personal downstream embedded variants of the working programs, in addition to providing upstream open-source variations. The QRB5165 can be seeing lengthy life software program assist which extends to Linux.
These latter features of the platform make it a fairly fascinating worth proposition for anyone who’s on the lookout for an Arm improvement system. The Snapdragon 865 and the Cortex-A77 cores are extraordinarily succesful and will surely give comparable different SBCs choices reminiscent of Nvidia’s Jetson dev kits a run for his or her cash. Qualcomm hasn’t talked about any pricing but, however companion distributors reminiscent of Thundercomm are providing the earlier technology RB3 fundamental package for $449 – so we’d hope the RB5 would see comparable pricing.
