Undergraduate engineering scholar Muhammad “Azlan” Shah has designed an ultra-compact but feature-rich service board for the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 computer-on-module, dubbed the Argo — and is releasing it underneath an open {hardware} license.
“That is Argo, an opensource service board for the [Raspberry Pi] CM5. I have been engaged on this for a couple of months and lately bought my first prototypes,” Shah explains. “In contrast to conventional service PCBs, this one is tiny, impressed by the CM5 Minima by Pierluigi and the Waveshare Nano sequence. Nevertheless, my board additionally provides one other characteristic which I have been struggling to search out: on board battery administration!”
In search of a tiny service to your Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5? You may wrestle to get smaller than the Argo with out sacrificing options. (📷: Muhammad “Azlan” Shah)
Like its inspiration, the Argo is designed to take up no greater a footprint than the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 itself — a computer-on-module gadget primarily based on the Raspberry Pi 5 and powered by the identical Broadcom BCM2712 system-on-chip, although now with the choice of on-board eMMC storage too. There is a single micro-HDMI output plus a flat versatile circuit (FFC) connector for a second HDMI on a breakout board, MIPI D-PHY connectors for Digital camera Serial Interface and Show Serial Interface (CSI/DSI) units, an FFC connector for the module’s PCI Categorical Gen. 2 lane suitable with Raspberry Pi 5 PCIe equipment, and two USB Sort-C ports — one for energy and one for peripherals.
The board’s largest characteristic, although: an built-in Texas Devices BQ25895 switch-mode battery cost administration system, which permits the entire thing to be powered — and cost — an elective battery. “Utilizing the BQ25895, the board can present strong 5V at as much as 3A to the [Raspberry Pi] CM5 over both battery or USB [Type]-C,” Shah says. “That is sufficient for overclocking the CM5 as at peak energy consumption at 3GHz, exams present round 8-11W of energy draw. This leaves round 5W which might be allotted to the PCIe 16pin connector. In actual fact, I’ve additionally developed a low profile SSD service in the identical footprint which works nice up to now!”
Extra data on the challenge is out there in Shah’s Reddit publish, whereas design information can be found on GitHub underneath the strongly reciprocal model of the CERN Open {Hardware} License 2.0; these seeking to make their very own Argo, although, are suggested that it is a work-in-progress. “There are some points with the USB [Type]-C 3.0 on the facility finish of issues,” the maker admits, “nevertheless the information itself ought to theoretically work however that once more awaits the subsequent revision.”
