OLIMEX© 2015
A13-SOM user's manual
Recommended items:
- A13-SOM-WIFI – expansion board that can be directly mounted over A13-SOM – it adds USB-
mini port, a WIFI module with built-in antenna, LCD display connector with 0.1'' step and routes a
number of frequently used signals to the easier to access 0.1'' row of pinholes. The sources
schematics of A13-SOM-WIFI are available for download and the board is considered open
hardware.
Some of the above-suggested items can be purchased by Olimex, for instance:
USB-SERIAL-CABLE-F
– female USB serial console cable – provides the easiest way of
debugging
A13-SOM-256-DEBIAN-SD
– a tested, class 10 micro SD card with the latest (by the time of
leaving the Olimex facilities) official Debian release, suitable for the 256MB version of the board
A13-SOM-512-DEBIAN-SD –
same as above suitable for the 512MB version of the board
A13-SOM-512-ANDROID-SD –
a tested, class 10 micro SD card with the latest (by the time of
leaving Olimex facilities) official Android Linux release
Probably you noticed that we don't sell A13-SOM-256-ANDROID-SD – that is because we
consider that A13-SOM-256 is not capable of running Android smoothly.
2.3 Powering the board
The powering requirements of the A13-SOM are different depending on whether you use it in
stand-alone mode or mounted atop A13-SOM-WIFI. The sub-chapters below deal with both
scenarios.
2.3.1 Stand-alone powering
If you use the board in stand-alone mode (e.g. it is neither attached to A13-SOM-WIFI nor to any
other board of peripherals) there are fewer options for powering it. There is no standard jack for the
powering circuit – you might need to make own adapter. Consider that you might need additional
cables or connectors. You would need to provide 3.3V DC to one of the two following locations:
1. UART1 pin named “3.3V”; you can use any GND pin available at the board
or
2. Connector GPIO-1's pin 1 (3.3V) and pin 2 (GND)
The minimum consumption is 0.33W (equivalent of 0.1A of current at 3.3V of voltage).
Do not provide AC voltage to the A13-SOM board! Do not provide more than 3.3V of voltage
directly to the A13-SOM board! Providing 5V or more would instantly cause permanent hardware
damage!
Consider that the board lacks hardware “wake-up” button. This means that if your OS enters sleep
mode you will probably be unable to wake the board using only the LCD. The sleep and stand-by
modes had been disabled in the default images. The Android release has an application that disables
stand-by.
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