It seems like a Raspberry Pi 4, however this board accommodates each an ESP32 and the Raspberry Pi Pico’s RP2040 (opens in new tab) microcontroller. Usually these microcontrollers have a tendency to come back in tiny packages that enable them to be constructed into the tight areas that electronics initiatives typically comprise. One thing the dimensions of a Raspberry Pi 4 may be thought of too huge, however that hasn’t stopped the German engineers from MDC-Service Wittenburg GmbH on Crowd Provide (opens in new tab), who’re about to launch a mixture ESP32 and RP2040 controller within the Raspberry Pi 4 (opens in new tab) kind issue.
Often known as the EsPiFF, there is a mixture of dual-core ESP32-WROVER and RP2040 buzzing away at its coronary heart, with the latter performing as a co-processor to bridge the divide between ESP32 and Pi-compatible HATs.
The bizarre board form means it may be positioned inside some Raspberry Pi (opens in new tab) case – of which there are many selections (opens in new tab) – however the uncommon port format signifies that only some might be suitable. The board can take Pi HATs too as there is a 40-pin GPIO array identical to on the actual factor. The 40 pin GPIO is claimed to be suitable with HATs, and connects the RP2040 to the HATs. It stays to be seen how efficient that is.
You additionally get 8MB of PSRAM, 8Mbit of high-speed ISSI flash and 16MB of different flash, with an unpopulated header for 512Mbit extra of storage, and there is a Micro SD card socket for much more capability. Connectivity is handled by way of Wi-Fi (which requires an exterior antenna, not like the Raspberry Pi Pico W (opens in new tab)) and 10/100 Ethernet – there is a header for POE too, if a HAT requires it.
Energy is delivered by way of a USB-C port, identical to on the Pi 4, and there is a USB-A port for knowledge switch. The Sort-A port and Micro SD card slot are on the reverse finish of the board to the Pi 4, and can should be accessed via the USB port entry holes in a case. The Ethernet and Sort-C ports are in precisely the identical locations, whereas a reset button pokes via the audio output gap. There are supercaps for energy retention, as much as three UARTS for serial connections, and an exterior realtime clock, watchdog, and supervisor for high-availability, 24/7 purposes.
Because it makes use of a small quantity of energy and desires no heatsink, the board could be a sensible choice for measurement, management, and automation initiatives Software program assist comes within the type of Apache Nuttx RTOS, and the EsPiFF might be programmed with Espressif IDF, Arduino, and different ESP32 growth instruments. The undertaking is totally open supply, and all information might be discovered on GitHub (opens in new tab).
Keep in mind that crowdfunding a undertaking will not be a assure of receiving a completed product. Backing a crowdfunded undertaking is akin to an funding, you imagine within the undertaking and wish it to succeed. You aren’t buying a retail product.