Description

ESP32-aided ModBerry 500-CM4 for ultimate power management with Arduino

Sleep functionality for ModBerry 500 CM4 devices

TECHBASE company designed an extended version of Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 based devices, ModBerry 500-CM4-PM/PMX series for better power management in changing conditions of industrial applications. With the use of GPIO the module can manage boot, sleep mode or safe shutdown of the device in terms of unexpected drop in the power network with help of built-in ESP32 module and Arduino environment.

In the last few years developers marketed a wide range of ARM-based development boards, lacking in enhanced power management, especially sleep and wake up modes, commonly used in PC-grade computing. These boards are not adjusted for battery power supply, so it’s natural that sleep/wake functions should be implemented. In connection with the development of solutions based on Linux-SBC, key factor is adding sleep modes to any remote installation

ESP-32 based addon module for Raspberry Pi

With built-in algorithms and the possibility to program on your own, the TECHBASE’s sleep/wake addon module can wake the device using a scheduler/timer. The module itself is based on ESP32-WROVER, used in the Moduino X series. ESP32 as a lightweight and low-powered solution is a perfect aid system for Raspberry Pi. Another option is wake on external triggers, e.g. change of input state, etc. All the options for sleep, shutdown and wake can be configured for various scenarios to ensure constant operation of devices, safety of data and continuity of work in case of power failure in any installation.

Two versions of ESP32 addon module

PM version of ESP32-based power control module for ModBerry500 series upgrades the main device via miniPCI-E interface. Adding this type of expansion provides basic power management logic, improving power efficiency. This type of module allows safe boot and shutdown in case of power supply network fluctuations. 

PMX architecture, known from Moduino X series, allows even wider power management options, thanks to separate I/Os range, independent wireless NB-IoT modem and battery/SuperCap options to power up the device in changing environment conditions. Moduino X module connects via serial port to ModBerry 500-CM4 device and can act as a standalone device, providing lower level computing with lower power demand than the main ModBerry unit.

Sleep mode with additional power backup

Additional power management option for ModBerry devices is sleep functionality enhanced with SuperCap UPS energy backup device. This solution allows programming scenarios including the execution of chosen actions, in order to save data, send a notification and restart/shutdown the controller after completion.

Advanced power management solution

Most advanced configuration includes use of ESP32 module, known from the successful, lightweight Moduino X series, for extra logic for wake up / sleep scripts. This addon will allow the RaspberryPi-based ModBerry device to be woken up by the internal ESP32 controller. 

Moduino-ModBerry symbiosis allows a wide range of wake-up/sleep schedule customization, in order to perform best and save energy according to power supply state. Arduino and MicroPython environments provide libraries to control different scenarios of data and power management.

ModBerry 500-CM4-PM/PMX availability

The preliminary ModBerry 500-CM4-PM/PMX devices are available on request and delivery time will be specified by the Sales Dept. depending on the size of the project. Contact via email or Live Chat.