Hello, im bulding a project for my senior design project in university. I am using the Arduino Yun as our microcontroller and need to create a PCB design based on it. From what ive read so far it seems as though the Yun is the Arduino Leonardo with the Atheros connected to it..? So if i use the Eagle CAD files for creating the PCB design based on the Leonardo can i somehow just add the Atheros as a component, since i can buy that seperately? This is my first time creating a PCB so any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Amber
amberstwrt8:
Hello, im bulding a project for my senior design project in university. I am using the Arduino Yun as our microcontroller and need to create a PCB design based on it. From what ive read so far it seems as though the Yun is the Arduino Leonardo with the Atheros connected to it..? So if i use the Eagle CAD files for creating the PCB design based on the Leonardo can i somehow just add the Atheros as a component, since i can buy that seperately? This is my first time creating a PCB so any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Amber
@Amber,
your task may not be doable - as Atheros is now own by Qualcomm.
When Atheros was around, you could get some information form them.
Now that Qualcomm owns Atheros, it is very difficult to get any information
and make it open. Qualcomm may ask for an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement).
The schematics we have are on this page.
https://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardYun
Best of Luck
Jesse
First time designing pcb? Using a processor like atheros is not a task for beginners.
mart256:
First time designing pcb? Using a processor like atheros is not a task for beginners.
Agreed! Dropping the Atheros processor onto a board is orders of magnitude more complicated than a '32U4. There's not only the processor itself, but the RAM, flash, other support chips, the level shifters and drivers between the two processors, and then the RF interface. Not only do you need a lot of proprietary information from Qualcomm (which you only get with an NDA) but you have to test/calibrate the RF which requires expensive test equipment and expertise.
If I were taking on this project , I wouldn't try to duplicate the Yun exactly. Instead, I'd drop a finished module on the board like the Dragino HE, the Linino One, or the Linkit Smart 7688. That seems to me to be the most reasonable way to get the functionality and skip the difficult RF integration effort. The modules are compact, and the price is far cheaper than the non-recurring engineering costs - unless you are going to mass produce your board, you'll never recoup the cost of doing it yourself.
Another option is the LinkIt Smart 7688 Duo which already includes the '32U4 processor and inter-processor interface.
If you are looking at this from an engineering learning point of view, and are afraid that using such a module is taking the easy way out, I think you'll find it still takes plenty of time and effort to properly integrate one of these modules into your board.