[gta02-core] -1 Hardware revision stored in EEPROM

Álvaro Lopes alvieboy at alvie.com
Fri Aug 28 11:13:01 CEST 2009


Werner Almesberger wrote:
> Rask Ingemann Lambertsen wrote:
>>    Then the gta02-core will be completely uninteresting for hardware
>> hackers.
> 
> Naw, gta02-core is all about hardware hacking, just at a different
> level ;-)
> 
> But please bear in mind that the number of gta02-core devices we'll
> ever make will be tiny. Sean promised 20 parts kits and SMT yield
> will be low. Even if everything else perfect, there are always a few
> boards that end up completely broken because of some subtle setup
> problems. So perhaps we'll have as few as 10 working boards in the
> end, even assuming that the design is flawless.

Which, of course. is not. Our confidence level is high, but the probability we missed something is quite high too.

So, expect them to not work at all. What can we do to overcome that ? Maybe allow for better refurbishing, maybe split layout in a way  you can "replace" parts
of PCB with an external design. Maybe others, if you have ideas please share.

I think we at least should try to get enough boards for those that actively contributed to its design - We cannot debug boards unless we actually have some :)
For this to happen, we need money - either our own or get some investors / supporters / sponsors so they can help us at least making and assembling the first
prototypes. I am not sure what you agreed with Sean. I also expect first board PCB/Assembly to have a very high cost (soldermasks are also expensive).

> But gta02-core isn't supposed to be the end but a beginning. The
> sooner we get this done, the sooner we can look for ways to make the
> device we crave, and in serious numbers.

This is true.

> Also, I think the debug interface is beyond simple corrections. If I
> wanted to add DIY peripherals, the first thing I'd expect is a
> connector I can actually connect to, without having to make my own
> FPC and/or interfacing to an ultra-fine-pitch socket. (Even
> finding an FPC that makes a straight 1:1 connection seems to be
> difficult. 39 conductors and 0.3 mm pitch aren't very common.)

I had some ideas a few days ago, but they are not mature yet.





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