iMX6 OpenRex Environmental chamber testing - Revision history

Voipac at 21:04, 31 August 2021

2021-08-31T21:04:19Z

Voipac at 08:24, 16 August 2021

2021-08-16T08:24:31Z

Voipac at 08:22, 16 August 2021

2021-08-16T08:22:52Z

Voipac at 08:21, 16 August 2021

2021-08-16T08:21:56Z

Voipac at 07:54, 16 August 2021

2021-08-16T07:54:37Z

Voipac at 08:49, 18 May 2021

2021-05-18T08:49:56Z

Voipac at 08:49, 18 May 2021

2021-05-18T08:49:32Z

Voipac at 08:49, 18 May 2021

2021-05-18T08:49:09Z

Voipac at 09:50, 25 April 2021

2021-04-25T09:50:23Z

Show changes

Voipac at 09:46, 25 April 2021

2021-04-25T09:46:26Z

@@ Line 61: / Line 61: @@
 == Testing Results ==
 The picture below shows the temperature profile during the whole testing process:<br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber_Temperature_profile.jpg|800px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber_Temperature_profile.png|700px]]
 === Running the boards at -60°C and -40°C – PASS ===
@@ Line 74: / Line 74: @@
 <br /><br />
 Temperature readout from boards when running at +65°C shows that the temperature inside the CPU was approximately 20°C to 30°C higher. Heatsink design influences this difference the most.<br /><br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Temperature_readout_at_+65_degC.jpg|800px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Temperature_readout_at_+65_degC.png|800px]]
 === Switch ON/OFF test – PASS ===
@@ Line 114: / Line 114: @@
 === Setting the network ===
 Disable firewall (PC will not be connected to the Internet) and setup a static IP address: Press Windows button -> go to Control Panel -> Network and Internet -> Network and Sharing Center -> Change adapter settings (on the right side in the bar) -> double click on Local Area Connection -> Properties -> In the tab Networking go to Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) -> type the static IP address and subnet mask as shown below:<br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Static_IP.jpg|500px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Static_IP.png|400px]]
 === Enabling sharing ===
 iMX6 OpenRex SBCs and the control PC are connected via Gigabit Ethernet switch. To ensure correct IP address assignment, turn on the PC first, connect it with the switch and only after that turn the switch on. To be able to download the files from the FTP server, sharing option need to be enabled first. This can be done by setting up the network as a ''work network''. Sharing can be enabled in Control Panel -> Network and Internet -> Network and Sharing Center -> Click to Choose homegroup and sharing options:<br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Network_setup.jpg|800px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Network_setup.png|710px]]
 ===  Setting up the TFTP and DHCP servers ===
-Tftpd32 software supports both TFTP and DHCP server options. For more details about DHCP configuration, follow the screenshots below:
+Tftpd32 software supports both TFTP and DHCP server options. For more details about DHCP configuration, follow the screenshots below:<br />
-{|
+|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-DHCP_setting.png|360px]]<br /><br />
-|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-DHCP_setting.jpg|356px]]
+|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-DHCP.png|460px]]
 === Starting time server ===
 To assign the correct time for all the boards Time server feature built in Tftpd32 was used. Go to ''Settings'' and make sure that ''SNTP server'' is checked:<br />
-|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-SNTP_server.jpg|419px]]
+|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-SNTP_server.png|360px]]
 === Assigning custom COM port names ===
 As we mentioned before, it is useful to apply the same numbering for boards and serial ports. To do so plug in the first FTDI cable and go to the control PC, select Start, right click on Computer and select Properties. Now click on the Device Manager in the top right corner. Under the item Ports (COM & LPT), USB ports are visible. Now right click and select Properties:<br />
-|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_properties.jpg|500px]]
+|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_properties.png|580px]]
 <br /><br />
 Select the Port Settings tab and click on Advanced tab:<br />
-|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_settings.jpg|419px]]
+|[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_settings.png|400px]]
 <br /><br />
 Now select from the COM Port Number (the one which is not in use):<br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_number.jpg|800px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_number.png|630px]]
 <br /><br />
 Now this process can be repeated by plugging another serial cable if needed. After all the cables were attached, restart the computer.
@@ Line 145: / Line 143: @@
 === SSH and Serial consoles ===
 To control iMX6 OpenRex SBCs, one TeraTerm serial console was opened per board. SSH clients were used to read temperature. For the boards with the peripheral test, an extra SSH client was established to be able to spot possible errors or warnings if occurred.<br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Serial_console.jpg|800px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Serial_console.png|800px]]
 == Preparing the test ==

@@ Line 90: / Line 90: @@
 == Setup preparation and testing recommendations ==
-It is very important to run the exact same setup for environmental chamber testing in the lab for couple of days. Use exactly the same boards, board setup, cables, PCs and all other equipment. The main reason to do this is to minimise possible issues with testing scripts or faulty connections – everything has to be running smoothly. Apart from testing the boards performance, there will be little time to fix those avoidable problems.<br /><br />
+It is very important to run the exact same setup for environmental chamber testing in the lab for couple of days. Use exactly the same boards, board setup, cables, PCs and all other equipment. The main reason to do this is to minimise possible issues with testing scripts or faulty connections – everything has to be running smoothly. During the boards performance temperature testing, there will be little time to fix those avoidable problems.<br /><br />
 The next very important thing is to make as many notes as possible during the testing. Always add board number and date to the message. This will help to memorise everything and no important detail will be missed in the report.<br /><br />

@@ Line 90: / Line 90: @@
 == Setup preparation and testing recommendations ==
-It is very important to run the exact same setup for environmental chamber testing in the lab for couple of days. Use exactly the same boards, board setup, cables, PCs and all other equipment. The main reason to do this is to minimise possible issues with testing scripts, faulty switches or connections – everything has to be running smoothly. Apart from testing the boards performance, there will be little time to fix those avoidable problems.<br /><br />
+It is very important to run the exact same setup for environmental chamber testing in the lab for couple of days. Use exactly the same boards, board setup, cables, PCs and all other equipment. The main reason to do this is to minimise possible issues with testing scripts or faulty connections – everything has to be running smoothly. Apart from testing the boards performance, there will be little time to fix those avoidable problems.<br /><br />
 The next very important thing is to make as many notes as possible during the testing. Always add board number and date to the message. This will help to memorise everything and no important detail will be missed in the report.<br /><br />

@@ Line 90: / Line 90: @@
 == Setup preparation and testing recommendations ==
-It is very important to run the exact same setup for environmental chamber testing in the lab for couple of days. Use exactly the same boards, board setup, cables, PC and all other equipment. The main reason to do this is to minimize possible issues with software, firmware or connections – everything which can cause problem apart from hardware itself. There will not be much time to fix there issues during the testing.<br /><br />
+It is very important to run the exact same setup for environmental chamber testing in the lab for couple of days. Use exactly the same boards, board setup, cables, PCs and all other equipment. The main reason to do this is to minimise possible issues with testing scripts, faulty switches or connections – everything has to be running smoothly. Apart from testing the boards performance, there will be little time to fix those avoidable problems.<br /><br />
-The next very important thing is to make as many notes as possible during the testing. Always add board number and date to the message. This will help to memorize everything and no important detail will be missed in the report.<br /><br />
+The next very important thing is to make as many notes as possible during the testing. Always add board number and date to the message. This will help to memorise everything and no important detail will be missed in the report.<br /><br />
 To get reliable results, running 4 boards is advised at minimum, 6-10 boards is recommended. This amount of boards, cables and equipment require a special precautions to avoid confusion. Thus marking all the boards and important cables is a very useful habit.<br /><br />

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 ** 1GBps Ethernet PHY Tranciever KSZ9021RNI - automotive temperature range (-40°C to +85°C)
 <br />
-Two versions of heatsink were selected. Both of them covered area occupied by CPU, memories and Ethernet PHY chip. No big performance differences were observed. A standard  14x14x14mm sized heatsink shipped together with SBC after the purchase was tested as well.<br /><br />
+Two versions of heatsink were selected for the test. The large nonstandard heatsink covered area occupied by CPU, memories and Ethernet PHY chip. The standard 14x14x14mm heatsink shipped with each SBC, and covering just the CPU, was also tested. No significant performance differences were observed.<br /><br />
 The setup in the environmental chamber:<br />
@@ Line 64: / Line 64: @@
 === Running the boards at -60°C and -40°C – PASS ===
-Test description: CPU, Memory and peripheral stress tests were running at these extremely low temepratures. All the tested kits were working without errors even when temperature reached -60°C.<br /><br />
+Test description: CPU, Memory and peripheral stress tests were running at these extremely low temepratures. All the tested SBCs were working without errors even when temperature reached -60°C.<br /><br />
 '''''Note:''''' Initial testing revealed that Ethernet PHY KSZ9031 created the network communication malfunction at very low temperatures. This behaviour was caused by chip manufacturer issue as described in [https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/en/DeviceDoc/80000692D.pdf Micrel errata]. After changing PHY controller to KSZ9021RN all the boards were working without errors.
 === Running the boards at +65°C – PASS ===
-Test description: The ambient temperature was gradually increasing (to +55°C, +60°C and +65°C) and we were running the CPU, Memory and peripheral stress tests. Even at +65°C processors were running at full speed (frequency was not lowered by the system to cool down the CPU). Reaching higher temperature is possible by using a bigger and more massive heatsink.
+Test description: The ambient temperature was gradually increasing (to +55°C, +60°C and +65°C) and we were running the CPU, Memory and peripheral stress tests. Even at +65°C processors were running at full speed (frequency was not lowered by the system to cool down the CPU). Reaching higher operating temperature is possible by using a bigger and more massive heatsink.
 <br /><br />
-The boards were also tested with a small heatsink which is a part of the webshop iMX6 OpenRex SBC kit. This setup also reached temperatures above +65°C without any errors.
+The boards were also tested with a small heatsink which is a part of the webshop configuration of the iMX6 OpenRex SBC. This setup also reached temperatures above +65°C without any errors.
 <br /><br />
 Temperature readout from boards when running at +65°C shows that the temperature inside the CPU was approximately 20°C to 30°C higher. Heatsink design influences this difference the most.<br /><br />
@@ Line 149: / Line 149: @@
 == Preparing the test ==
 === Boot device and software ===
-All the boards were using bootloader stored in SPI flash memory with the rest of firmware located on SD card. Only exception was moving the filesystem to either SATA disk (Max version) or USB flash drive (Basic configuration) for peripheral tests.<br /><br />
+All the boards were using bootloader stored in SPI flash memory with the rest of firmware located on SD card. The only exception was moving the filesystem to either SATA disk (Max version) or USB flash drive (Basic configuration) for peripheral tests.<br /><br />
 The only change compared to standard software package was running a multimedia filesystem. U-Boot settings were not adjusted as the default configuration was used. To prepare a fresh SD card follow [[iMX6 OpenRex Max Creating Bootable microSD Card|these instructions]]. Here is an example of creating a SD card suitable for Max configuration:

@@ Line 21: / Line 21: @@
 The setup in the environmental chamber:<br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Boards.jpg|700px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Boards.jpg|750px]]
 == Test description ==
 Three iMX6 OpenRex SBCs (one in Max and two in Basic configuration) were running full peripheral test to check functionality of all the peripherals in different range of temperatures. All the rest of the boards (three in Max and three in Basic version) were running CPU and memory tests to check the reliability of the firmware and hardware design. This included extensive examining of memory settings and used Fly-By Topology layout. Two DDR3 memory chips in Basic configuration were also thoroughly checked.<br /><br />
-[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Setup.jpg|800px]]
+[[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-Setup.jpg|750px]]
 <br /><br />
 Testing threads are described below:<br /><br />

@@ Line 141: / Line 141: @@
 [[image:iMX6_OpenRex_SBC-Environmental_chamber-COM_Port_number.jpg|800px]]
 <br /><br />
-Now this process can be repeated by plugging another serial cable if needed. After all the cable were attached, restart the computer.
+Now this process can be repeated by plugging another serial cable if needed. After all the cables were attached, restart the computer.
 === SSH and Serial consoles ===
@@ Line 149: / Line 149: @@
 == Preparing the test ==
 === Boot device and software ===
 The only change compared to standard software package was running a multimedia filesystem. U-Boot settings were not adjusted as the default configuration was used. To prepare a fresh SD card follow [[iMX6 OpenRex Max Creating Bootable microSD Card|these instructions]]. Here is an example of creating a SD card suitable for Max configuration:
 <syntaxhighlight lang="bash">
@@ Line 156: / Line 158: @@
 gunzip -c fsl-image-gui-imx6-openrexmax-2.4.sdcard.gz | sudo dd of=/dev/mmcblk0 conv=sync bs=64K
 </syntaxhighlight>
 === Creating new directories and copying test files ===
@@ Line 198: / Line 198: @@
 <syntaxhighlight lang="bash">
 cd /home/ubuntu/openrex/env-chamber-testing/
-tail -F cpu-temp-measuring.log
+tail -f orx-cpu-temp.log
 </syntaxhighlight>