CM3 for hobbyists

[mattmiller]

I can see how a CM module could be of benefit to a company as an embedded controller inside a product but are there any geeks using them in mutiiple projects/home brew devices?

(Apart from just buying one to play with I mean)

I only ask as some people seem to be quite excited over when the CM3 is arriving and just checking if I've missed something about CMs.

Or are they just getting excited as they would over any new thingy

[BMS Doug]

I can see how a CM module could be of benefit to a company as an embedded controller inside a product but are there any geeks using them in mutiiple projects/home brew devices?

(Apart from just buying one to play with I mean)

I only ask as some people seem to be quite excited over when the CM3 is arriving and just checking if I've missed something about CMs.

Or are they just getting excited as they would over any new thingy

I don't have a CM and I won't be getting a CM3 (unless I think of something that they would be really good for).

I just don't have any justification for it.

[jamesh]

I can see how a CM module could be of benefit to a company as an embedded controller inside a product but are there any geeks using them in mutiiple projects/home brew devices?

(Apart from just buying one to play with I mean)

I only ask as some people seem to be quite excited over when the CM3 is arriving and just checking if I've missed something about CMs.

Or are they just getting excited as they would over any new thingy

Because some people on here are working in industrial areas where the CM3 would be useful? It's not just hobbyists.

For almost everyone outside of industry, the Pi3 is a better bet. And actually, for a lot of people in industrial areas, the Pi3 is a better option.

[johnb_summers]

For give my ignorance but what is a CM3? does anyone have a link as to what it is?

[allfox]

For give my ignorance but what is a CM3? does anyone have a link as to what it is?

It's a smaller pi.

CM stands for compute module.

[6by9]

For give my ignorance but what is a CM3? does anyone have a link as to what it is?

http://cpc.farnell.com/raspberry-pi/rpi ... dp/SC13437
https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentati ... /README.md
viewforum.php?f=98

CM1 (or just CM) being based on BCM2835. Compute Module 3 (CM3) is due imminently, and is based on BCM2837.

[Pithagoros]

Or because of this:

http://wdlabs.wd.com/products/sata-adapter-board/

[BMS Doug]

For give my ignorance but what is a CM3? does anyone have a link as to what it is?

It's a smaller pi.

CM stands for compute module.

More specifically it's a Pi designed for embedded use, the price is lower because a lot of the circuitry has been omitted. It is designed to connect to a baseboard via a SODIMM connector, the baseboard will be custom designed to have the relevant circuitry for the application.

[johnb_summers]

For give my ignorance but what is a CM3? does anyone have a link as to what it is?

It's a smaller pi.

CM stands for compute module.

More specifically it's a Pi designed for embedded use, the price is lower because a lot of the circuitry has been omitted. It is designed to connect to a baseboard via a SODIMM connector, the baseboard will be custom designed to have the relevant circuitry for the application.

Thank you, I think I have seen that in element14, I understand now.

[fruitoftheloom]

http://store.wdc.com/store/wdeu/en_GB/D ... spberry_Pi

http://store.wdc.com/store/wdeu/en_GB/D ... pter_Board

.

[boyoh]

I can see how a CM module could be of benefit to a company as an embedded controller inside a product but are there any geeks using them in mutiiple projects/home brew devices?

(Apart from just buying one to play with I mean)

I only ask as some people seem to be quite excited over when the CM3 is arriving and just checking if I've missed something about CMs.

Or are they just getting excited as they would over any new thingy

The days have gone , when a technician took a suspect circuit board out
For testing and repair . Now it is all plug and play, The circuit boards are
Non repairable ?, mind you I have repaired a few Texas I/P modules
In the past . Production line time down cost money..My advice is with
The Raspberry Pi, is stick to what you can build and repair your self.

[W. H. Heydt]

More specifically it's a Pi designed for embedded use, the price is lower because a lot of the circuitry has been omitted. It is designed to connect to a baseboard via a SODIMM connector, the baseboard will be custom designed to have the relevant circuitry for the application.

Actually, it's *more* expensive because the PCB is more complex, since it brings out every interface the SoC has. While the CM is discounted by at least one supplier now, the list price is $40. The dev kit (CM, dev carrier board, camera and display adapters) was originally $200, that has been at $100 for some time.

On the OPs question....
What I'm building towards is a Pi-based server. I've done some testing with a CM and a WD SATA Adapter. For my purposes, the CM3 fixes one of three shortcomings in the present hardware, to wit, it brings the CPU capability up to where I want it. It does not address the second issue I see, which is an I/O bottleneck over the USB2 connection (the SATA connection on the WD board runs over USB2). The third problem is one that will have to be solved by WD and I don't have any indication that they think it is a problem. The WD SATA Adapter has two USB ports, but no on board Ethernet jack.

All of that explains that, while I am interested in testing with the CM3, I am fervently hoping that the SoC for the Pi4 has USB3 and that a CM4 and a WD SATA Adapter board will be built to take advantage of that....and an Ethernet jack will be added as well.

[BMS Doug]

Actually, it's *more* expensive because the PCB is more complex, since it brings out every interface the SoC has. While the CM is discounted by at least one supplier now, the list price is $40. The dev kit (CM, dev carrier board, camera and display adapters) was originally $200, that has been at $100 for some time.

ouch, they are fleecing you over there. Current UK prices from RS:
compute module Dev kit: £36.29 (no camera module but adapter board is included)
Compute module (only) £19.49

I've seen the prices cheaper, I think its the exchange rate.

Comparison prices:
The Pi1B+ is £20.50 (£1.01 more expensive than the compute module) (and out of stock).
The A+ is £17.00 (£2.49 cheaper) (and also out of stock)
The Pi 3 B is £29.99

[jamesh]

I can see how a CM module could be of benefit to a company as an embedded controller inside a product but are there any geeks using them in mutiiple projects/home brew devices?

(Apart from just buying one to play with I mean)

I only ask as some people seem to be quite excited over when the CM3 is arriving and just checking if I've missed something about CMs.

Or are they just getting excited as they would over any new thingy

The days have gone , when a technician took a suspect circuit board out
For testing and repair . Now it is all plug and play, The circuit boards are
Non repairable ?, mind you I have repaired a few Texas I/P modules
In the past . Production line time down cost money..My advice is with
The Raspberry Pi, is stick to what you can build and repair your self.

Engineers time, $50/hr.

Price of replacement Pi, $35.

It's a no brainer. Just replace the Pi.

[mikronauts]

It is more expensive to give the RPF more money to re-invest in education.

The cost of the connectors is significantly greater than the more complex PCB.

More specifically it's a Pi designed for embedded use, the price is lower because a lot of the circuitry has been omitted. It is designed to connect to a baseboard via a SODIMM connector, the baseboard will be custom designed to have the relevant circuitry for the application.

Actually, it's *more* expensive because the PCB is more complex, since it brings out every interface the SoC has. While the CM is discounted by at least one supplier now, the list price is $40. The dev kit (CM, dev carrier board, camera and display adapters) was originally $200, that has been at $100 for some time.

On the OPs question....
What I'm building towards is a Pi-based server. I've done some testing with a CM and a WD SATA Adapter. For my purposes, the CM3 fixes one of three shortcomings in the present hardware, to wit, it brings the CPU capability up to where I want it. It does not address the second issue I see, which is an I/O bottleneck over the USB2 connection (the SATA connection on the WD board runs over USB2). The third problem is one that will have to be solved by WD and I don't have any indication that they think it is a problem. The WD SATA Adapter has two USB ports, but no on board Ethernet jack.

All of that explains that, while I am interested in testing with the CM3, I am fervently hoping that the SoC for the Pi4 has USB3 and that a CM4 and a WD SATA Adapter board will be built to take advantage of that....and an Ethernet jack will be added as well.

[boyoh]

I can see how a CM module could be of benefit to a company as an embedded controller inside a product but are there any geeks using them in mutiiple projects/home brew devices?

(Apart from just buying one to play with I mean)

I only ask as some people seem to be quite excited over when the CM3 is arriving and just checking if I've missed something about CMs.

Or are they just getting excited as they would over any new thingy

The days have gone , when a technician took a suspect circuit board out
For testing and repair . Now it is all plug and play, The circuit boards are
Non repairable ?, mind you I have repaired a few Texas I/P modules
In the past . Production line time down cost money..My advice is with
The Raspberry Pi, is stick to what you can build and repair your self.

Engineers time, $50/hr.

Price of replacement Pi, $35.

It's a no brainer. Just replace the Pi.

If you was asked to design a production line, would you use a Raspberry Pi
Or a PLC using a ladder program controlling 100/O/Ps 100/I/Ps 100/ sensors.

[mikronauts]

In my case, I'd suggest:

1) If it is a one-off production line, PLC's.

No brainer. Plant people already familiar with PLC's. No training cost. Little software development. Do add the cost of SCADA / HMI licenses.

2) If it was a lot of lines...

depends on the number of lines, total cost of PLC's & I/O modules & SCADA/HMI software, desired level of reliability, cost of risk etc.

If the development time to use Pi's was a lot less than the PLC solution (ie 1/2 cost or even less) I'd think about Pi's.

If you was asked to design a production line, would you use a Raspberry Pi
Or a PLC using a ladder program controlling 100/O/Ps 100/I/Ps 100/ sensors.

[W. H. Heydt]

Actually, it's *more* expensive because the PCB is more complex, since it brings out every interface the SoC has. While the CM is discounted by at least one supplier now, the list price is $40. The dev kit (CM, dev carrier board, camera and display adapters) was originally $200, that has been at $100 for some time.

ouch, they are fleecing you over there. Current UK prices from RS:
compute module Dev kit: £36.29 (no camera module but adapter board is included)
Compute module (only) £19.49

I've seen the prices cheaper, I think its the exchange rate.

Comparison prices:
The Pi1B+ is £20.50 (£1.01 more expensive than the compute module) (and out of stock).
The A+ is £17.00 (£2.49 cheaper) (and also out of stock)
The Pi 3 B is £29.99

That's why I noted the availability of discounts. The RS subsidiary in the US (Allied) was still showing $40 CM, $100 dev kit last I looked. The trick is to order from RS Exports, which--unlike the regular RS web site--*will* ship to the US instead of redirecting one to Allied. (The Allied web site is not being very responsive at the moment. Newark--Farnell US company--is showing the CM at $40 and the dev kit at $103.)

It may be silly, but when I'm out where I may be talking with random people about Pis (Jams, Maker Faire), I like to have a CM with me because from time to time you get a question ("I need to use two cameras" or "I need more GPIO") where the obvious answer is "CM". Even many people familiar with the Pi have never heard of the CM, let alone seen one. At the last Maker Faire (in May 2016) I pointed out the CM to one person and was able to show him a CM, a dev carrier, and a WD SATA Adapter. The official RPF rep there didn't have a CM with him, so he was rather grateful that I did.

[Elfen]

Actually, it's *more* expensive because the PCB is more complex, since it brings out every interface the SoC has. While the CM is discounted by at least one supplier now, the list price is $40. The dev kit (CM, dev carrier board, camera and display adapters) was originally $200, that has been at $100 for some time.

ouch, they are fleecing you over there. Current UK prices from RS:
compute module Dev kit: £36.29 (no camera module but adapter board is included)
Compute module (only) £19.49

I've seen the prices cheaper, I think its the exchange rate.

Comparison prices:
The Pi1B+ is £20.50 (£1.01 more expensive than the compute module) (and out of stock).
The A+ is £17.00 (£2.49 cheaper) (and also out of stock)
The Pi 3 B is £29.99

That's why I noted the availability of discounts. The RS subsidiary in the US (Allied) was still showing $40 CM, $100 dev kit last I looked. The trick is to order from RS Exports, which--unlike the regular RS web site--*will* ship to the US instead of redirecting one to Allied. (The Allied web site is not being very responsive at the moment. Newark--Farnell US company--is showing the CM at $40 and the dev kit at $103.)

It may be silly, but when I'm out where I may be talking with random people about Pis (Jams, Maker Faire), I like to have a CM with me because from time to time you get a question ("I need to use two cameras" or "I need more GPIO") where the obvious answer is "CM". Even many people familiar with the Pi have never heard of the CM, let alone seen one. At the last Maker Faire (in May 2016) I pointed out the CM to one person and was able to show him a CM, a dev carrier, and a WD SATA Adapter. The official RPF rep there didn't have a CM with him, so he was rather grateful that I did.

That has always been my issue with the CM board in the USA - anywhere I go, it is ridiculously over priced compared to the other boards. This is why I never got one.

[W. H. Heydt]

That has always been my issue with the CM board in the USA - anywhere I go, it is ridiculously over priced compared to the other boards. This is why I never got one.

I don't have a problem with the price of the CM. What caused me to put it off for a long time was the price of the dev kit since you need a carrier board to do anything with a CM in the first place. The price drop from $200 to $100 helped a lot...and if you want to play with one, go to RS Exports (http://export.rsdelivers.com/) and you can get a dev kit for $52.62 (http://export.rsdelivers.com/product/ra ... 34164.aspx). What really got me moving to get a CM dev kit was the launch of the WD SATA Adapter.

[mikronauts]

Thank you for this information.

I was not aware of export.rsdelivers.com !!!

That has always been my issue with the CM board in the USA - anywhere I go, it is ridiculously over priced compared to the other boards. This is why I never got one.

I don't have a problem with the price of the CM. What caused me to put it off for a long time was the price of the dev kit since you need a carrier board to do anything with a CM in the first place. The price drop from $200 to $100 helped a lot...and if you want to play with one, go to RS Exports (http://export.rsdelivers.com/) and you can get a dev kit for $52.62 (http://export.rsdelivers.com/product/ra ... 34164.aspx). What really got me moving to get a CM dev kit was the launch of the WD SATA Adapter.

[W. H. Heydt]

Thank you for this information.

I was not aware of export.rsdelivers.com !!!

Neither was I until just a few months ago when RS offered some original Model A Pis for sale, but only on the UK web site. After trying to find a way to buy a couple of them, I got pointed to the export site, which runs off the UK catalog. I still ran into some issues, but it worked out in the end. Now if something shows up that I want to get and it isn't on the US web sites I have the RS exports site in "reserve".

[BMS Doug]

Thank you for this information.

I was not aware of export.rsdelivers.com !!!

Neither was I until just a few months ago when RS offered some original Model A Pis for sale, but only on the UK web site. After trying to find a way to buy a couple of them, I got pointed to the export site, which runs off the UK catalog. I still ran into some issues, but it worked out in the end. Now if something shows up that I want to get and it isn't on the US web sites I have the RS exports site in "reserve".

Of extra value to Bill as he has to pay extra shipping charges to get stuff from America to Canada, buying from the UK may take longer for the shipping but the total cost might well be lower.

[boyoh]

Jamesh, Could you give me answered to my question please.


If you was asked to design a production line, would you use a Raspberry Pi
Or a PLC using a ladder program controlling 100/O/Ps 100/I/Ps 100/ sensors.
Take in mind the the technicians working there have never had experience with
Raspberry Pi or it's programming

[jamesh]

Jamesh, Could you give me answered to my question please.


If you was asked to design a production line, would you use a Raspberry Pi
Or a PLC using a ladder program controlling 100/O/Ps 100/I/Ps 100/ sensors.
Take in mind the the technicians working there have never had experience with
Raspberry Pi or it's programming

No, because I don't know the answer.