RK3188-SOM AND RK3188-SOM-4GB
System-on-Module boards capable of Linux and Android boot
USER’S MANUAL
Document revision B, March 2017
Designed by OLIMEX Ltd, 2015
All boards produced by Olimex LTD are ROHS compliant
OLIMEX© 2017
RK3188-SOM user's manual
DISCLAIMER
© 2015 Olimex Ltd. Olimex®, logo and combinations thereof, are registered trademarks of Olimex Ltd. Other product
names may be trademarks of others and the rights belong to their respective owners.
The information in this document is provided in connection with Olimex products. No license, express or implied
or otherwise, to any intellectual property right is granted by this document or in connection with the sale of
Olimex products.
The hardware designs of A20-SOM and A20-SOM-4GB development boards are considered intellectual property to
Olimex. Hardware schematics are shared with the customers. However, the board layout files are considered copyright
material and would not be shared.
The hardware design of RK3188-SOM-EVB development board is considered open source hardware. The source design
files are published online and accessible by everyone.
The software is released under GPL.
It is possible that the pictures in this manual differ from the latest revision of the board.
The product described in this document is subject to continuous development and improvements. All particulars of the
product and its use contained in this document are given by OLIMEX in good faith. However all warranties implied or
expressed including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for purpose are excluded. This
document is intended only to assist the reader in the use of the product. OLIMEX Ltd. shall not be liable for any loss or
damage arising from the use of any information in this document or any error or omission in such information or any
incorrect use of the product.
This evaluation board/kit is intended for use for engineering development, demonstration, or evaluation purposes only
and is not considered by OLIMEX to be a finished end-product fit for general consumer use. Persons handling the
product must have electronics training and observe good engineering practice standards. As such, the goods being
provided are not intended to be complete in terms of required design-, marketing-, and/or manufacturing-related
protective considerations, including product safety and environmental measures typically found in end products that
incorporate such semiconductor components or circuit boards.
Olimex currently deals with a variety of customers for products, and therefore our arrangement with the user is not
exclusive. Olimex assumes no liability for applications assistance, customer product design, software performance, or
infringement of patents or services described herein.
THERE IS NO WARRANTY FOR THE DESIGN MATERIALS AND THE COMPONENTS
USED TO CREATE RK3188-SOM, RK3188-SOM-4GB AND RK3188-SOM-EVB. THEY
ARE CONSIDERED SUITABLE ONLY FOR RK3188-SOM, RK3188-SOM-4GB AND
RK3188-SOM-EVB, RESPECTIVELY.
Page 2 of 39
OLIMEX© 2017
RK3188-SOM user's manual
Table of Contents
DISCLAIMER............................................................................................................. 2
CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW........................................................................................5
1. Introduction to the chapter.......................................................................................................5
1.1 Introduction to SOM (System-On-a-Module).......................................................................5
1.2 Target market of the board.....................................................................................................6
1.3 Features of RK3188-SOM.......................................................................................................6
1.4 Board variants..........................................................................................................................7
1.5 Board versions used in the manual........................................................................................ 7
1.6 Document organization........................................................................................................... 7
CHAPTER 2: BOARD DESCRIPTION................................................................... 8
2. Introduction to the chapter.......................................................................................................8
2.1 Layout (top view).....................................................................................................................8
2.2 Layout (bottom view)...............................................................................................................9
CHAPTER 3: SETTING UP THE RK3188-SOM BOARD.................................. 10
3. Introduction to the chapter.....................................................................................................10
3.1 Electrostatic and electrical polarity warnings.....................................................................10
3.2 Requirements......................................................................................................................... 10
3.3 Preparing the OS to boot.......................................................................................................11
3.3.1 Should I boot from the microSD card or from the NAND memory?...................................................... 11
3.3.2 Preparing a Debian microSD card..............................................................................................................12
3.3.3 Uploading a Debian image to the NAND...................................................................................................12
3.4 Powering the board................................................................................................................14
3.4.1 Stand-alone powering...................................................................................................................................14
3.4.2 Mounted powering....................................................................................................................................... 15
3.5 Button functions.....................................................................................................................16
3.6 Interacting with the board....................................................................................................16
3.7 Expanding the Debian file system space..............................................................................17
3.8 Changing the default image resolution................................................................................17
3.9 Connecting and calibrating a display...................................................................................18
3.9.1 Android calibration......................................................................................................................................19
3.9.2 Debian calibration........................................................................................................................................20
3.10 Software support..................................................................................................................20
CHAPTER 4: THE RK3188 PROCESSOR........................................................... 21
4. Introduction to the chapter.....................................................................................................21
4.1 The processor......................................................................................................................... 21
4.2 Block diagram........................................................................................................................ 22
CHAPTER 5: CONTROL CIRCUITY................................................................... 23
5. Introduction to the chapter.....................................................................................................23
5.1 Reset........................................................................................................................................23
5.2 Clocks......................................................................................................................................23
5.3 Power supply circuit.............................................................................................................. 23
Page 3 of 39
OLIMEX© 2017
RK3188-SOM user's manual
CHAPTER 6: CONNECTORS AND PINOUT......................................................24
6. Introduction to the chapter.....................................................................................................24
6.1 Communication with RK3188-SOM in Linux.................................................................... 24
6.2 UART_DEBUG header......................................................................................................... 24
6.3 MicroSD card connector....................................................................................................... 25
6.3.1 SD/MMC slot................................................................................................................................................26
6.4 GPIO connectors....................................................................................................................27
6.4.1 GPIO-1 (General Purpose Input/Output) 40pin connector..................................................................... 28
6.4.2 GPIO-2 (General Purpose Input/Output) 40pin connector..................................................................... 29
6.4.3 GPIO-3 (General Purpose Input/Output) 40pin connector..................................................................... 30
6.4.4 GPIO-4 (General Purpose Input/Output) 40pin connector..................................................................... 31
6.5 LCD_CON 40pin connector..................................................................................................32
6.6 Jumper description................................................................................................................33
6.7 Additional hardware components........................................................................................ 33
CHAPTER 7: SCHEMATICS..................................................................................34
7. Introduction to the chapter.....................................................................................................34
7.1 Eagle schematic......................................................................................................................34
7.2 General physical dimensions.................................................................................................34
CHAPTER 8: REVISION HISTORY AND SUPPORT........................................ 35
8. Introduction to the chapter.....................................................................................................35
8.1 Document revision................................................................................................................. 35
8.2 Board revision........................................................................................................................ 35
8.3 Useful web links..................................................................................................................... 35
8.4 How to purchase?...................................................................................................................37
8.5 Order codes.............................................................................................................................37
8.6 Frequently asked questions...................................................................................................38
8.7 Product support..................................................................................................................... 40
Page 4 of 39
OLIMEX© 2017
RK3188-SOM user's manual
CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW
1. Introduction to the chapter
Thank you for choosing this single board computer from Olimex! This document provides a user’s
guide for the RK3188-SOM and RK3188-SOM-4GB boards. As an overview, this chapter gives the
scope of this document and lists the board’s features. The document’s organization is then detailed.
The RK3188-SOM development board enables code development of applications running on the
RK3188 microcontroller, manufactured by Rockchip from China.
The RK3188-SOM is typically used together with RK3188-SOM-EVB which features most of the
peripherals and connectors needed for full evaluation and utilization of the RK3188 processor.
The hardware design of RK3188-SOM development board is considered intellectual property to
Olimex. The hardware layout design files are considered copyright material and would not be
distributed. The original schematics, however, are distributed in popular file format.
RK3188-SOM-EVB board is an open-source, open-hardware project and all documentation is
available to the customer.
The software support for both boards is open-source and released under GPL license.
1.1 Introduction to SOM (System-On-a-Module)
OLIMEX System-on-Module (SOM) boards are powerful Linux-capable boards. They follow a
low-cost modular design which allows rapid product development. Each of these boards has two
parts – a main part which nests the processor, the memory and the power control unit and the
peripheral part which contains the USB ports, the video output and most of the connectors. SOM
designs are targeted at customers who want to apply custom modifications and own solutions based
on a specific processor without having to deal with multi layer PCBs with controlled impedance and
BGA assembly. This makes it possible to create simple boards (that might be manufactured by your
local board manufacturer) containing only the peripherals you need with the dimensions and shape
suitable for your specific solution.
Both the main part and the peripheral part of the SOM system have support in the official Android
and Debian images distributed by Olimex and maintained by Olimex and the Linux community.
These images are typically available at the wiki articles of the boards.
The peripheral part of the SOM design is considered Open Source HardWare (OSHW) and the
customer has access to the board source files that we used to manufacture it. The part of the design
that has the main microcontroller is considered proprietary design and design files would not be
shared. If you are looking for open source design of the processors used please check the
OLinuXino boards. OLinuXino board designs are fully open source but harder to implement in own
solutions and require more of a hardware experience to do so. Nevertheless, OLinuXino boards are
pretty good choice for evaluating the capabilities of the embedded processors.
Page 5 of 39
京公网安备 11010802033920号
EEWORLD
