The Popular Raspberry Pi®
The Raspberry Pi® platform is gaining more and more recognition. With its exceptional capabilities and low price, engineers are exploring more applications for it in the design field.
Among global computing platforms, Raspberry Pi® ranks third in sales, only behind Microsoft® Windows® PCs and Apple® Macintosh®. Its success lies in its cost-effectiveness and flexibility. The Raspberry Pi® 4 Model B is priced at $35, offering a 64-bit quad-core ARM processor, gigabit Ethernet, wireless, Bluetooth, 4 USB ports, a micro SD slot, and dual HDMI outputs.
Although the Raspberry Pi® was designed for the education market to teach computer science to students globally, it has quickly expanded into fields beyond education, gradually entering the industrial/commercial market.
MCC and Raspberry Pi®
Product Design
The powerful features and diverse capabilities of Raspberry Pi® have been widely applied across the industry, where MCC has integrated Raspberry Pi into our WebDAQ Series data loggers. Based on Raspberry Pi® 3 and data acquisition devices, MCC has developed the high-performance WebDAQ 504 Acoustic/Vibration Logger. This device can acquire and record 24-bit data, has 4 channels, and performs FFT mathematical analysis on each channel while displaying data on the UI interface of the web server. The success of Raspberry Pi® in high-performance processors and professional engineering applications proves it as the OEM’s first choice in industrial design.
The Position of Raspberry Pi® in Testing and Measurement
Although the Raspberry Pi® does not have built-in testing and measurement modules, such as analog-to-digital converters (ADC), digital-to-analog converters (DAC), or conditional digital input and output (DIO), these functions can be expanded through USB ports or the 40-pin header that supports SPI and I2C GPIO. Devices that stack directly onto the Raspberry Pi® GPIO are calledHAT (Hardware Attached on Top).
Over the years, more and more makers have released open-source designs, and small companies have begun to sell low-cost multifunctional HAT modules that support both analog and digital input/output. These designs and products are sufficient to meet the needs of the education sector and hobbyist users but have serious deficiencies in professional testing and measurement applications. Most existing HATs are simply assembled without detailed documentation or programming support and cannot be calibrated to ensure product performance.
Calibration of products is a crucial step in the design process because it follows quality metrics and ensures that products perform as specified. Without this process, data obtained from products is inaccurate. If the data is published or used for critical design decisions, the results pose risks. MCC has conducted detailed designs and extensive validation with other testing and measurement companies, making the open-source, low-cost Raspberry Pi HATs stand out when compared to commercial measurement products.
Support for MCC Raspberry Pi® Applications
To bring professional-quality measurement products to the Raspberry Pi® platform, MCC has released a universal library for Linux (UL for Linux) and a series of HAT specifically designed for professional testing and measurement applications.
UL for Linux is an open-source Linux library that supports most MCC USB devices and provides compiled interfaces for Python™ and C / C++®. This library has been validated on multiple Linux distributions, including Raspbian®, which is the most popular distribution on Raspberry Pi® computers. UL for Linux and MCC’s rich selection of USB DAQ devices greatly expand the capabilities of Raspberry Pi® computers.
While USB is the preferred method for connecting DAQ devices in many application fields, it still requires additional cables and enclosures. When size factors are critical to design, HAT solutions will be the appropriate choice. MCC’s HAT series focuses on testing and measurement and the OEM/ODM market. MCC DAQ HAT has high-quality software libraries for Python and C/C++, making development quick and easy. Like other MCC products, DAQ HATs are designed in the USA, using components provided by verified distributors, and the entire product is thoroughly tested and comes with a one-year warranty.
Hardware Attached on Top
MCC DAQ HATs Modules
MCC has launched four testing and measurement application products that comply with the Raspberry Pi HAT standard. These devices are compact and stackable while maintaining the consistent quality of MCC data acquisition products over the past 30 years.
MCC 118 allows users to measure 8 single-ended data samples at a total throughput of 100 KS/s. Up to 8 HAT can be stacked on a single Raspberry Pi to create a 64-channel device, reading data at a maximum sampling combined rate of 320 KS/s.
MCC 152 provides 2 12-bit analog outputs and 8 5V or 3.3V DIO channels, creating a complete multifunctional Raspberry Pi measurement and control system.
MCC 134 features 4 channels of 24-bit thermocouple (TC) input, capable of measuring the most popular TC types, including J, K, R, S, T, N, E, and B. TC types can be selected individually on each channel.
MCC 172 is designed for vibration, sound, and acoustic applications based on Raspberry Pi. It offers two 24-bit analog inputs, with a sampling rate of up to 51.2kS/s/ch for measuring IEPE sensors, such as accelerometers and microphones.
Building and Buying – Decision Factors
Whether for personal use or team use, whether building oneself or purchasing, it is important to understand the purchase cost, comprehend the design principles, consider corresponding risks, and understand personal capabilities or team technical levels.
As mentioned above, many engineers use Raspberry Pi HAT modules’ open-source designs to build systems. This development process requires multiple skills, including understanding SPI or I2C programming chips, locally sourcing parts (or purchasing kits), and soldering. Undeniably, for those confident and interested in searching communication platforms for programming advice and examples, this is an exciting challenge.
User skill levels, device complexity, time required to complete projects, budgets, and failure costs all influence the decision-making process of building versus buying. Since learning is a key objective, users who choose to build their devices tend to lean more towards the personal and education markets; however, the industrial/commercial market tends to prefer directly purchasing devices, where effective resource utilization and faster time to market are key factors.
Building and Buying – Waveform Acquisition Devices
To explain the building vs. buying decision for complex devices, please refer to MCC 118‘s design, where a single HAT achieves a collection rate of 100 KS/s, and stacked boards can reach collection rates of up to 320 KS/s. Although the Raspberry Pi has a quad-core processor that provides sufficient processing power and single-point measurements, it still cannot provide enough processing power to maintain the high collection speeds of MCC 118.
The only solution for high-speed data acquisition is to use MCC‘s proprietary microprocessor in MCC 118, ensuring a seamless, accurate data stream. MCC 118 provides a second processor, which adds additional complexity. Only teams that are highly skilled in system design, firmware, and software development can undertake such designs.
In addition to the advanced skills required to implement the solution, more complex circuit boards like MCC 118 also require a corresponding amount of device validation. During the device validation process, complete documentation must be created so that others can effectively use it.
As mentioned above, products like MCC 118 require a significant amount of time and resources for development. Therefore, compared to independently building devices, purchasing products from high-quality suppliers proves to be more economical.
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