High quality and performance

Auvidea’s main focus is developing and producing carrier boards for NVIDIA Jetson systems. These modules provide the performance and power efficiency to run autonomous machines software, faster and with less power. Each is a complete System-on-Module (SOM), with CPU, GPU, PMIC, DRAM and flash storage – saving development time and money. Just select the SOM that’s right for the application and build the custom system around it to meet its specific needs.

In-house manufacturing

With high-tech SMT production lines with 3D AOI in-house, Auvidea shows a great flexibility in creating small to large quantities of both standard and custom products.

To get an insight into the production of a carrier board in just 24 seconds at Auvidea’s location in Bavaria please click the youtube video.

Developing a custom carrier board in 4 weeks to production

Auvidea, as a vertically structured company, primarily provides its services and solutions in-house.

Product development:

• conception
• circuit design (Altium Designer)
• PCB layout (3 D models – step model)

Software integration:

• MCU code (for system management)
• low level Linux programming (device tree adaptation)
• board support packages (BSP)

Mechanical integration:

• heat sink and cooling design
• enclosure design (Fusion360)
• custom extrusion profiles

To give you an idea of ​​what is possible with Auvidea from prototype construction to series production we have mapped out an actual customer project in individual process steps along with a timeline.

May 21, 2020: CNX100: developing custom NX carrier in 6 weeks to production
Auvidea was contracted to design and manufacture a custom carrier board for the Xavier NX. The challenge was to start the project and to deliver a first production batch of more than 100 pcs in 6 weeks. This carrier features 4PPoE (PoE++ or 802.3bt), M.2 slot for 5G modems (with dual SIM and USB 3.0), mPCIe, MikroBUS, LM823 Wifi, dual CSI-2 cameras and optional battery charger.

May 23, 2020: CNX100: mechanical design complete
We have finished the placement of mechanical components: connectors, M.2 slots, hex spacers, mount holes, MikroBus headers, Wifi module. A step file was delivered and the customer verified, that it fits his enclosure design.

May 27, 2020: CNX100: design completed
We have completed the schematic entry and layout in-house and placed an order for 5 prototype PCBs. Sourcing of unique components is proceeding. Total components: 664. These are all SMD components (with the exception of the 2 optional MicroFit headers) so our in-house fully automated SMT assembly line can pick and place the components efficiently.

June 4, 2020: CNX100: first 5 prototype boards build
After a few little corrections of the components we populated a Jetson Nano module and booted Linux within 1 hour. The basic interfaces tested fine.

June 5, 2020: CNX100: PoE++ (802.3bt) is now working
With the quick help of Silvertel’s tech support we were able to identify the problem with the Silvertel AG5810 60W PoE++ (PD) module and the Netgear PoE+ switch. We had to remove capacitors at the power input of the AG5810 module. This capacitance caused issues with the PoE signature. We selected this module as the limited power budget of PoE+ (802.3at = 23W max) is not able to power a Xavier NX system at full load. By supplying power via all 4 signal pairs (4PPoE) the AG5810 can deliver up to 60W (12V 5A). Next we will test the system under full load with a 802.3bt injector (Phihong POE90U-1BT).

June 9, 2020: CNX100: PCB production of rev 2 started
Today the production of 120 PCBs with custom layer stack and controlled impedance and 1 week service was started. It was a challenge to find a PCB vendor with this kind of service. Production takes place in Europe so the final product can be shipped over night.

June 18, 2020: CNX100: first production run of rev 2
12:00: 53 PCBs were received out of the order of 120 pcs. The PCB vendor had a production issue and needs to redo the rest.
14:00: 2 prototypes are assembled and 3D AOI tested. Quick system level testing shows that boards are operational.
21:00: 51 pcs are assembled and 3D AOI tested. All components are automatically placed by our pick & place line. They are shipped out to the customer by overnight courier.

The target was 6 weeks from the start of the project to the completion of the first production run – we did it in 4 weeks and 1 day.