Variscite has added a new NXP i.MX95-based system-on-module (SoM) to its VAR-SMARC family, targeting edge AI, industrial IoT, and medical applications. The VAR-SMARC-MX95 SoM accelerates processing while retaining the extensive security features of the company’s new Pin2Pin family, launched earlier this year.
AI/ML, graphics, and real-time processing capabilities
The heterogeneous core architecture of the NXP i.MX95 opens the door not only to advanced artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) applications, but also combines them with real-time processing capabilities. With the NXP system-on-chip (SoC), the VAR-SMARC-MX95 allows two co-processors—the Arm Cortex-M7 and Arm Cortex-M33—dedicated to real-time processing needs, in addition to the six Arm Cortex-A55 cores.
Since NXP’s SoC also comes with the new eIQ Neutron neural processing unit (NPU) and Arm Mali-G310 graphics processing unit (GPU), it can support high-end 2D and 3D graphics and visual processing applications. Similar to the DART-MX95, the VAR-SMARC-MX95 features a strong image signal processor (ISP) and two MIPI CSI-2 interfaces, further supplementing the vision capabilities of the SoM.
NXP’s i.MX95 application processor is already available in the DART SoM family and now it is seamlessly compatible with the SMARC form factor, said Ohad Yaniv, Variscite’s CEO.
“While processors in DART SoMs can be upgraded or downgraded based on customer needs, the SMARC pinout is also vendor-agnostic, and our customers like this flexibility,” Yaniv added. “In the new VAR-SMARC-MX95, advanced compute power accompanies this greater degree of flexibility.”
Variscite’s NXP iMX95-based VAR-SMARC-MX95 SoM (Source: Variscite)
Wireless connectivity is upgradable too
The SMARC pinout specifies which signals—such as UARTs, Ethernet, display interfaces, and camera links—are assigned to defined pins on the 314-pin edge connector. If your device uses SMARC-compatible electronics, you can just replace the SoM attached to the carrier board to upgrade the features of your devices. This is the flexibility customers seek with SMARC-compliant SoMs.
Moreover, If you initially deployed with Variscite’s i.MX8M-based SoM but later need more performance, you can switch to their i.MX95-based VAR-SMARC-MX95–or even a different vendor’s SMARC module–and the carrier board “just works.”
However, the SMARC pinout doesn’t particularly specify wireless connectivity.
Yaniv notes that because SMARC doesn’t define a standardized wireless connectivity interface, upgrading wireless on an SMARC-compliant SoM could be difficult. The decision to update the wireless interface is entirely up to the manufacturer/vendor, and they may choose not to, he added.
“This is why Variscite went a bit further and provided not just an upgrade path for the processing that complies with the SMARC standard, but we are also providing the customer with an upgrade path for wireless connectivity,” Yaniv adds.
The new VAR-SMARC-MX95 offers three wireless microcontroller options: NXP’s IW610, IW611, or IW612. The latter is a tri-radio Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, and 802.15.4 single-chip solution that supports Thread and Zigbee (The IW611 does not include the radio).
“We understand that SoMs in this Pin2Pin family require comprehensive wireless elements,” Yaniv said. “We have in-house manufacturing, so if a customer wants to upgrade to a Wi-Fi 7 module, for example, we can support it.”
With the industry’s increasing emphasis on hardware-based security, the VAR-SMARC Pin2Pin family delivers a layered approach to security, which is also leveraged in the VAR-SMARC-MX95. This includes an on-module TPM 2.0 chip certified to FIPS 140-3 Level 2, processor-level secure boot, and cryptographic acceleration from NXP.
The new SoM inherits the extensive security features of the VAR-SMARC-MX8M-PLUS, Yaniv said. “Security needs to be addressed at multiple layers, from dedicated hardware security elements to software support and continuous updates.”
Yaniv continued: “In the previous VAR-SMARC SoM, we included integrated security elements, supporting TPM and other encryption tools. This continues to be part of the new VAR-SMARC-MX95. Together with the on-chip security elements of the i.MX95, this new SoM has an even better security package.”
Yaniv also noted that as devices become continuously connected, whether through wired or wireless interfaces, connectivity itself becomes a security liability. “Maintaining security, therefore, requires continuous updates, driver revisions, and vulnerability patches.”
NXP provides the EdgeLock secure enclave (see block diagram) with the i.MX 95 applications processor. This enclave encompasses isolated security blocks within the chip that receive install keys, updates, and certificates from the cloud-based EdgeLock 2GO platform. The TPM validates the updates and keys, making sure they haven’t been tampered with. Together, EdgeLock and the TPM 2.0 ensure security throughout the product lifecycle.
In addition, the inclusion of TPM 2.0 and NXP’s EdgeLock 2GO complies with the stringent EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA).
“Since CRA compliance is a concern for our customers, it is a concern for Variscite,” Yaniv said. “This is why we have been thorough about complying with the regulation with our recent releases.”
Block diagram of NXP’s i.MX 95 applications processor (Source: NXP Semiconductors)
Variscite’s entire product portfolio provides extensive software support for embedded applications. Developers have several operating system (OS) options, including Linux (Yocto, Debian, and Boot2Qt), Android, FreeRTOS, and Zephyr on the VAR-SMARC-MX95.
“You can run these four operating systems in parallel on this device, and we provide you with the support entirely on our own,” Yaniv said. “We do not outsource it.”
The VAR-SMARC-MX95 is a crucial addition to Variscite‘s SoM portfolio in light of the increasing shift toward advanced processing tasks at the edge. It is complemented by multi-layered security and a host of connectivity options that are required by edge AI, vision, medical, and Industrial IoT applications. Moreover, Variscite offers a fair degree of configuration flexibility to its customers as it updates the processing capability of its SoMs with the SMARC pinout.