Forlinx Embedded UP4 is a new family of pin-to-pin compatible system-on-modules currently offered with Rockchip RK3568J/RK3562J, NXP i.MX 9352, or Allwinner T527N/T536 processors.
The UP4 modules measure just 40×40 mm and expose 487 pins through a hybrid LCC (Leadless Chip Carrier) and LGA (Land Grid Array) design with 1.0mm contact pitch and 1.27mm ball pitch, respectively. This should allow companies to design a single carrier board for multiple CPU variants.
Forlinx UP4 specifications:
SoC
FET-MX9352-UP4 – NXP i.MX 9352 with 2x Arm Cortex-A55 cores @ up to 1.7 GHz, Cortex-M33 real-time core @ 250 MHz, 2D GPU only, 0.5 TOPS Arm Ethos U65 microNPU
FET3568-UP4 – Rockchip RK3568B2/J with 4x Arm Cortex-A55 cores @ up to 2.0/1.8 GHz, Arm Mali-G52 MP2 3D GPU, 1 TOPS AI NPU
FET3562J-UP4 – Rockchip RK3562J with 4x Arm Cortex-A53 cores @ 1.8 GHz, Arm Mali-G52-2EE 3D GPU, 1 TOPS NPU
FET527N-UP4 – Allwinner T527N with octa-core CPU (4x Arm Cortex-A55 cores @ 1.8GHz + 4x Arm Cortex-A55 cores @ 1.4GHz), 200 MHz RISC-V core, 600MHz HiFi4 DSP, Arm G57 MC1 3D GPU, and 2 TOPS NPU
FET536-UP4 – Allwinner T536 with 4x Arm Cortex-A55 cores @ up to 1.6GHz, 600 MHz RISC-V core, low-power RISC-V core, 2D GPU, 2 TOPS NPU
System Memory / Storage
NXP – 1GB LPDDR4 + 8GB eMMC flash
Rockchip RK3568 – 4GB or 8GB LPDDR4X + 32GB or 64GB eMMC flash
Rockchip RK3562J – 1GB or 2GB LPDDR4 + 8GB or 16GB eMMC flash
Allwinner T527N – 2GB or4GB LPDDR4 + 16GB or 32GB eMMC flash
LCC castellated holes and LGA pads
Storage
Up to 2x SD/SDIO
FSPI for serial NOR/NAND flash (Rockchip only)
Up to 3x SATA (Rockchip only)
Display
HDMI 2.0 up to 4096×2304 @ 60Hz (Rockchip RK3568/Allwinner T527N)
24-bit parallel RGB up to 1280 x 800 @ 60 Hz, 1366 x 768 @ 60 Hz, or 1920 x 1080 @ 60 Hz depending on SoC
LVDS up to 1280 x 800 @ 60 Hz, 1366 x 768 @ 60 Hz, or 1920 x 1080 @ 60 Hz depending on SoC
Up to 2x 4-lane MIPI DSI up to 1920 x 1080 @ 60 Hz or 2048 x 1080 @ 60Hz depending on SoC
eDP 1.3 up to 2560 x 1600 @ 60Hz (Rockchip RK3568) or 4K @ 30 Hz (Allwinner T527N)
Camera
Up to 4x MIPI CSI
Parallel CSI (Allwinner only)
Audio
Up to 3x SAI or 4x I2S, depending on SoC
Up to 2x MQS (NXP only)
Up to 3x PDM, up to 2x 8-channel DMIC (Allwinner T527N)
Up to 1x S/PDIF (Rockchip RK3562)
Built-in audio codec (Rockchip RK3562/Allwinner T536)
Up to 1x single-wire audio (Allwinner only)
Networking – Up to 2x Gigabit Ethernet, one with optional TSN (NXP); RJ3562J: GbE + FE instead
USB
Up to 2x USB 2.0 Host/OTG
Up to 2x USB 3.0
PCIe – Up to 2x PCIe Gen3 x2 (RK3568) or 1x PCIe Gen2.1 x1 (RK3562/T527N/T536)
Low-speed I/Os
Up to 10x UART
Up to 3x CAN 2.0B
Up to 8x I2C, 2x I3C (NXP only)
Up to 8x SPI
Up to 28x ADC (the number of ADCs highly depends on the selected SoC; Allwinner T536 has the most)
Up to 34x PWM (the number of PWMs highly depends on the selected SoC; Allwinner T536has the most)
Up to 1x IR Tx, up to 4x Rx (Infrared on Allwinner only)
Debugging – JTAG (NXP only)
Supply Voltage – 5V
Dimensions – 40 x 40 x 1.2 mm
Temperature Range – -40°C ~ +85°C
NXP i.MX 9352 UF4 SoM (FET-MX9352-UP4)
It’s not the first time we’ve seen a hybrid LCC + BGA design for system-on-modules, and earlier examples include the MYIR Tech MYC-YR3562 and Forlinx FET-MA35-S2. Here, the company provides various processor options for the same design, so it should be easier to evaluate various solutions during development. It offers an alternative to the OSM Size L standard (45x45mm with 662 contacts), with a smaller footprint, but offering fewer I/Os and not being an industry standard.
I initially assumed it would allow easier switching between variants later on in case of unexpected technical or logistical issues, or simply to provide different variants of a specific product. But in practice, while all modules share the same footprint, they are only pin-to-pin compatible with a few common interfaces, such as dual Ethernet, USB 2.0, a few I2C, SPI, UART, and so on, and differ a lot in terms of I/O capabilities. Multimedia capabilities also vary, with some only equipped with a 2D GPU, while others feature a 3D GPU.
Five different processors targeting industrial, edge AI, AI vision, and edge computing applications
The FET-MX9352-UP4 targets industrial applications, the FET3568-UP4 high-performance edge AI, the FET3562J-UP4 industrial AI and vision, the GET527N-UP4 high-performance edge computing, and the FET536-UP4 industrial AI and vision.
Software support also varies. Forlinx lists Linux 5.10.198 + Qt 5.15.8 for the T536 module, Linux 5.15.104 + Qt 5.12.5 for the T527N SoM, Linux 6.1.36 + Qt 6.5.0 for the NXP module, Linux 5.10.160 + Qt 5.15.8 for the RK3568 module, and Linux 5.10.198 + Qt 5.15 for the RK3562 SoM. Unsurprisingly, NXP has the most recent software package.
Carrier board image provided by Forlinx (clearly AI-generated)
The company has yet to provide pricing or a product page for each of the modules, and instead, you can find an overview and product briefs on a dedicated page for the Forlinx UP4 system-on-module family.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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