Re: Stuck AUX button (was: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04)
Am 30.07.2012 um 06:53 schrieb Joshua Judson Rosen: > "Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller" writes: >> >> Am 05.07.2012 um 00:13 schrieb Boudewijn: >> >>On Tuesday 03 July 2012 11:15:16 Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: >>> The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during >>> the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA >>> grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. >>> And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in >>interruptions. >>Can that also be the reason for the AUX button getting stuck? Does the >>warping of the CPU-PCB also warp the main PCB, or is there no reason to >>suspect so? >> >> No, the AUX button is a different issue. It is an accumulation of tolerances >> of the button position and how the whole PCB fits into the plasic >> case. > > On that note..., my GTA02 has been sitting on a shelf in my study > with a stuck AUX button. > > Is there any special advice for getting it un-stuck? Is is also stuck if the front (display) cover is not mounted? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Stuck AUX button (was: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04)
"Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller" writes: > > Am 05.07.2012 um 00:13 schrieb Boudewijn: > > On Tuesday 03 July 2012 11:15:16 Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: > > The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during > > the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA > > grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. > > And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in > interruptions. > Can that also be the reason for the AUX button getting stuck? Does the > warping of the CPU-PCB also warp the main PCB, or is there no reason to > suspect so? > > No, the AUX button is a different issue. It is an accumulation of tolerances > of the button position and how the whole PCB fits into the plasic > case. On that note..., my GTA02 has been sitting on a shelf in my study with a stuck AUX button. Is there any special advice for getting it un-stuck? -- "Don't be afraid to ask (λf.((λx.xx) (λr.f(rr." ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Hi, what has happened since the last report? (see below) Am 03.07.2012 um 11:15 schrieb Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller: > Hi all, > I did a long telephone call this morning to discuss the production situation > of > the GTA04A4 boards. > > Am 25.06.2012 um 20:56 schrieb Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller: > >> Hi, >> >> Am 25.06.2012 um 16:16 schrieb Gilles Filippini: >> >>> Hi Nikolaus, >>> >>> Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller a écrit , Le 31/05/2012 17:36: So please expect that it will become End of June for delivery... >>> >>> Since we are near to End of June, time for asking how is it going? ;) >> >> Neither good nor bad... >> >> This means: >> * we have already shipped some of the GTA04 Group Tour boards >> * some friends have upgraded to a complete OpenPhoenux (we have a handful >> reworked GTA02) >> * but we still have a list of open orders for roughly 90 GTA04 Group Tour >> boards >> >> The production company had stopped again to do some more >> analyses and the last status I received today is that they had >> again made some X-Ray. Now they think they can again optimize >> the soldering process a little so that we don't get so much broken >> boards that need manual rework. > > So here is a copy of the latest X-Ray image of the DM3730CBP with short > circuits: > > > http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20120622-GTA04A4-schlecht-01.jpg > > If you want to compare to the GTA04A3 board X-Ray (with one short): > > > http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20110707-GTA04A3-schlecht-xr002.jpg > > or the GTA04A2 board (where only 1 unit exists): > > http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20101109-GTA04A2-overview.jpg > > >> Every rework ruins some components (unfortunately 1 DM3730 >> + 1 Memory chip > 50 EUR) and costs intensive working time. >> And we simply can't afford that if it happens too often... >> >> So the highest priority is to get rid of the root cause for these >> soldering failures. > > After analyzing and discussing the X-Ray images we now think we > understand what happens (but you never know if you are right...). > > The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during > the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA > grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. > And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in interruptions. > > This theory correlates exactly with the error patterns we see: > > * some 50% of the boards come out of the soldering process with > shorts on VDD1, VDD2 and/or VIO which are mostly available > on the center balls > > * if the chip has no short on the power supply or is reworked some > 50% of the boards have interruptions which makes a single function > fail. Sometimes the SD interface has just 3 data lines, sometimes the > WLAN chip. Sometimes some sensor is not working. Sometimes > the USB is not working, or one display data link distorting the > colors etc. In the meantime we got serveral very good hints that prove this is the right theory: 1. OpenPandora had no problems with the OMAP3530 but also has similar issues (shorts on the power lines) with the DM3730CBP 2. thanks to one of the guys here on this list we could get our own X-Ray session at the demo center of a company that produces such X-Ray devices for electronics production. Using this photo session (many pictures [1]...), we could see: a) all variants of the PCB (GTA04A2, GTA04A3, GTA04A4) have the effect that the center balls are thicker than those on the edges which risks they melt together forming a short circuit under the chip b) the effect is stronger with the last production run c) generally everything is ok except the DM3730CBP, even other chips with the same 0.4mm BGA pitch d) the GTA04A2 was populated with a OMAP3530CBB - which is thicker and has a larger silicon die. This must have less warpage than the DM3730. This may also be the reason why the OpenPandora was easily produced while the OpenPandora 1GHz has comparable problems. 3. we were notified of this Texas Instruments document which addresses chip warpage (last slide): > http://www.ti.com/general/docs/lit/getliterature.tsp?baseLiteratureNumber=swpa182 > Although it is for the OMAP4 and has its focus on the PoP memory (where we don't have problems with) it carries a lot of hints for our problem: a) there is warpage risk b) TI knows about it c) warpage may squeeze the center balls so that they have shorts (bingo!) d) there are tricks to reduce the risk (making the stencil opening smaller for the center pads) > > Now comes the crucial question: how can this be improved? > > The specialists of the production company have spent whole weekends > to do more experiments but did not yet find the right trick. It is not that > they do not want to solve the problem (they see it as a challenge) they > simply have not yet found the key. > > One factor is that our GTA04 board has exceptionally squeezed > components (since we
Re: [Gta04-owner] Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
"Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller" writes: > The good answer is that as soon as we decide to continue, > it takes less than 4 weeks to produce, test and ship all missing > boards. They have planned that it works even if holiday season > is coming. And our shipment plan is by sequence of order. So > if you did order early, it is even a little closer. Just a thought... If there are any Group Tour participants who are planning on developing stuff with/for QtMoko, and are feeling frustrated because of not yet having a physical GTA04 in their hands, then: - I would encourage you to get going anyway with cloning the repository, setting up the tool chain, becoming familiar with the codebase, and trying and building some changes. - I undertake to test any patches that anyone may want to send me and to provide feedback on them. In other words, it's still possible to do development but with a remote GTA04. Then when the Group Tour orders arrive, we'll be that much further forward. Regards, Neil ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Am 05.07.2012 um 00:13 schrieb Boudewijn: > On Tuesday 03 July 2012 11:15:16 Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: > > The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during > > the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA > > grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. > > And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in interruptions. > Can that also be the reason for the AUX button getting stuck? Does the > warping of the CPU-PCB also warp the main PCB, or is there no reason to > suspect so? No, the AUX button is a different issue. It is an accumulation of tolerances of the button position and how the whole PCB fits into the plasic case. And in the meantime I have some doubt that there is really warpage of the CPU. It may be an optical illusion because the image is taken from the top just showing enlarged diameter. We have been offered our own X-Ray session next week and will try to make an image in 45 or less degrees, i.e. to find out if the balls have the expected volume but are squeezed by warpage and therefore increase the visible diameter or if there is simply too much solder paste involved and therefore the diameter increases without any warpage of the chip (the reason could also be warpage of the stencil). BR, Nikolaus___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
On Tuesday 03 July 2012 11:15:16 Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: > The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during > the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA > grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. > And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in interruptions. Can that also be the reason for the AUX button getting stuck? Does the warping of the CPU-PCB also warp the main PCB, or is there no reason to suspect so? Thanks for the update! Boudewijn smime.p7s Description: S/MIME cryptographic signature ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [Gta04-owner] Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Hi Glen, Am 03.07.2012 um 19:17 schrieb Glenn: > FYI: > > Surface Mount Technology Association (SMTA): > http://www.linkedin.com/groupItem?seeMore=&split_page=2&type=member&item=57473744&gid=49934 > Quote: "... > Surface Mount Technology Association (SMTA) is now an open group > ..." > > br, thanks for all the material! I will forward some to the production company. Maybe they get new ideas from it. In the mean time I have been recommended to compare X-ray images of the OpenPandora: > http://boards.openpandora.org/index.php?/topic/8689-pandora-naked-totally-naked/page__hl__naked Their soldered OMAP processor (images 06) looks much better. So we have to find out what they are doing differently. Most likely it is just a single detail. BR, Nikolaus ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [Gta04-owner] Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
More - german placed company: Soldering BGAs by Hook or by Crook Dr. Hans Bell, rehm Anlagenbau GmbH + Co. KG and Marco Kämpfert, TechnoLab: http://www.technolab.de/_en/downloads/bgabellkaempferte.pdf Quote: "... In addition to the popcorn effect, non-uniform heat input to the PCB or the PBGA may cause delaminating or twisting, as well as warping of the PBGA substrate and the PCB. The substrate is warped like a bimetallic strip. Shorts and opens often result, as is shown very nicely in Rupprecht’s photos [5]. ... Heat from below, encompassing the entire surface of the PCB, is ideal for rework. The amount of heat input from below may even exceed the amount from above in some cases. If (nearly) eutectic tin-lead solder pastes and soft balls are utilized (BGA balls made from soft solder), the customary reflow parameters are recommended for ball solder joints: 30 to 60 seconds at 200 to 220° C. The best measuring method involves the use of a thermocouple which is placed directly at the ball by inserting it through a suitable drill-hole, as shown in figure 5.2. ... In order to avoid the popcorn effect (the formation of fissures inside the BGA during exposure to heat), it is absolutely essential to observe the specified humidity rating (see JEDEC), as well as the working conditions which result therefrom. It is often advisable to temper BGAs, and in particular PBGAs, before they are processed (see IPC – SM – 786). Formation of Voids A frequently observed phenomenon is the formation of voids in the solder joints, as is shown in figure 5.4. ... Lee provides an excellent overview regarding the formation and prevention of voids when soldering PBGAs [8]. Voids can usually be traced back to outgassing which is caused by flux in the solder paste. A small number of voids does not effect solder joint reliability. To a certain degree, it has even been observed that reliability is improved by voids because they prevent the spreading of fissures. However, under no circumstances should any faith be placed in this phenomenon. ..." br, Glenn ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [Gta04-owner] Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
FYI: Surface Mount Technology Association (SMTA): http://www.linkedin.com/groupItem?seeMore=&split_page=2&type=member&item=57473744&gid=49934 Quote: "... Surface Mount Technology Association (SMTA) is now an open group ..." br, Glenn ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [Gta04-owner] Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
On 03/07/12 11.15, Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: ... Now comes the crucial question: how can this be improved? The specialists of the production company have spent whole weekends to do more experiments but did not yet find the right trick. It is not that they do not want to solve the problem (they see it as a challenge) they simply have not yet found the key. ... Unless one of the readers on these list knows some real specialist for such PoP soldering of BGAs who is willing and capable to consult (even if it costs money). So if you know someone, please let me know. ... Hi Nikolaus I have no experience with BGA soldering, but here are some (untested) suggestions. I have no idea what is possible. Maybe it might add to a solution?: * Use an heat infrared camera to "see" during soldering (and passive cooling) how the BGA-chip temperature is distributed during the process - if possible - even of the PCB underside. * If BGA-chip bulges it maybe that it is too "cool" at the periphery? Can the periphery be heated more? Or be heat-isolated more during passive cooling - or cool the BGA-center more than the periphery? Maybe the PCB just opposite the BGA should have the opposite treatment during the cooling process? * Make hollow BGA PCB-islands where to much or to little solder can flow through? The melted solder adhersion should keep the solder where it belongs? * Maybe this paper has the answer?: BGA rework A comparitive study of selective solder paste deposition for area array packages. Ray Cirimele BEST, Inc. Rolling Meadows, Illinois rcirimele@solder: http://www.solder.net/stencilquik/papers/SMT_PANPAC_Paper_Rev032704.pdf Quote: "... There has been much controversy over whether BGA solder joint reliability is better when processed with solder paste versus paste flux. Some studies1,2 indicate that the solder joint shape may have a greater impact on the solder joint reliability than the volume. ... Figure 1. An open connection caused from poor coplanarity and the use of flux instead of paste. ... Many things can affect the coplanarity. If the BGA has solder balls that are not coplanar it can result in a "open connection" (a ball that has not contacted and wetted the land while surrounding balls have made contact). Variations in surface finish height, warp of the board or area, and warp or bow of the device itself can create coplanarity problems. The use of solder paste can help to overcome variations in solder ball height. The use of solder paste may also improve wetting as a result of a greater area of intimate contact between the ball and the paste and the land and the paste. Solder paste may provide better "tack" than flux alone. On newer technology PCBs, the utilization of drilled (usually laser) micro-vias in the center of the BGA land requires the use of solder paste to reduce voiding and to prevent loss of the solder ball volume as a result of filling the via. ... Although there are many ways to replace the Area Array devices using flux, solder paste, or solder bumps, only the four most common methods of solder paste deposition will be discussed. ... Stand Off There are some BGA devices with eutectic solder balls that tend to exhibit a great deal of ball collapse after reflow. This can be caused from design (land size) or BGA weight. Many times this excessive collapse can result in solder shorts (usually in the corners). Generally, greater stand-off height in conjunction with proper solder volumes and shape can provide better solder joint reliability. The semi- permanent stencil will prevent excessive collapse of the solder balls and can be used to provide a minimum stand-off height. Solder Shorts Solder shorts can occur on BGA devices for a number of reasons. Most of these reasons have to do with the solder paste deposition or excessive collapse of the solder balls causing an increase in the ball diameter and a reduction in the ball spacing. One clear advantage that the semi- permanent stencil has over the other stencils is that it acts as a physical barrier to prevent solder shorts from occurring. The non-wettable polyimide film holds the solder paste in the stencil apertures, and once the solder becomes molten it coalesces and cannot migrate over the stencil. ... Solder Volume Based on previous works done on the relationship between BGA solder joint quantity and solder joint strength and reliability, greater solder quantities generally result in greater joint strength. Some studies indicate that solder joint shape may have as much to do with joint strength as the solder volume. >>Greater stand-off heights with a fillet shaped like an hour glass may provide better reliability than a traditional rounded collapsed ball shape1,2.<< ... CONCLUSION Although stencils have been used in the electronics industry for many years, the use has been plagued by the impact of the removal of the stencil from the substrate. Throu
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Thanks for your update! It takes the open phone concept a little further, if we have even x-rays of the boards ;-) Kind regards, @ On Tuesday 03 July 2012 11:15:16 Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: > Hi all, > I did a long telephone call this morning to discuss the production situation > of the GTA04A4 boards. > > Am 25.06.2012 um 20:56 schrieb Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller: > > Hi, > > > > Am 25.06.2012 um 16:16 schrieb Gilles Filippini: > >> Hi Nikolaus, > >> > >> Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller a écrit , Le 31/05/2012 17:36: > >>> So please expect that it will become End of June for delivery... > >> > >> Since we are near to End of June, time for asking how is it going? ;) > > > > Neither good nor bad... > > > > This means: > > * we have already shipped some of the GTA04 Group Tour boards > > * some friends have upgraded to a complete OpenPhoenux (we have a handful > > reworked GTA02) * but we still have a list of open orders for roughly 90 > > GTA04 Group Tour boards > > > > The production company had stopped again to do some more > > analyses and the last status I received today is that they had > > again made some X-Ray. Now they think they can again optimize > > the soldering process a little so that we don't get so much broken > > boards that need manual rework. > > So here is a copy of the latest X-Ray image of the DM3730CBP with short > circuits: > > http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20120622-GTA04A4- schlecht-01.jpg > > If you want to compare to the GTA04A3 board X-Ray (with one short): > > http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20110707-GTA04A3-schlecht- xr002. > jpg > > or the GTA04A2 board (where only 1 unit exists): > > http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20101109-GTA04A2-overview.jpg > > > Every rework ruins some components (unfortunately 1 DM3730 > > + 1 Memory chip > 50 EUR) and costs intensive working time. > > And we simply can't afford that if it happens too often... > > > > So the highest priority is to get rid of the root cause for these > > soldering failures. > > After analyzing and discussing the X-Ray images we now think we > understand what happens (but you never know if you are right...). > > The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during > the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA > grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. > And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in interruptions. > > This theory correlates exactly with the error patterns we see: > > * some 50% of the boards come out of the soldering process with > shorts on VDD1, VDD2 and/or VIO which are mostly available > on the center balls > > * if the chip has no short on the power supply or is reworked some > 50% of the boards have interruptions which makes a single function > fail. Sometimes the SD interface has just 3 data lines, sometimes the > WLAN chip. Sometimes some sensor is not working. Sometimes > the USB is not working, or one display data link distorting the > colors etc. > > Now comes the crucial question: how can this be improved? > > The specialists of the production company have spent whole weekends > to do more experiments but did not yet find the right trick. It is not that > they do not want to solve the problem (they see it as a challenge) they > simply have not yet found the key. > > One factor is that our GTA04 board has exceptionally squeezed > components (since we must be small) so the soldering of a OpenPandora > or the BeagleBoard may be a little easier from heat distribution. > > I.e. we are pushing an experienced EMS to their limits... > An EMS who has produced more than 2000 different products in small > quantities (which is their strength) including some 0.4mm BGAs. > > A new experiment is scheduled for week 29 to use a different > reflow soldering machine and process which uses a little lower > temperature. > > Unfortunately, we can't contribute to this production improvement > to speed things up. > > Unless one of the readers on these list knows some real specialist > for such PoP soldering of BGAs who is willing and capable to > consult (even if it costs money). So if you know someone, please > let me know. > > > The good answer is that as soon as we decide to continue, > > So we had to decide to wait for the different reflow soldering process > first. > > > it takes less than 4 weeks to produce, test and ship all missing > > boards. They have planned that it works even if holiday season > > is coming. And our shipment plan is by sequence of order. So > > if you did order early, it is even a little closer. > > So it is a stony path towards a community driven independently > developed and produced open smartphone platform. But Rome > wasn't built in one day... > > And we have to solve this issue before we can start to think > about a future quad core LTE device with multitouch... Please > keep the faith. > > BR, > Nikolaus > > > __
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Hi all, I did a long telephone call this morning to discuss the production situation of the GTA04A4 boards. Am 25.06.2012 um 20:56 schrieb Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller: > Hi, > > Am 25.06.2012 um 16:16 schrieb Gilles Filippini: > >> Hi Nikolaus, >> >> Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller a écrit , Le 31/05/2012 17:36: >>> So please expect that it will become End of June for delivery... >> >> Since we are near to End of June, time for asking how is it going? ;) > > Neither good nor bad... > > This means: > * we have already shipped some of the GTA04 Group Tour boards > * some friends have upgraded to a complete OpenPhoenux (we have a handful > reworked GTA02) > * but we still have a list of open orders for roughly 90 GTA04 Group Tour > boards > > The production company had stopped again to do some more > analyses and the last status I received today is that they had > again made some X-Ray. Now they think they can again optimize > the soldering process a little so that we don't get so much broken > boards that need manual rework. So here is a copy of the latest X-Ray image of the DM3730CBP with short circuits: http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20120622-GTA04A4-schlecht-01.jpg If you want to compare to the GTA04A3 board X-Ray (with one short): http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20110707-GTA04A3-schlecht-xr002.jpg or the GTA04A2 board (where only 1 unit exists): http://download.goldelico.com/gta04/images/20101109-GTA04A2-overview.jpg > Every rework ruins some components (unfortunately 1 DM3730 > + 1 Memory chip > 50 EUR) and costs intensive working time. > And we simply can't afford that if it happens too often... > > So the highest priority is to get rid of the root cause for these > soldering failures. After analyzing and discussing the X-Ray images we now think we understand what happens (but you never know if you are right...). The reason appears that the DM3730CBP gets some warp during the soldering process squeezing the balls in the middle of the BGA grid so that they may touch a neighbor and make a short circuit. And on the corners the balls lift off and this may result in interruptions. This theory correlates exactly with the error patterns we see: * some 50% of the boards come out of the soldering process with shorts on VDD1, VDD2 and/or VIO which are mostly available on the center balls * if the chip has no short on the power supply or is reworked some 50% of the boards have interruptions which makes a single function fail. Sometimes the SD interface has just 3 data lines, sometimes the WLAN chip. Sometimes some sensor is not working. Sometimes the USB is not working, or one display data link distorting the colors etc. Now comes the crucial question: how can this be improved? The specialists of the production company have spent whole weekends to do more experiments but did not yet find the right trick. It is not that they do not want to solve the problem (they see it as a challenge) they simply have not yet found the key. One factor is that our GTA04 board has exceptionally squeezed components (since we must be small) so the soldering of a OpenPandora or the BeagleBoard may be a little easier from heat distribution. I.e. we are pushing an experienced EMS to their limits... An EMS who has produced more than 2000 different products in small quantities (which is their strength) including some 0.4mm BGAs. A new experiment is scheduled for week 29 to use a different reflow soldering machine and process which uses a little lower temperature. Unfortunately, we can't contribute to this production improvement to speed things up. Unless one of the readers on these list knows some real specialist for such PoP soldering of BGAs who is willing and capable to consult (even if it costs money). So if you know someone, please let me know. > > The good answer is that as soon as we decide to continue, So we had to decide to wait for the different reflow soldering process first. > it takes less than 4 weeks to produce, test and ship all missing > boards. They have planned that it works even if holiday season > is coming. And our shipment plan is by sequence of order. So > if you did order early, it is even a little closer. So it is a stony path towards a community driven independently developed and produced open smartphone platform. But Rome wasn't built in one day... And we have to solve this issue before we can start to think about a future quad core LTE device with multitouch... Please keep the faith. BR, Nikolaus ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Hi, Am 25.06.2012 um 16:16 schrieb Gilles Filippini: > Hi Nikolaus, > > Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller a écrit , Le 31/05/2012 17:36: >> So please expect that it will become End of June for delivery... > > Since we are near to End of June, time for asking how is it going? ;) Neither good nor bad... This means: * we have already shipped some of the GTA04 Group Tour boards * some friends have upgraded to a complete OpenPhoenux (we have a handful reworked GTA02) * but we still have a list of open orders for roughly 90 GTA04 Group Tour boards The production company had stopped again to do some more analyses and the last status I received today is that they had again made some X-Ray. Now they think they can again optimize the soldering process a little so that we don't get so much broken boards that need manual rework. Every rework ruins some components (unfortunately 1 DM3730 + 1 Memory chip = 40-50 EUR) and costs intensive working time. And we simply can't afford that if it happens too often... So the highest priority is to get rid of the root cause for these soldering failures. The good answer is that as soon as we decide to continue, it takes less than 4 weeks to produce, test and ship all missing boards. They have planned that it works even if holiday season is coming. And our shipment plan is by sequence of order. So if you did order early, it is even a little closer. BR, Nikolaus ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Hi Nikolaus, Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller a écrit , Le 31/05/2012 17:36: > So please expect that it will become End of June for delivery... Since we are near to End of June, time for asking how is it going? ;) Thanks in advance, _g. signature.asc Description: OpenPGP digital signature ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Status OpenPhoneux / GTA04
Hi all, end of the month - time to take some breath of air and write a status update of the OpenPhoenux/GTA04 project. 1. Group Tour is still in production (with problems). About 30% of the boards have been produced but had failures. About 1/3 of those had been without problems or have been fixed now. These units have already been shipped last week (based on a first order first served sequence). The other boards are in rework. The production company now thinks they have managed how to raise production yield. But due to illness and school holidays in Bavaria, they have not yet continued to work. So please expect that it will become End of June for delivery... As soon as these group tour devices have finally been shipped, we can start planning the next version/release. But then with keeping a better eye on the production yield and speed. To avoid misunderstandings: the electronical design is working very well, as the devices show that have already been shipped. It is a pure production problem with the solder joints of the chips on the PCB. No electrical or electronical problems without a workaround. It is like running a completely debugged software on defective memory... Or having a 200mph sports car that you can't use because some of the screws are loose. But for each unit there are different ones so you have to check them all. 2. Presentation at LinuxTag Lukas and myself gave a well recognized presentation for an audience of approx. 70 listeners. And we had that "project meeting point", which is a booth shared by several projects. We had very interesting discussions there. Presentation slides: http://download.goldelico.com/default/Presentations/20120526%20LinuxTag%202012%20-%20Openmoko%20is%20dead%20-%20long%20live%20Openphoenux.pdf 3. free 3D Graphics driver one topic came up during LinuxTag: free 3D graphics drivers. As you may know, the DM3730 has a integrated PowerVR SGX530 GPU which is currently not even used. There exist drivers and non-free binaries for user space and firmware available through the BeagleBoard.org project and TI. So it is not used just because nobody did look deeply enough into the installation procedures. Unfortunately these are "non-free" software. While for the MALI GPU, there is a very active project to reverse engineer and write a free driver. This got quite a lot of attention during FOSDEM and LinuxTag. For the PowerVR there was also a project proposal last year and it was even made a high priority project by FSF. So I tried to find out the current status. Well, FSF forgot to kick off the project (they said they will now take care of it). And there is no more progress than http://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:PowerVR_drivers http://lkcl.net/powervr/sgx/ (list of reverse engineered PowerVR SGX USSE Opcodes) http://elinux.org/Create_Open_Source_PowerVR_GPU_driver And I got in contact with a handful of people interested in this. Since I would find it good to give us more freedom of choice for 3D drivers, I offered to use the gta04-owner mailing list for discussions. And maybe some of you are also interested to contribute to this. 4. Nomenclature OpenPhoneux/GTA04 There may be some confusion what "GTA04" and "OpenPhoneux" are and what makes them different. We define: * GTA*: the next generation motherboard(s), i.e. electronics * OpenPhonux: the future "independent mobile handheld" project aiming at complete devices (i.e. GTA04 + case + components) Currently, we run the domains www.gta04.org and www.openphoenux.org. The Openphoenux.org home page will be made more prominent and content rich soon. This is done to become independent from the OpenMoko brand and the www.openmoko.org domain whose future and fate is completely uncertain. 5. OpenPhoenux Community For the reasons mentioned above, we invite everybody to subscribe to http://lists.openphoenux.org/mailman/listinfo/community which we hope will become the new community for those interested in free and open and independent smartphone platforms. For some time there will of course be overlap, duplication and friction... But this new list belongs to a project that is active. After a while we may be able to close the gta04-owner list and switch over to openphoenux community. 6. GTA04 installation parties One more idea was triggered by the LinuxTag discussions: Who of you would be interested in organizing a GTA04 installation party in your region? Some member of the GTA04 core team could try to come and help installing the device, the display, the camera and also give some introduction presentations for software installations. Happy flying with the OpenPhoneux, Nikolaus ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
