Description

The Coral System-on-Module (SoM) is a fully-integrated system that helps you build embedded systems that demand fast machine learning (ML) inferencing. It contains NXP's iMX8M system-on-chip (SoC), eMMC memory, LPDDR4 RAM, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, but its unique power comes from Google's Edge TPU coprocessor.

The Edge TPU is a small ASIC designed by Google that provides high-performance ML inferencing with a low power cost. For example, it can execute state-of-the-art mobile vision models such as MobileNet v2 at almost 400 FPS, in a power-efficient manner. This on-device processing reduces latency, increases data privacy, and removes the need for a high-bandwidth connection used to perform ML inferencing in the cloud.

Key benefits of the SoM:

• High-speed and low-power ML inferencing (4 TOPS @2 W)
• A complete Linux system (running Mendel, a Debian derivative)
• Small footprint (40 x 48 mm)

The SoM is also included in the Coral Dev Board, which is a single-board computer that enables fast prototyping and evaluation of the standalone SoM.

Features

• Provides a complete system: The Coral SoM is a fully-integrated Linux system that includes NXP's iMX8M system-on-chip (SoC), eMMC memory, LPDDR4 RAM, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, and the Edge TPU coprocessor for ML acceleration. It runs a derivative of Debian Linux we call Mendel.
• Performs high-speed ML inferencing: The on-board Edge TPU coprocessor is capable of performing 4 trillion operations (tera-operations) per second (TOPS), using 0.5 watts for each TOPS (2 TOPS per watt). For example, it can execute state-of-the-art mobile vision models such as MobileNet v2 at 400 FPS, in a power efficient manner.
• Integrates with your custom hardware: The SoM connects to your own baseboard hardware with three 100-pin connectors.
• Supports TensorFlow Lite: No need to build models from the ground up. TensorFlow Lite models can be compiled to run on the Edge TPU.
• Supports AutoML Vision Edge: Easily build and deploy fast, high-accuracy custom image classification models to your device with AutoML Vision Edge. Also available with a baseboard as part of the Coral Dev Board.

Specifications

• NXP i.MX 8M SoC
  • Quad-core ARM Cortex-A53, plus Cortex-M4F
  • 2D/3D Vivante GC7000 Lite GPU and VPU
• Google Edge TPU ML accelerator
• Cryptographic coprocessor
• Wi-Fi 2x2 MIMO (802.11b/g/n/ac 2.4/5 GHz)
• Bluetooth 4.2
• 8GB eMMC
• 1GB LPDDR4
• USB 3.0
• Gigabit Ethernet
• HDMI and MIPI-DSI
• MIPI-CSI-2
• Up to 95x GPIO (including SPI, I2C, PWM, UART, SAI, and SDIO)