bladeRF 2.0 Expansion Connector (U74) Usage

Discussions related to schematic capture, PCB layout, signal integrity, and RF development
Post Reply
rbschum
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu May 13, 2021 10:56 am

bladeRF 2.0 Expansion Connector (U74) Usage

Post by rbschum »

I'm working on a project where we'd like to use two bladeRF micros as a 4x4 MIMO. There is a limited J51 connector where two pins are available to interconnect the boards but I'd like to have more interconnects available such as connecting the two boards using the U74 expansion connector. The Samtec mating connector is a surface mount so a daughter board or a flex-circuit would be required. Has anyone used the expansion connector for this purpose? Is there anything out there available or would we have to create a custom solution? What was the original intent for using the expansion connector? Any insights or solutions would be much appreciated.
--
-- Bob S.
rbschum
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu May 13, 2021 10:56 am

Re: bladeRF 2.0 Expansion Connector (U74) Usage

Post by rbschum »

I found a solution that allows access to the expansion connector I/O for lab work and testing. Zebax Technologies has BTH Series Samtec breakout adapters that will mate with the U74 connector and gives access to all of the pins.

https://www.zebax.com/index_files/page876.htm
BTH Series Samtec breakout adapter 0.5mm pitch
2 rows x 30 pin per row Samtec test board— 4 Layers PCB design module + GND test point
Mates with any height and form-factor Samtec BSH030 Basic Blade & Beam Hi-Speed connectors

ZX131-BTH030 Breakout Adapter fully extended, height 1.9"(50mm)
https://www.zebax.com/doc/ZX1/ZX131BTH.pdf

ZX131BTH-RK Breakout Adapter - Low profile, in-system rackmount applications, height 0.98"(25mm)
https://www.zebax.com/doc/ZX1/ZX131BTH-RK.pdf
--
-- Bob S.
kartsan
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Apr 10, 2020 12:13 pm

Re: bladeRF 2.0 Expansion Connector (U74) Usage

Post by kartsan »

Hello, did you find out how to actually program that expansion connector? I have been trying to search for information but all I find in API is for BladeRF 1 (bladerf_expansion_gpio_read etc).
relativetitle
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Nov 08, 2023 1:44 am

Re: bladeRF 2.0 Expansion Connector (U74) Usage

Post by relativetitle »

kartsan wrote: Wed Sep 21, 2022 10:26 am Hello, did you find out how to actually program that expansion connector? I have been trying to search for information but all I find in API is for BladeRF 1 (bladerf_expansion_gpio_read etc).
Have any updates here? I have the same question.
kartsan
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Apr 10, 2020 12:13 pm

Re: bladeRF 2.0 Expansion Connector (U74) Usage

Post by kartsan »

relativetitle wrote: Wed Nov 08, 2023 1:46 am Have any updates here? I have the same question.
At the time I sent my question I was very new to BladeRF and I was desperately looking for some examples to start from but they don't exist. Basically you need to read the source.

Check https://nuand.com/libbladeRF-doc/v2.5.0 ... p_i_o.html and search for the libraries like SoapySDR that control BladeRF. That's how I started.
Post Reply