radxa ROCK 3C Single Board Computer User Manual
- June 12, 2024
- radxa
Table of Contents
radxa ROCK 3C Single Board Computer
Revision
- Version Date Changes from the previous version
- 1.0 18/05/2023 First version
Introduction
Radxa ROCK 3C is a Single Board Computer (SBC) in an ultra‑small form factor that offers class‑leading performance while leveraging outstanding mechanical compatibility. Radxa ROCK 3C offers makers, IoT enthusiasts, hobbyists, PC DIY enthusiasts and others a reliable and extremely capable platform for building and tinkering their ideas into reality.
Features
Hardware
- Rockchip RK3566 SoC
- Quad‑core Arm® Cortex®‑A55 (ARMv8) 64‑bit @ 1.6GHz
- Arm Mali™‑G52‑2EE, OpenGL® ES1.1/2.0/3.2, Vulkan® 1.1, OpenCL™ 2.0
- 1GB / 2GB LPDDR4 available
- Storage is supported by eMMC storage, micro SD card, and SSD through the M.2 connector
- Display via HDMI or MIPI DSI. They can not work at the same time
- H.264/H.265 decoder up to 4K@60fps
- H.264/H.265 encoder up to 1080P@60fps
Interfaces
- 802.11 b/g/n/ac Wireless LAN supporting WiFi 5
- BT 5.0
- 1x HDMI 2.0 port supporting displays up to 1080P@60fps resolution
- 1x SD Card slot
- 2x USB2 HOST ports
- 1x USB2 OTG/HOST port
- 1x USB3 HOST port
- 1x Gigabit Ethernet port. It supports PoE with add‑on PoE HAT
- 1x M.2 M‑Key connector for NVMe SSD or SATA SSD
- 1x camera port supporting 2‑lane MIPI CSI
- 1x display port supporting 2‑lane MIPI DSI
- 3.5mm jack with a microphone. The HD codec supports up to 24‑bit/96KHz audio
- 40x user GPIO supporting various interface options:
- up to 5 x UART
- 1 x SPI bus
- up to 2 x I2C bus
- 1 x PCM/I2S
- up to 6 x PWM
- up to 28 x GPIO
- 2 x 5V DC power in
- 2 x 3.3V power pin
Software
- ARMv8 Instruction Set
- Debian/Ubuntu Linux support
- Android 11 support
- Hardware access/control library for Linux/Android
Electrical Specification
Power Requirements
- Radxa ROCK 3C can only be powered by +5V.
- USB Type‑C® 5V
- 5V Power from the GPIO PIN 2 & 4
- The recommended power source capacity is at least 5V/3A without M.2 SSD or 5V/4A using with M.2 SSD.
GPIO Voltage
- GPIO Voltage Level Tolerance
- All GPIO 3.3V 3.63V
Peripherals
GPIO Interface
Radxa ROCK 3C offers 40P GPIO expansion which is compatible with most
accessories on the market.
GPIO Alternate Functions
eMMC Module Connector
ROCK 3C offers a high-speed eMMC socket for eMMC modules which can be used for
OS and data storage. The eMMC socket is compatible with readily available
industrial pinout and form factor hardware. The maximum eMMC size supported is
128GB.
Camera and Display Interfaces
Radxa ROCK 3C has 1x 2‑lane MIPI CSI camera connector and a 1x 2‑lane MIPI DSI
display connector. These connectors are backward compatible with standard
industrial cameras and display peripherals.
USB
Radxa ROCK 3C has two USB2 HOST connectors, one USB3 HOST connector, and one
USB2 OTG/HOST connector. The board has a hardware switch to set the USB2
operation to either HOST or OTG. The power output across these ports is 2.8A
in aggregate over the four connectors.
HDMI
Radxa ROCK 3C has one HDMI port supporting CEC and HDMI 2.0 with resolutions
up to 1080P@60fps.
Audio Jack
The ROCK 3C supports near‑CD‑quality analog audio output via a 4‑ring 3.5mm
headphone jack. The HD codec supports up to 24 bits at 96Hz. The analog audio
output can drive 32 Ohm headphones directly. The headphone jack also supports
a mic line input.
M.2 Connector
Radxa ROCK 3C offers an M.2 M‑Key 2230 connector with PCIe 2.1 1‑lane and SATA
3.0 combo interfaces, providing high-speed storage access. The M.2 M‑Key can
be configured either to support NVMe SSD or SATA devices, an additional
adapter board is required for SATA support.
Operating Conditions
- The ROCK 3C has been designed to operate between 0°C to 50°C.
- The ROCK 3C is built on a high‑performance mobile chipset that is designed to operate for extended durations on batteries with efficiency at its core. As with all electronic devices heat is a by‑product of operation which increases performance and workload; during basic use cases such as web browsing, editing text, or listening to music the SoC will automatically select the dedicated hardware accelerators to reduce heat generation.
- Radxa ROCK 3C limits its SoC maximum internal temperature to 85°C before throttling the clock speeds to maintain reliability within the allowed temperature range. If the ROCK 3C is intended to be used continuously in high-performance applications, it may be necessary to use external cooling methods (for example, heat sink, fan, etc.) which will allow the SoC to continue running at maximum clock speed indefinitely below its predefined 85°C peak temperature limiter.
Fan Connector
Radxa ROCK 3C has a 2pin 1.25mm header that enables users to connect to a 5V fan (or other peripheral). The fan can be PWM controlled without speed feedback.
Availability
Radxa guarantees the availability of the ROCK 3C until at least September
2032.
Support
For support, please see the hardware documentation section of the Radxa Wiki
website and post questions to the Radxa forum.
FCC STATEMENT
FCC WARNING
FCC Caution: Any changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party
responsible for compliance could void the user’s authority to operate this
equipment. This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is
subject to the following two conditions:
(1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must
accept any interference received, including interference that may cause
undesired operation. This device and its antenna(s) must not be co-located or
operating in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter.
15.105 Information to the user
(b) For a Class B digital device or peripheral, the instructions furnished the
user shall include the following or similar statement, placed in a prominent
location in the text of the manual: Note: This equipment has been tested and
found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part
15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable
protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This
equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful
interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that
interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment
does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be
determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try
to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
- Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
- Increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver.
- Connect the equipment to an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.
- Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
This equipment complies with FCC radiation exposure limits set forth for an uncontrolled environment. This equipment should be installed and operated with a minimum distance of 20 cm between the radiator and your body. Radiation Exposure Statement: This equipment complies with FCC radiation exposure limits set forth for an uncontrolled environment. This transmitter must not be co- located or operating in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter. The availability of some specific channels and/or operational frequency bands are country dependent and are firmware programmed at the factory to match the intended destination. The firmware setting is not accessible by the end user. The final end product must be labeled in a visible area with the following: “Contains Transmitter Module 2A3PA-RADXA-ROCK3C”.
Requirement per KDB996369 D03
List of applicable FCC rules
List the FCC rules that are applicable to the modular transmitter. These are
the rules that specifically establish the bands of operation, the power,
spurious emissions, and operating fundamental frequencies. DO NOT list
compliance to unintentional-radiator rules (Part 15 Subpart B) since that is
not a condition of a module grant that is extended to a host manufacturer. See
also Section 2.10 below concerning the need to notify host manufacturers that
further testing is required.3
Explanation: This module meets the requirements of FCC part 15C(15.247).FCC Part 15.407.
Summarize the specific operational use conditions
Describe use conditions that are applicable to the modular transmitter,
including for example any limits on antennas, etc. For example, if point-to-
point antennas are used that require a reduction in power or compensation for
cable loss, then this information must be in the instructions. If the use
condition limitations extend to professional users, then instructions must
state that this information also extends to the host manufacturer’s
instruction manual. In addition, certain information may also be needed, such
as peak gain per frequency band and minimum gain.
Explanation: The EUT only has one Chip antenna, Yes, the module contains
a permanently attached antenna, The 2.4G antenna gain is 1.5dBi. 5G antenna
gain is 2.3dBi The use condition of the prototype is mobile.
Limited module procedures
If a modular transmitter is approved as a “limited module,” then the module
manufacturer is responsible for approving the host environment that the
limited module is used. The manufacturer of a limited module must describe,
both in the filing and in the installation instructions, the alternative means
that the limited module manufacturer uses to verify that the host meets the
necessary requirements to satisfy the module limiting conditions. A limited
module manufacturer has the flexibility to define its alternative method to
address the conditions that limit the initial approval, such as shielding,
minimum signaling amplitude, buffered modulation/data inputs, or power supply
regulation. The alternative method could include the limited module
manufacturer reviewing detailed test data or host designs prior to giving the
host manufacturer approval. This limited module procedure is also applicable
for RF exposure evaluation when it is necessary to demonstrate compliance in a
specific host. The module manufacturer must state how control of the product
into which the modular transmitter will be installed will be maintained such
that full compliance with the product is always ensured. For additional hosts
other than the specific host originally granted with a limited module, a Class
II permissive change is required on the module grant to register the
additional host as a specific host also approved with the module.
Explanation: The module is a single module.
Trace antenna designs
For a modular transmitter with trace antenna designs, see the guidance in
Question 11 of KDB Publication 996369 D02 FAQ – Modules for Micro-Strip
Antennas and Traces. The integration information shall include for the TCB
review the integration instructions for the following aspects: layout of trace
design, parts list (BOM), antenna, connectors, and isolation requirements.
- Information that includes permitted variances (e.g., trace boundary limits, thickness, length, width, shape(s), dielectric constant, and impedance as applicable for each type of antenna);
- Each design shall be considered a different type (e.g., antenna length in multiple(s) of frequency, the wavelength, and antenna shape (traces in phase) can affect antenna gain and must be considered);
- The parameters shall be provided in a manner permitting host manufacturers to design the printed circuit (PC) board layout;
- Appropriate parts by manufacturer and specifications;
- Test procedures for design verification; and
- Production test procedures for ensuring compliance.
The module grantee shall provide a notice that any deviation(s) from the defined parameters of the antenna trace, as described by the instructions, requires that the host product manufacturer must notify the module grantee that they wish to change the antenna trace design. In this case, a Class II permissive change application is required to be filed by the grantee, or the host manufacturer can take responsibility through the change in FCC ID (new application) procedure followed by a Class II permissive change application. Explanation: No, The module has no tracking antenna design, is a Chip antenna.
RF exposure considerations
It is essential for module grantees to clearly and explicitly state the RF
exposure conditions that permit a host product manufacturer to use the module.
Two types of instructions are required for RF exposure information: (1) to the
host product manufacturer, to define the application conditions (mobile,
portable – xx cm from a person’s body); and (2) additional text needed for the
host product manufacturer to provide to end users in their end-product
manuals. If RF exposure statements and use conditions are not provided, then
the host product manufacturer is required to take responsibility of the module
through a change in FCC ID (new application).
Explanation: This module complies with FCC RF radiation exposure limits
set forth for an uncontrolled environment, This equipment should be installed
and operated with a minimum distance of 20 centimeters between the radiator
and your body.” This module is designed to comply with the FCC statement,
Antennas
A list of antennas included in the application for certification must be
provided in the instructions. For modular transmitters approved as limited
modules, all applicable professional installer instructions must be included
as part of the information to the host product manufacturer. The antenna list
shall also identify the antenna types (monopole, PIFA, dipole, etc. (note that
for example an “omnidirectional antenna” is not considered to be a specific
“antenna type”)). For situations where the host product manufacturer is
responsible for an external connector, for example with an RF pin and antenna
trace design, the integration instructions shall inform the installer that a
unique antenna connector must be used on Part 15 authorized transmitters used
in the host product. The module manufacturers shall provide a list of
acceptable unique connectors.
Explanation: The EUT only has one Chip antenna, Yes, the module contains a permanently attached antenna, The 2.4G antenna gain is 1.5dBi. 5G antenna gain is 2.3dBi.
Label and compliance information
Grantees are responsible for the continued compliance of their modules to the
FCC rules. This includes advising host product manufacturers that they need to
provide a physical or e-label stating “Contains FCC ID” with their finished
product. See Guidelines for Labeling and User Information for RF Devices – KDB
Publication 784748.
Explanation: The host system using this module, should have a label in a
visible area indicating the following texts: “Contains FCC ID: 2A3PA-RADXA-
ROCK3C.
Information on test modes and additional testing requirements5
Additional guidance for testing host products is given in KDB Publication
996369 D04 Module Integration Guide. Test modes should take into consideration
different operational conditions for a stand-alone modular transmitter in a
host, as well as for multiple simultaneously transmitting modules or other
transmitters in a host product. The grantee should provide information on how
to configure test modes for host product evaluation for different operational
conditions for a stand-alone modular transmitter in a host, versus with
multiple, simultaneously transmitting modules or other transmitters in a host.
Grantees can increase the utility of their modular transmitters by providing
special means, modes, or instructions that simulate or characterizes a
connection by enabling a transmitter. This can greatly simplify a host
manufacturer’s determination that a module as installed in a host complies
with FCC requirements.
Explanation: WiFiRanger, A LinOra Company can increase the utility of our
modular transmitters by providing instructions that simulate or characterizes
a connection by enabling a transmitter.
Additional testing, Part 15 Subpart B disclaimer
The grantee should include a statement that the modular transmitter is only
FCC-authorized for the specific rule parts (i.e., FCC transmitter rules)
listed on the grant and that the host product manufacturer is responsible for
compliance with any other FCC rules that apply to the host not covered by the
modular transmitter grant of certification. If the grantee markets their
product as being Part 15.Subpart B compliant (when it also contains
unintentional-radiator digital circuity), then the grantee shall provide a
notice stating that the final host product still requires Part 15 Subpart B
compliance testing with the modular transmitter installed.
Explanation: The host should be evaluated by the FCC Subpart B. This product uses a Chip antenna with a maximum The 2.4G antenna gain is 1.5dBi. 5G antenna gain is 2.3dBi.
References
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