Launch of the Ultra96, an ARM processor-based development board
Accelerating the development of AI, IoT, and industrial control devices
On September 28th, element14 released the Ultra96, an ARM processor-based development board jointly developed by Avnet, Xilinx, and 96Boards. This development board is based on the Linaro 96Boards Consumer Edition specification and provides developers with an environment for easily building machine learning applications using the Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC. The 96Boards specification is open and represents a standard board layout for development platforms.

Ultra96 supports a wide range of peripherals and uses a programmable logic acceleration engine to simplify complex functions. Software developers can accelerate development in fields that require powerful data processing capabilities, such as AI, machine learning, virtual reality, IoT, and industrial control devices.

“The Ultra96 board combines ARM’s processing power and programmable logic in a convenient, affordable, and scalable board,” said Cliff Ortmeyer, global director of solutions development at element14, in a statement about the release. “It supports a wide range of peripherals and features acceleration engines to help developers overcome software bottlenecks.”

The Ultra96 can boot from an industrial Delkin 16GB microSD card pre-installed with Embedded Linux. Additionally, the built-in wireless access point function can be used to access the Ultra96 via a web server, or the built-in Mini DisplayPort video output can be used to access the Embedded Linux plus Enlightenment desktop environment. A variety of application examples and onboard development capabilities are also provided.

Four user-controllable LEDs are also provided. By adding peripherals such as Seeed Studio's Grove Starter Kit for 96Boards, it can also be operated via high- and low-speed expansion connectors compatible with 96Boards.