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 Post subject: Laptop/portable EFIKA
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 10:47 am 
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Genesi

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1422
Hi Folks, who wants to design and build a laptop out of an EFIKA?

We have a budget and a need for 5-10 prototypes. If you are interested in developing this product please contact us.

This is an employment opportunity.

Let's watch the ecosystem work!


Best regards,
R&B :)

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Last edited by bbrv on Thu Mar 29, 2007 8:55 am, edited 2 times in total.

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 11:32 am 
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Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 429
Location: Secure Networks / Sweden
Hrm.. That would mean a pretty much complete re-design of
the EFIKA board. Onboard graphics is needed and the USB+TP
connectors can't be on-top of each other.

And the power needs to be direct DC-IN.

Hehe! Time for EFIKA 2


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 12:13 pm 
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Genesi

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1422
@ironfist - this is to be a portable computer based on the current EFIKA. The name "laptop" might restrict creativity. It needs to be portable and operate wirelessly!

R&B :)

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 12:54 pm 
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Genesi

Joined: Mon Jan 30, 2006 2:28 am
Posts: 409
Location: Finland
Hi.

I'm sure that, combined with project #337, a very nice set-up can be build. It's what I want to do with this one as well: http://projects.powerdeveloper.org/project/efika/60

A portable computer based on EFIKA, project #337, with PicoPSU, small keyboard if needed, touch pad,...
I could do it, but I'm lacking time. This is a nice opportunity!



Best regards,
Johan

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Johan Dams, Genesi USA Inc.
Director, Software Engineering

Yep, I have a blog... PurpleAlienPlanet


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 Post subject: Re: Laptop
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 4:16 pm 
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Joined: Thu Nov 11, 2004 7:34 am
Posts: 130
Location: Bielefeld, FRG
Quote:
Hi Folks, who wants to design and build a laptop out of an EFIKA?

We have a budget and a need for 5-10 prototypes. If you are interested in developing this product please contact us.

This is an employment opportunity.

Best regards,
R&B :)
See my 2nd project http://www.powerdeveloper.org/profile/139
Unfortunately I have not the time to do so in a short time frame. Currently I have enough to do to do my first project
http://www.powerdeveloper.org/profile/100

While I didn't forget about that project I am sorry to say, that the current Efika is not the best starting point. Some integrated (mobile!) gfx and pwr controller would make projects like that much much easier.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 6:07 pm 
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Genesi

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1422
We have had a couple of posts here and a few more emails. We appreciate the interest. Please don't hesitate to express your desire and ability to be involved in this Project. Thanks to all of you that have responded!

R&B :)

_________________
http://bbrv.blogspot.com


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 7:05 am 
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Genesi

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1422
Progress...

1. We are selecting a screen. We think the minimal size should be at least 800*600 (SVGA). A 1024*768 (XGA) TFT would be really nice (comfortable for Web browsing/Gimp/E-mail, etc.). Here are some pictures ona website you may recognize that shows X (KDE) on a WVGA (800*480) -- http://www.stellae.fr/wiki/_media/efika ... 05:000.jpg or http://www.stellae.fr/wiki/_media/efika ... 5:001.jpg0 -- but this is too small for this kind of usage. We think we should choose a screen with TTL interface since LVDS is synonym of extra (expensive) components. Also, if we choose a screen with a CCFL backlight, we will not put it directly on the DVI adapter:

* Transformers are not easy to find and the layout is quite tricky, if the design is not perfect the high voltage can burn the PCB and the panel.

* We have also to consider that it generates a lot of electronic noise and it needs to be well filtered.

Thus we have to consider buying a backlight module (at least for the development).

One of these could be appropriate:

http://www.alpha.fi/support/download/LP104S5.pdf
http://www.alpha.fi/support/download/LB121S02.pdf

http://www.alpha.fi/support/download/LM151X4-A3.pdf (very good but 15."1 is large...)
http://www.alpha.fi/support/download/LM151X05.pdf (very good but 15."1 is large...)

A screen with a LED backlight MAY be best!

2. We are using my existing DVI => RGB hardware for validation with the EFIKA

NOTE: http://www.stellae.fr/wiki/_detail/efika:dvi.png

3. Once we select the panel we will design the PCB to drive it.

For the case? How about this:

i think i can do it look nice - like a white Clamshell with a aqua-blue-touch here and there. This reminds me on greece (white shells on the beach, white old buildings and the blue sea) - that sounds great! Full steam ahead!

R&B :)

_________________
http://bbrv.blogspot.com


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 7:44 am 
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Genesi

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1422
Ah, yes, why Greece?

http://bbrv.blogspot.com/2007/02/center ... udies.html
Quote:
For CHS Greece, we have identified four categories of users and their needs:

1) Staff members, who will either use the laptops that they already own or who can use a desktop Efika with a good amount of disk space and with access to OpenOffice (for word processing and spreadsheets), an email client, a web browser (Firefox), and GIMP (for generating PR). These machines would have wired or wireless connections to the Internet and to the LAN for printing.

2) Academic public users, students or professors, Greek or American, whom we would want to be able to use a web browser for access to bibliographic resources at Harvard and only to web-based email clients. They should be able to download articles from the bibliographic databases they have access to and print them or save them onto USB jump drives or email them to themselves. We don't want users to clutter up the machines with their own stuff, so disk space should be limited, either that or the machines' disk space should be wiped of data every night. We don't want people to hang out surfing the web and writing email on these machines. Some mixture of desktop and portable machines that are wireless, so that people can move about the building or sit in comfortable environments to do this work, would be good. So these machines would also be wired up to the internet and to the LAN for printing.

3) Non-academic public users, people from the community who would come to CHS Nafplio to get inititated into open source programming or networking. They would need access to a compiler and the basic set of Unix/Linux programmer tools and interfaces and, again, a limited amount of disk space, and internet connecitivity.

4) Archaeologists: People who are working in the field and who want to keep logs, enter data, and record images on laptops that would not be subjected to the best physical conditions (dirt, sunlight, maybe even moisture, though in the summer that's scarce in Greece).They would need spread sheets and word processors and some means of backing up the data on their machines and transferring it to other machines when they return from the field.

As for CHS Washington, my colleagues and I are excited to get some EFIKA machines for our homebase. We could replace the clunky PCs in our public spaces with the EFIKAs; they would also be absolutely perfect for interns. We have had problems in the past with students downloading junk and leaving it on our machines.
That sounds like a good start. Of course, we want to be able to use these machines to support all these events too:

Freescale Technology Forum

We are following the same process as we did here:

http://bbrv.blogspot.com/2007/03/case-study.html

R&B :)

_________________
http://bbrv.blogspot.com


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 10:52 am 
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Joined: Sun Jan 14, 2007 8:01 am
Posts: 187
Can wacom be used to make a touchscreen solution out of it. More info here: http://www.wacom-components.com/english ... t/adk.html

This could make a tablet pc out of an efika.

PS this make me wonder, do a4 sized lcd panels exist?


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 3:02 pm 
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Site Admin

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1589
Location: Austin, TX
Quote:
Can wacom be used to make a touchscreen solution out of it. More info here: http://www.wacom-components.com/english ... t/adk.html

This could make a tablet pc out of an efika.

PS this make me wonder, do a4 sized lcd panels exist?
Every Tablet PC has one. Well.. they may be more likely "US Letter" sized or a few mm short on one edge but most of them do size up like a large A4 notepad in a leather binder, the screen being roughly the same size. My laptop's screen (1280x800 X-Brite Sony) is 14.1" diagonal and is 2cm thinner than an A4 sheet (however the LCD lid is exactly the same size) and exactly, to the milimeter, the same length.

It should be noted that A4 size screens are pretty darn huge. That is a 15" screen in reality.

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Matt Sealey


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 3:12 pm 
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Joined: Fri Nov 17, 2006 8:02 pm
Posts: 22
Location: Paris France
Hi mvdhoning, I don't know if an A4 size screen exist but for the moment we are looking for "standard" screen sizes and resolutions.

An idea of the perfect screen panel would be:
  • SVGA (800x480) or XGA (1024*768) (10~13 inches)
  • RGB interface
  • LED backlight
But after a quick search, it seems to be hard to find a XGA screen with a TTL RGB I/F and even more difficult to find 10~13 inches displays equipped with LED backlight.

Concerning the LVDS I/F on XGA I'm not really surprised: we have a pixel clock which samples data at 80~85MHz... Diaphony on a simple parallel cable can be a real disaster. And if you have to use a shielded cable for each of the 24bits + syncs, you will not obtain a thin cable...

I've switched back one of my linux device in 800*600 under X. It's usable but is that enough for a consumer product (ie. EFIKA laptop) in 2007 ?

LVDS screens could (and I say could, sure it's not my prefered solution) be use if we find the appropriate serializer. DVI is also LVDS and it's easy to handle... Serializer are also often expensive. I have to check that.

Do not hesitate to post your comments/opinions on the screen size. I'm conviced that the screen have to be chosen carefully because it will decide of the electronics needed for driving it (price). It's also an important parameter conditioning the sucess this project.

Stellae (project 337)


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:13 am 
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Genesi

Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 1422
Pascal Papara has come up with this some far:

Image

Nice image Pascal!

R&B :)

_________________
http://bbrv.blogspot.com


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:35 am 
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Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 2:21 pm
Posts: 34
Location: Germany
Thank you! I would like some feedback/critics/proposals. I know that it looks like an product from another company but this is not a toilet-seat its a shell ; )


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:46 am 
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Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:39 am
Posts: 429
Location: Secure Networks / Sweden
Hehe!

The Apple G3 iBook was nick-named 'Clam Shell'. :P

Looks good, though.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 12:18 pm 
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Joined: Sun Jan 14, 2007 8:01 am
Posts: 187
A picture of the ibook g3 can be found there: http://www.redsplash.de/blog/archives/4 ... story.html (the 3rd picture)

Making the laptop look like a Clam Shell makes it look bulky (large), a lot of space is wasted around the screen etc.

Making it duotone color is a nice idea, keep that one in.

Having the efika and led backlights the design could go minimalistic making a very thin and light laptop (one that is easy to take with you on the road)

This makes me wonder, what battery system is/will be used?

As for screen size i think if possible 1024x768 is the minimum, although when we design a webshop at the company i work for we do design it in way is still useable on 800x600. For some stats on screen size useage: http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp


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