At PHYTEC, we’ve spent more than 40 years helping customers move from development to production.
One of the best parts of that journey is seeing an idea become a real product in the field. But before that happens, there is usually one stage that tests every team’s patience: bring-up.
We’ve seen a handful of issues show up again and again on customers’ prototype carrier boards. The good news is that many of them can be avoided with a few smart design checks before your first boards are built.
Here are 4 worth reviewing before fabrication.
PHYTEC’s SOM designs handle their own power and startup requirements, but the carrier board still needs to account for proper sequencing. Rails, resets, and peripherals must be enabled at the appropriate times to ensure reliable system startup.
PHYTEC handles the SOM’s internal power sequencing for you. When we troubleshoot inconsistent boot behavior on custom prototype boards, we often find the carrier board is interfering with that sequence. For example, by backfeeding power through PGOOD or powering external circuitry too early.
The hardware manual provides the connection guidelines you need, and PHYTEC’s development kit schematics provide a proven carrier-board reference that you can follow directly when designing your own board. Be sure to review both during your design!
Sometimes a board is not failing to boot; it is simply trying to boot from the wrong place.
If boot mode pins are strapped incorrectly, left floating, or set to the wrong defaults, the processor may never attempt to boot from the source you intended.
What looks like a power issue can sometimes be a boot configuration issue.
For early development, SD boot is often one of the easiest and most flexible debug options. It makes software validation easier and gives you another path to test startup behavior before moving to a locked down production configuration.
One of the fastest ways to slow down bring-up is not giving yourself enough visibility into the board.
If you cannot probe the right signals, even simple issues become time consuming.
Good test access makes debug faster, cleaner, and less frustrating.
Include a few large grounding points for probing. At PHYTEC, we often use mounting holes on the SOM and carrier board as convenient probe ground points during developemnt and testing.
4) Core Support Circuits Were Changed Too Much
Customization is part of carrier board design, but some circuits are worth keeping very close to the proven reference design, especially on Rev A.
We often see design issues happen when foundational support circuits are modified too aggressively too early.
These are the circuits that often decide whether your first prototype boots cleanly or becomes a debug project.
When in doubt, start with what is already proven to work. That’s why PHYTEC provides customers with development kit schematics and design files.
Final Thoughts
We love seeing customers move quickly from first prototype to production, and we know how frustrating early bring-up issues can be.
A lot of delays come down to the same few root causes:
This is exactly why we encourage customers to review these basics before their first board spin.
It is also why PHYTEC offers free schematic reviews for customer designed carrier boards.
Request a free schematic review by contacting our support team to help reduce risk and keep your project moving toward production. Simply mention "Free schematic review" and attach a searchable pdf copy of your schematic.