Month: January 2026

Schematics reviewed and published!

Posted on by Communications Team

We have known each other for several years now, working together with supporters who have backed us through the long process of creating notebook prototypes. Over the last eight months, we have focused on developing a desktop version largely redesigned to be immediately functional.

As promised, the sources for our desktop board have been reviewed by NXP. They suggested a few changes, which we have implemented. The review process cost us an additional €850, but it was worth it: we have improved our schematics and PCB design just in time for the prototypes.

Great news: NXP confirmed we can publish the schematics with an Open Hardware License! We have already uploaded the PDF version to GitLab.

GitLab Repository Powerboard Tyche Desktop Schematics

However, before publishing the raw source files, we need to convert them from the proprietary OrCAD format to KiCad to ensure everyone can use them. We need collaborators to help us bridge this gap.

If you would like to reserve a production desktop board this summer, we need donations to cover €6,100 for the remaining costs of the PCB design, as well as the expenses associated with prototypes and testing in the coming months. ACube Systems will handle the production because we are a nonprofit organization not allowed to sell physical products.

We are doing what is needed to reach production, despite the obstacles. The difficult part, the uncertainty, is behind us. Now we are missing a very simple ingredient: funds. We need to raise a few thousand euros in a window of 2-3 months. Simple, but not easy.

Join us on this journey!

Donate, tell your friends, and share our project. In order to enjoy the PowerPC motherboard later, we must all work together now by joining the donation campaign in large numbers.

  1. Powerboard Tyche Desktop Electrical Schematics Design
    €3,401.56 donated of €6,250.00 goal

  1. PCB Design of Desktop Powerboard Tyche

    Starting from the source of the Electronic Schematics design design the PCB means prepare all physical PCB layers lanes and components disposition and connection to go in production with prototypes. Designer have take from NXP Devkit design ( 2023 version) everything is related to boot process and many parts from our Notebook design, except what is not needed for Dekstop version, like the Battery part.

    €70.00 donated of €12,500.00 goal
Image by Free Photos from Pixabay

Join us in this great opportunity for hands-on learning, creativity, and problem-solving as we design and produce what we desire.

If you have any suggestions, don’t hesitate to fill out our survey or contact us.

Troubleshooting the T2080RDB DevKit: stuck in sleep

Posted on by Communications Team

As many of you recall from our post on December 24th, 2025, we hit a significant roadblock with our hardware testing. During the last shipment of one of the DevKits at our disposal, the power supply (which we had already replaced) and the T2080 motherboard sustained damage.

Since then, we have spent quite a few hours on the workbench trying to revive the NXP T2080RDB DevKit, but the situation remains critical.

A photo of the NXP T2080RDB reference DevKit board.

The symptoms

The behavior is consistent but frustrating. We hooked up the serial console, hoping for some life, but unfortunately, no information came out of the serial port. It is complete silence.

As soon as we power up the board, a specific LED close to the CPU turns on. After checking the technical documentation, this indicator seems to signal that the CPU is being kept in a sleep state.

The investigation

So far, none of our attempts have led to a breakthrough or even a solid theory, so we are currently clueless.

To dig deeper, we had to get creative with our quite limited diagnostic tools. We decided to investigate the electronic components and connections on the DevKit board using a piece of classic equipment we had on hand: a very old Tektronix T935A oscilloscope.

Photograph showing a flat signal in the oscilloscope connected to components of the T2080RDB devkit.

For those interested in vintage test gear, the Tektronix T935 is a 35 MHz dual-channel analog scope with a delayed timebase from the T900 series. The specific model we are using, the T935A, is an upgraded version of the standard T935 (and the single-timebase T932).

The “A-series” adds some very useful features that came in handy during our probing:

  • Differential input (A-B)
  • X/Y mode in full sensitivity for both channels
  • DC trigger coupling and composite trigger
  • User-selectable CHOP/ALT mode (Non-A series select this automatically based on sweep rate)

You can read more about this workhorse on the Tektronix Wiki.

What We Tested

We painstakingly probed the board using the T935A. Although it cannot detect the high-frequency bus operation of the CPU or DDR lines, many components can be seen. High-impedance readings allow us to check the pins, and we can verify the power lines.

Beyond signal probing, we also attempted to force the board to boot from different media. We altered the DIP switches to try booting from the SD card, the NAND flash, and the SPI flash. The oscilloscope should show us chip selects of them to show read activity.

We tested the electric signals associated with:

  • The main power lines (fine)
  • The SD card interface (no activity)
  • The NOR and NAND flash interfaces (no activity)
  • The oscillators that provide clock sources for CPU and RAM (fine: 66 MHz and 133 MHz)
  • The reset lines of the T2080 CPU (one good, one shows no activity)
  • The CPU clock input line (dead?)

Photograph taken during the electrical track testing session of some components of the T2080RDB devkit.

Current status and next steps

Unfortunately, even with a detailed signal analysis and configuration changes, the CPU remains stuck in reset. The CPLD attempts to pull the CPU out of reset; however, the clock input is dead, and the HRESET line stays low.

The boot phase fails very early. Perhaps the CPLD did not complete the sequence, or maybe it is corrupted. There may also be a hardware issue. A visual inspection shows nothing apparent; we removed the CPU heatsink. The CPU remains cool, which proves that it is not running.

If anyone has experience with T2080RDB boards getting stuck in a reset state or has suggestions on what to probe next, please reach out!