HMI Dev Kit for Solar-Management Apps Features High-Res Display
Built around Microchip’s 1-GHz SAMA7D65 MPU, the Solar Monitor HMI Reference Design is a rugged, low-risk path from prototype to field-deployed solar-management solution for utility-grade operator panels, mobile maintenance kiosks, and edge-analytics systems.
Packaged in a compact 14- × 14-mm BGA with an automotive-grade roadmap, the reference design includes a bright 10-in. LVDS capacitive touchscreen driven by the ATMXT1066TD touchscreen controller. It can deliver real-time solar-farm insights — string currents, inverter output, battery-storage levels, and weather data — on a single high-resolution dashboard.
The reference design includes dual Gigabit Ethernet with IEEE-1588/TSN, multiple CAN-FD and I3C channels and 3× I2S, PDM mic input, SPDIF, and 4× stereo ASRCs.
It also features integrated hardware crypto and TrustZone security (AES/TDES/SHA/RSA/ECC), SRAM PUF, on‑the‑fly encryption/decryption, and OTP key storage, which help safeguard connected‑home credentials and firmware. They also allow developers to connect securely to SCADA networks, tracker controllers, and BMS units without external gateways.
The system’s Flexible Software Stack gives designers the choice between bare‑metal MPLAB Harmony and embedded Linux. Choose bare‑metal Harmony for instant boot, deterministic control, and minimal memory, or move to a full embedded‑Linux distro when the need arises for nrich networking, containers, and field upgradability. Both paths are fully supported on the same hardware.
Those systems work with the royalty-free Microchip Graphics Suite (MGS), which enables drag-and-drop GUI customization and effortless re-targeting to embedded Linux when cloud analytics or containerized services are required.
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About the Author
Lee Goldberg
Contributing Editor
Lee Goldberg is a self-identified “Recovering Engineer,” Maker/Hacker, Green-Tech Maven, Aviator, Gadfly, and Geek Dad. He spent the first 18 years of his career helping design microprocessors, embedded systems, renewable energy applications, and the occasional interplanetary spacecraft. After trading his ‘scope and soldering iron for a keyboard and a second career as a tech journalist, he’s spent the next two decades at several print and online engineering publications.
Lee’s current focus is power electronics, especially the technologies involved with energy efficiency, energy management, and renewable energy. This dovetails with his coverage of sustainable technologies and various environmental and social issues within the engineering community that he began in 1996. Lee also covers 3D printers, open-source hardware, and other Maker/Hacker technologies.
Lee holds a BSEE in Electrical Engineering from Thomas Edison College, and participated in a colloquium on technology, society, and the environment at Goddard College’s Institute for Social Ecology. His book, “Green Electronics/Green Bottom Line - A Commonsense Guide To Environmentally Responsible Engineering and Management,” was published by Newnes Press.
Lee, his wife Catherine, and his daughter Anwyn currently reside in the outskirts of Princeton N.J., where they masquerade as a typical suburban family.
Lee also writes the regular PowerBites series.