Swan is a low-cost embeddable STM32L4+-based microcontroller board designed to accelerate the development and deployment of battery-powered IoT solutions.

It is especially useful for applications requiring large memory or a high degree of I/O expandability at an affordable cost, such as edge-based inferencing and remote monitoring. Acting in this role, Swan is designed to be the ideal companion to Blues's Notecard.

Functional Description

The Swan is a Feather-compatible MCU based on the STM32 from STMicroelectronics. The device was built after Blues worked directly with a customer to implement a complex industrial modernization solution based around the Notecard. It is designed to operate as a device that developers can get started with quickly as a Feather for a POC or Prototype. Once developers are ready to move into a Pilot, or the complexity of the solution demands it, the Swan can leverage an additional 36 pins from the STM32 MCU through a set of castellated edges on the main PCB to utilize additional GPIOs or buses like I2C, UART, SPI, and CAN.

Features

• Features of the ST STM32L4R5ZIY6 microcontroller

  • 120MHz Clock speed

  • 2MB Flash, 2 banks read-while-write, proprietary code readout protection

  • 640KB of SRAM including 64KB with hardware parity check

  • Ultra-low-power with FlexPowerControl

  • 16x timers

  • 20x communication interfaces

  • 14-channel DMA controller

  • Rich analog peripherals (independent supply)

  • True random number generator

• Compliant with the Adafruit Feather Specification

  • includes a Micro-USB port for easy power and serial connectivity

  • includes a PMIC accessible via a JST PH connector, allowing you to either power the board via a LiPo battery and/or recharge the battery via USB.

• Access to 36 additional STM32 pins (beyond the Feather pins) via 0.05" castellated edge headers

• USER_BTN programmable button

• LED_BUILTIN programmable LED (red)

• JTAG (SWD capable) debug jack

• BOOT and RESET buttons

• Modular design supports Feather pins or an expansion PCB (to break pins out to 0.1" headers for easier wiring and debugging).

• 10kΩ pull-ups on the SDA and SCL pins

• Qwiic connector

• Notecard Outboard Firmware Update support

Package Configuration

The Swan can be used as a Feather-compatible board with soldered male headers, as a part of the Blues Notecard Feather dev kit, or as a headerless PCB with base carrier board for accessing 55 IO pins on the core STM32L4R5 MCU.

Swan Embedded

The Swan comes from the factory with no headers and a castellated edge, which allows it to be embedded directly in almost any project.

Feather-compatible Swan

Use the included male Feather header pins to use the Swan as a Feather-compatible device.

Swan Carrier

The Swan Carrier board is designed to breakout the connections along the castellated edge of the Swan board. Once the Swan has been soldered directly to the carrier board, then additional dual row headers can be soldered

Pin Information

The following tables contain pin definition mappings between the Swan and Carrier pins to the STM32L4R5 core MCU.

Swan Feather to STM32 Mapping

Swan Carrier Board to STM32 Mapping

Pin Description Table

NOTE: All digital I/O pins are interrupt capable.

(*) Not supported on CircuitPython, since it relies on Timer 17, with 16 being the maximum supported.

Specifications

Electrical Characteristics

DC Characteristics

Absolute Maximum Ratings

Ordering Information

• Please visit the Swan product page for ordering information.

Design Files

Open source hardware designs for the Swan and all Blues Hardware are maintained in the note-hardware GitHub repository.

Board Errata

Terms and Conditions

Visit Blues Hardware Terms & Conditions.

Revision History

Contact Information

For other questions about the Swan, visit the Blues Forum.

Blues Inc.
https://blues.com
50 Dunham Ridge Suite 1650
Beverly, MA 01915
support@blues.com