Introduction

This is the Debian based BSP page for Sparrow Hawk.

Software Version List

How to Startup

Prepare the OS image by downloading it or by building it by yourself, then flash it to the boot device.

Preparation of the software

git clone https://github.com/rcar-community/sparrow-hawk-debian
cd sparrow-hawk-debian

# You need to prepare docker environment on your Host PC
./setup_docker_image.sh
./build_image/build_debian_image/build_with_docker_sparrow-hawk.sh 13

# Note: Build requirements can be confirmed from the dockerfiles in _dev.
sudo ./build_image/build_debian_image/build_debian_for_sparrow-hawk.sh 13

./setup_docker_image.sh
./build_image/build_debian_image/build_with_docker_sparrow-hawk.sh 13 --desktop xfce

sudo ./build_image/build_debian_image/build_debian_for_sparrow-hawk.sh 13 --desktop xfce

ls ./build_image/build_debian_image/

Flashing OS image

Select the boot device.

To boot from the device, please see How to boot.

Update loader

Please update the loader (u-boot) using the loader file (flash.bin) included in the Debian OS image (rootfs). This is needed only if the U-Boot version displayed at boot is older than the one in Software Version List.

1. Insert the boot device prepared in Flashing OS image into Sparrow Hawk, then power on the board and enter the U-Boot shell referring to steps 1 to 5 of How to boot.
2. Update the QSPI memory by running the command corresponding to the boot device. The system is reset after the update.
   • microSD card

     run update_loader_from_mmc
     

   • USB storage device

     run update_loader_from_usb
     

   • NVMe M.2 SSD

     run update_loader_from_nvme
     

3. Enter the U-Boot shell again and reset the environment to default as shown below. The environment saved by saveenv before overrides the default environment of the new loader and hides the commands such as bootcmd_xxx.

   env default -a
   saveenv
   reset
   

Note:

• env default -a resets all U-Boot environment variables, including your own settings such as bootcmd and ethaddr. Please set them again if necessary.
• update_loader_from_usb and update_loader_from_nvme use PCIe. If the device is not found, please see Troubleshooting of USB/NVMe M.2 SSD boot in Tips.
• If update_loader_from_xxx is not defined (the loader is older than the v2026-04-13 release), insert the microSD card and use the following command instead of step 2.

  load mmc 0:1 ${loadaddr} flash.bin && sf probe && sf update ${loadaddr} 0 ${filesize} && reset
  

• If flashing fails and U-Boot no longer boots, please try the recovery procedure. Please see Loader recovery procedure in Sparrow Hawk page.

How to boot

1. Ensure that the fan is properly installed.
2. Insert the boot device into Sparrow Hawk.
   • microSD card: insert it into CN1 which is bottom of the board.
   • USB storage device: connect it to USB6 .
   • NVMe M.2 SSD: insert it into CN5 .
3. Open terminal application and open serial device.
4. Press SW1 to power on the board.
5. After booting U-Boot, please press any key while showing “Hit any key to stop autoboot:” to enter U-Boot shell.
6. Input the command corresponding to the boot device into U-Boot shell and press enter key.
   • microSD card

     run bootcmd_mmc0
     

   • USB storage device

     run bootcmd_usb0
     

   • NVMe M.2 SSD

     run bootcmd_nvme0
     

7. If command and environment is correct, Linux kernel log will output.
8. Log in using the following login ID and password.
   • sparrow-hawk login: rcar
   • Password: rcar

Note:

• bootcmd_xxx is the boot command of the boot device. It searches the device for the boot files, runs the boot script in the fitImage, and sets root= for the device automatically.
• The boot script detects the connected Pi Camera(J1/J2) and DSI display(J4) automatically and selects the corresponding configuration. You don’t need to specify them manually.
• When booting from USB storage device or NVMe M.2 SSD, the initramfs is used to load the PCIe firmware at an early stage.

To make the command executed in step 6 of How to boot persistent across reboots, set it to bootcmd and run saveenv as shown below. After saving the environment, reboot the system once. From the next boot onward, the command will be executed automatically, and you can skip steps 5 and 6 in How to boot.

setenv bootcmd "run bootcmd_mmc0"  # Replace with bootcmd_usb0 or bootcmd_nvme0 according to the boot device
saveenv
reset  # Execute this only the first time

Boot options

The boot script changes its behavior according to the following U-Boot environment variables. Set them before running bootcmd_xxx (use saveenv to keep them).

ex) Use Argon FAN HAT

setenv fan argon40
run bootcmd_mmc0

How to Check Functions

Software support list

Note:

• “Supported”: Function succeeded in the simple test as below.
  
• “Not supported”: No support plan.
  

CAN

Loop back

1. Connect the following pins of CONN2

   Connect Pin1(CAN1L) - Pin2(CAN0L) and Pin5(CAN1H) - Pin6(CAN0H)

2. Execute following commands on Linux:

   sudo ip link set can0 up type can restart-ms 100 bitrate 1000000 dbitrate 5000000 fd on
   sudo ip link set can1 up type can restart-ms 100 bitrate 1000000 dbitrate 5000000 fd on
   candump can0 -n 16 &
   cangen can1 -I i -L i -D i -f -n 16
   candump can1 -n 16 &
   cangen can0 -I i -L i -D i -f -n 16
   

Audio

• Audio connector
  • 
  • Sparrow Hawk has two audio input ports. These signals are mixed on the IC and therefore handled as a single-channel input on the board.
• Hardware setup
  • Connect headset/earphone/Speaker to CONN3 .
  • (if possible) Connect audio output like a smartphone to CONN4 .
    • Even if you don’t connect an audio output to CONN4 , you can test.
• Software setup

  • Setup(Mix Aux in and Headset mic and setup audio output via CONN3 )

    amixer set "Headphone" 40%
    amixer set "Headphone" on
    amixer set "Mixout Left DAC Left" on
    amixer set "Mixout Right DAC Right" on
    amixer set "Aux" on
    amixer set "Aux" 80%
    amixer set "Mixin PGA" on
    amixer set "Mixin PGA" 50%
    amixer set "ADC" on
    amixer set "ADC" 80%
    amixer set "Mixin Left Aux Left" on
    amixer set "Mixin Right Aux Right" on
    amixer set "Mic 1" on
    amixer set "Mic 1" 80%
    amixer set "Mixin Left Mic 1" on
    amixer set "Mixin Right Mic 1" on
    

• Test function
  1. Only Playback test (3 times) [CONN3 ]

     speaker-test -c 2 -l 3 -t wav -W /usr/share/sounds/alsa/
     

     • 
  2. Only Recording test (5sec) [CONN3 or CONN4 or ‘CONN3 and CONN4 ’]

     arecord -D hw:0,0 -t wav -d 5 -c 2 -r 48000 -f S16_LE > audio.wav
     

     • 
     • If you want to check audio.wav, execute following command.

       aplay audio.wav
       

  3. Recording and Playback test (5sec) [CONN3 or ‘CONN3 +CONN4 ’]

     arecord -D hw:0,0 -t wav -d 5 -c 2 -r 48000 -f S16_LE | aplay
     

     • 

GPIO

Toggle GP2_12(Pin11 on Pin Header)

1. Connect LED or Oscilloscope to the board
   • ex) LED
   • 
     • Please install a resistor to prevent damage to the LED. In the Connection image, it is used a 1kΩ resistor.
2. Execute following command

   python3 /usr/bin/example-apps/toggle_gpio_GP2_12.py
   

For more examples, please see also https://github.com/brgl/libgpiod/raw/refs/heads/master/bindings/python/examples

I2C

• Detect I2C device

  i2cdetect -y -r 3
  i2cdetect -y -r 4
  

  Since I2C bus numbers 3 and 4 are assigned to the External IO, execute the above command.

  • I2C pin assignment
  • 
• As an example, output result using Argon FAN HAT and setting setenv fan argon40 before booting (please see Boot options)

  • i2cdetect: detect I2C devices on a bus

    rcar@sparrow-hawk:~# i2cdetect -y -r 3
         0  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  a  b  c  d  e  f
    00:                         -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    10: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 1a -- -- -- -- --
    20: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    30: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    40: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    50: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    60: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    70: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    rcar@sparrow-hawk:~# i2cdetect -y -r 4
         0  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  a  b  c  d  e  f
    00:                         -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    10: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    20: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    30: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    40: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    50: 50 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    60: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    70: -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    

  • i2cset: control FAN speed

    rcar@sparrow-hawk:# i2cset -y 3 0x01a 0x00 # 0%
    rcar@sparrow-hawk:# i2cset -y 3 0x01a 0x32 # 50%
    rcar@sparrow-hawk:# i2cset -y 3 0x01a 0x64 # 100%
    

    • Argon FAN HAT: https://argon40.com/en-jp/products/argon-fan-hat
• Please search i2c-tools to use other commands(i2cdump, i2cget, i2cset, i2ctransfer).

USB3.0

• With the power on, connect a USB flash drive to the USB6 port on the board. If “SuperSpeed” is displayed, the test is successful.

  • Output example(the upper USB6 port)

    [   74.051911] usb 2-3: new SuperSpeed USB device number 2 using xhci-pci-renesas
    [   74.078718] usb-storage 2-3:1.0: USB Mass Storage device detected
    [   74.080680] scsi host0: usb-storage 2-3:1.0
    [   75.104448] scsi 0:0:0:0: Direct-Access     SanDisk  Ultra Fit        1.00 PQ: 0 ANSI: 6
    [   75.117190] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] 60088320 512-byte logical blocks: (30.8 GB/28.7 GiB)
    [   75.120450] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Write Protect is off
    [   75.122794] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Write cache: disabled, read cache: enabled, doesn't support DPO or FUA
    [   75.176866]  sda: sda1
    [   75.177754] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Attached SCSI removable disk
    

  • Output example(the lower USB6 port)

    [  167.907865] usb 2-4: new SuperSpeed USB device number 3 using xhci-pci-renesas
    [  167.939390] usb-storage 2-4:1.0: USB Mass Storage device detected
    [  167.940850] scsi host0: usb-storage 2-4:1.0
    [  168.960666] scsi 0:0:0:0: Direct-Access     SanDisk  Ultra Fit        1.00 PQ: 0 ANSI: 6
    [  168.967661] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] 60088320 512-byte logical blocks: (30.8 GB/28.7 GiB)
    [  168.971146] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Write Protect is off
    [  168.973359] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Write cache: disabled, read cache: enabled, doesn't support DPO or FUA
    [  169.026988]  sda: sda1
    [  169.027913] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Attached SCSI removable disk
    

UART

Loop back

1. Connect UART TX and RX(pin 8 and pin 10) on PinHeader.

2. Execute following commands:

   stty -F /dev/ttySC2 -echo
   cat /dev/ttySC2 &
   echo Hello > /dev/ttySC2 && sleep 1
   killall cat
   

Thermal

• Check SoC temperature

  cat /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone*/temp
  # ex.) 55000 # (Unit is millicelsius => 55.000 °C)
  

• Thermal throttling

  CA76 core temp	function
  ~ 68°C	Normal operation
  68 ~ 100 °C	CPU clock is limited
  100 °C	Forced system shutdown

• Measurement point

  zone	Measurement point
  thermal_zone0	around Cortex-R52
  thermal_zone1	around CNN
  thermal_zone2	around Cortex-A76
  thermal_zone3	around DDR-PHY

NVMe M.2 SSD

Note:

• SATA M.2 SSD is not supported.

• Insert the NVMe into CN5 before powering on.
• The NVMe used for this test is the Samsung 970 EVO Plus.

  dmesg | grep nvme
  

  • Output example

    rcar@sparrow-hawk:~# dmesg | grep nvme
    [    4.738931] nvme nvme0: pci function 0000:01:00.0
    [    4.741086] nvme 0000:01:00.0: enabling device (0000 -> 0002)
    [    4.745462] nvme nvme0: missing or invalid SUBNQN field.
    [    4.747759] nvme nvme0: D3 entry latency set to 8 seconds
    [    4.769123] nvme nvme0: 4/0/0 default/read/poll queues
    [    4.783049]  nvme0n1: p1
    

Pi Camera

Note:

• Currently, only Raspberry Pi Camera V2 and Raspberry Pi Camera V3 are supported.

Note:

• The Raspberry Pi Camera V3 is currently under development on mainline Linux and libcamera, so at this stage the image may appear dark and features such as auto-focus are not yet supported. In addition, recognition may occasionally fail.

1. Connect Raspberry Pi Camera V2 and/or Raspberry Pi Camera V3 to J1 and/or J2 connector.
   • The board connector has 22 pins, so you need to prepare a pitch conversion cable.
   • When using the Raspberry Pi Camera V2, the following cable is required.
     • https://www.raspberrypi.com/products/camera-cable/
   • 
2. Boot Linux referring to step 6 of How to boot. The connected device is detected automatically.
3. Test camera
   • On-board test (a display is required)
     • For the Xfce desktop, install it referring to GPU and execute the command on the terminal of the Xfce desktop.

DSI Display

The following displays can be connected to the J4 connector. The connected device is detected automatically when you boot Linux referring to step 6 of How to boot, so you don’t need to specify it.

Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2

Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2: https://www.raspberrypi.com/products/touch-display-2/

Note:

• Please perform the following “1. Setup” without connecting the AC adapter to the board (USB1 ).

Note:

• There is a risk of damaging the board or the display, so please connect them with great care.

1. Setup
   • Connect Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2 cable to the J4 connector.
   • Connect the Power (red wire) to pin 2 of CN7 and the Ground (black wire) to pin 6 of CN7 .
   • 
2. Boot Linux referring to step 6 of How to boot. The connected device is detected automatically.
3. Display will work correctly after booting.

Others

• Olimex MIPI-HDMI adapter: Connect the adapter to the J4 connector, and connect an HDMI display to the adapter. The official Raspberry Pi FPC cable can be used to connect the adapter.
• Waveshare 13.3inch DSI LCD: Connect the panel to the J4 connector.

For the details of the connection, refer to the manual of each product.

Pi Active Cooler

• Connect Raspberry Pi Active Cooler to the J3 connector.

• 

  • Raspberry Pi Active Cooler: https://www.raspberrypi.com/products/active-cooler/

• The thermal pad is not aligned with the R-Car V4H Chip. Please reposition the thermal pad to match the location of the R-Car V4H Chip.

• 

  • The thermal pad application method is one example, ensure it is applied to adhere to at least the R-Car V4H chip and DRAM.

• Manual control of fan speed
  

  sudo bash -c 'echo 2 > /sys/class/hwmon/hwmon4/pwm1_enable'
  sudo bash -c 'echo 150 > /sys/class/hwmon/hwmon4/pwm1'
  

  #1 ~ 255 is acceptable but low speeds are not recommended from thermal perspective.

GPU

Note:

• The OpenGL ES benchmark (glmark2) and the Vulkan sample (vkcube) render on the display. Execute the commands on the terminal of the Xfce desktop.

If you use the BSP image, install the Xfce desktop first. A network connection is required. The desktop does not start automatically right after the installation, so start it with the second command.

sudo apt install task-xfce-desktop
sudo systemctl restart lightdm

1. Connect a display to Sparrow Hawk and boot Linux referring to How to boot. In case of the BSP + Xfce desktop image, the Xfce desktop starts automatically.
2. Open the terminal on the Xfce desktop and execute the following commands. Each application renders on the display.
   • OpenGL ES benchmark (glmark2)

     glmark2
     

   • Vulkan (vkcube)

     vkcube
     

3. Close the window of each application to stop it.
4. To check OpenCL, execute clinfo. The GPU is available if the platform and the device are listed as follows.

   clinfo
   

   Number of platforms                               1
     Platform Name                                   PowerVR
   ...
   Number of devices                                 1
     Device Name                                     PowerVR A-Series AXM-8-256
   

Tips

How to flash OS image without removing the device from the board

Preparation:

• TFTP server on your host PC and network connection between board and your host PC.
• Copy the gzipped image file into tftp server root.
  • ex.) /tftp/sparrow-hawk-debian-13-based-bsp.img.gz

Note:

• After this operation, all data is erased on the device which is selected below.

Execute following command on u-boot shell:

setenv ethaddr
setenv serverip
setenv ipaddr

Then, select the device to flash and execute the command.

tftp ${loadaddr} <image file with gzipped> && gzwrite mmc 0 ${loadaddr} ${filesize}

pci e
usb start
tftp ${loadaddr} <image file with gzipped> && gzwrite usb 0 ${loadaddr} ${filesize}

pci e
nvme scan
tftp ${loadaddr} <image file with gzipped> && gzwrite nvme 0 ${loadaddr} ${filesize}

How to expand the rootfs

Please run the following command on your board. Rootfs is expanded to use whole storage.

sudo expand-rootfs.sh
sudo reboot

Troubleshooting of USB/NVMe M.2 SSD boot

Booting from USB storage device or NVMe M.2 SSD (bootcmd_usb0 / bootcmd_nvme0) and update_loader_from_usb / update_loader_from_nvme initialize PCIe in U-Boot, which needs the PCIe firmware. If the device is not found, please check the two conditions below.

Condition 1: The PCIe firmware is written to the SPI flash.

If the PCIe firmware is not written, dummy data is loaded as the firmware and PCIe does not work correctly. No error message is displayed in this case. Updating the loader by the procedure in Update loader updates only U-Boot and does not write the PCIe firmware. Write the PCIe firmware by either of the following methods.

• Method A: Recovery procedure (ipl-burning)
  • Run ipl-burning at least once, referring to Loader recovery procedure in Sparrow Hawk page. It writes both the loader and the PCIe firmware.
• Method B: Write from the microSD card on U-Boot shell

  • Boot U-Boot with the microSD card which has the Debian OS image (rootfs), then run the following command. It writes lib/firmware/rcar_gen4_pcie.bin in the rootfs to the SPI flash.

    run flash_pcie_fw_to_qspi_from_mmc
    

Condition 2: The environment variables for loading the PCIe firmware are set in U-Boot.

If they are not set, the following message is displayed.

Define 'renesas_rcar_gen4_load_firmware' script which loads the R-Car
Gen4 PCIe controller firmware from storage into memory and sets these
two environment variables:
  ...

Check them on U-Boot shell. If they are not displayed, they are not set.

printenv renesas_rcar_gen4_load_firmware

The environment saved by saveenv in the previous version overrides the default environment, so the variables may be missing even after the loader is updated. Reset the environment to default as shown below.

env default -a
saveenv
reset

Note:

• env default -a resets all U-Boot environment variables, including your own settings such as bootcmd and ethaddr. Please set them again if necessary.

Known Issues

Nothing