Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Hardware
    1. Information
    2. Picture
    3. Features
    4. Switches Assignment
      1. Boot mode
      2. Other switch
    5. Debug Serial
    6. Caution
  3. Software Version List
  4. How to Startup
  5. Tips
  6. Known Issues & Restrictions
  7. Support

Introduction

This is the page for Sparrow Hawk board with R-Car V4H provided Retronix Technology Inc.

Hardware

Information

Board Name Kit R-Car V4h SoC version SoC Information Board Information Where to Buy
Sparrow Hawk
(DDR8GB/16GB)		 Complete/Basic v3.0 R-Car V4H Sparrow Hawk
provided by Retronix Technology Inc.		 Shimafuji

Picture

Sparrow_Hawk_assignment Sparrow_Hawk_assignment

Features

Function Interface Specification
CPU - 4x Arm® Cortex®-A76, 3x Arm® Cortex®-R52
GPU - AXM-8-256
DRAM - 8GB/16GB LPDDR5
Flash Memory - 64MB QSPI
Camera I/F J1, J2 2x Raspberry Pi Camera
Display CN6, J4 1x DP, 1x DSI
Ethernet AVB CN2 1 Port (1Gbps)
Debug Serial CN4 2 Port
Audio CONN3, CONN4 In/Out, In
PCIe4.0 CN5 1x M.2 Key-M (x2 lane)
USB3.0 USB4, USB5, USB6 2x USB type-A, 2x USB type-C
CAN-FD CONN2 2 Port
PWM J3 1 Port
JTAG CN3 1 Port
Removal Media CN1 1x MicroSD
Extensions CN7 Raspberry Pi 40-Pin CN
Mode Switches SW2 Dip SW
Power USB1(Input) USB PD 20V
Power Control SW1, SW3, CONN1 2x SW, 1x Jumper

Switches Assignment

Boot mode

SW2-1 SW2-2 SW2-3 Description
ON ON ON Serial Flash boot at single read 40MHz using DMA
OFF OFF OFF SCIF/HSCIF download mode

Other switch

SW2-4 SW2-5 SW2-6 SW2-7 SW2-8 Description
OFF ON ON ON ON Initial setting

Note: For more detail, please refer to board User’s Manual.

Debug Serial

This board has two serial devices and ChA(HSCIF0) is used for mainly.

Channel Baudrate Format Flow Control
ChA(HSCIF0)
ex) COM<lower num>, /dev/ttyUSB<lower num>		 921600 bps 8N1 none
ChB(HSCIF1)
ex) COM<higher num>, /dev/ttyUSB<higher num>		 115200 bps 8N1 none

Caution

FAN must be installed. Do not remove FAN for cooling the R-Car V4H from the board, as doing so will lead to the R-Car V4H being overheated to destruction. It is recommended to use a heat sink and FAN together.

Software Version List

Software Version
Yocto Project 5.0.14
Debian 12
Linux kernel 6.12.58
U-Boot 2025.10
Arm Trusted Firmware 2.14.0

How to Startup

BSP
Yocto BSP
Debian based BSP

Tips

  1. There is no output on serial console when power on the board.
    • You can check following list to confirm board is broken or not.
      • Do you write the loaders into the board?
      • Do you change DIP-SW as correct settings?
      • Do you use correct serial device? This board has two serial devices and lower number is used for mainly.
      • Do you use correct USB-PD power supply? This board needs 20V3.25A(65W) output at least.
  2. How to use HDMI display instead of DP display.
    • This board doesn’t support passive adaptor so that please use active adaptor.
  3. Why my Headset Mic is not working?
    • There are two types of 4pin Headset. one is CIST which is default of sparrow-hawk. the other is MIST. The only deference is pin assign of MIC and GND. If you use MIST type of headset, please modify the board as follows:
      • Mount :R631 , R632
      • Unmount :R630 , R633

Known Issues & Restrictions

  1. USB Type-C port doesn’t support DP-alt mode so that Display output is not supported. Please use DisplayPort or Raspberry Pi touch Display 2 instead of type-c.
  2. FAN/Heat sink less doesn’t work well due to high temperature in some case. Please attach the Heatsink and FAN to use the board.

Support

FAQ: https://github.com/orgs/rcar-community/discussions/categories/faq

Q&A Forum: https://github.com/orgs/rcar-community/discussions/categories/q-a