GigaBlox is a tiny form factor GigaBit ethernet switch with five 10/100/1000M ports, designed for space, weight and power (SWaP) limited applications.
We developed it specifically to address the need for high data throughput inside small internal volumes, a common problem for drones and robots.
GigaBlox has an footprint of 45mm x 45mm, and runs from a very wide input voltage from 5 to 60V (tolerant up to 65V). All ports are galvanically isolated from each other, and the input voltage.
Plug and play GigaBit Connectivity
GigaBlox is an unmanaged switch and works straight out the box with zero setup required. All you need to do is:
- Apply a 6-60V DC supply.
- Connect your devices using the included cable set.
- GigaBlox will perform auto-negotiation to select the fastest speed for each connected device, then automatically begin switching.
GigaBlox’s switching engine uses a non-blocking fabric, meaning that all five ports are capable of 1Gbps simultaneously. This is crucial for applications with multiple streams of data, typical in camera-based systems.
LED Breakout
Revision C of GigaBlox now has an external LED breakout header, which allows you to access the onboard port activity indicators on GigaBlox.
The Molex PicoBlade connector consists of seven pins, five anode/cathode LED signals, 3.3V and GND. This allows five external LEDs to be connected to GigaBlox to indicate port activity on all of the board. This is very useful for when GigaBlox is integrated into a housing but the port activity LEDs are still required to be seen.
Please see the datasheet for more information.
The Molex PicoBlade connector consists of seven pins, five anode/cathode LED signals, 3.3V and GND. This allows five external LEDs to be connected to GigaBlox to indicate port activity on all of the board. This is very useful for when GigaBlox is integrated into a housing but the port activity LEDs are still required to be seen.
Please see the datasheet for more information.
Dimensions
We’ve squeezed all necessary Ethernet circuitry into GigaBlox without making performance compromises. We use magnetics for improved signal integrity and electrical isolation between each ethernet bus.
Cabling
We use Molex Picoblade connectors on all our boards to keep them tiny, and we include all the cables needed to get started, which are…
5 x PicoBlade to RJ-45 300mm (SKU: BB-PBRJ1-8-0.3)
Use this cable to connect an external ethernet device with a RJ-45 port.
1 x PicoBlade to bare wires 300mm (SKU: BB-PBTL1-4-0.3)
Use this cable to connect a 5 – 60V DC power supply to power SwitchBlox.
Ethernet Pinout
Below is a handy graphic that shows how we transition from a Molex Picoblade pinout to the standard RJ-45 ethernet cables. Gigabit ethernet uses four differential channels, for a total of eight total conductors.
