The TI-Navigator Access Point motherboard

[critor]

In a previous news, we had allready introduced you the TI-Navigator Access Point, the proprietary WiFi router used to build a wireless network of TI-Nspire handhelds in class.

This evening, let's discover together the DVT1 (Design Validation Tests) prototype of this router - but this time, we're going to open it!

On the back, we notice two wifi antenna emplacements, but one one wifi antenna.
On the right, we notice power and USB connectors.



Let's turn it around:

On this prototype, the serial number and the MAC address are replaced by "X" characters.



Let's finally open it!

The inside of the case reveals two interconnected elements.

The first one is the motherboard:

Power and USB external connectors are there. But we also notice a strange internal connector in the top left-hand corner. Probably some debug connector similar to the dock connector on the TI-Nspire. Knowing that we allready discovered that the TI-Navigator Access Point is running on Linux, I wouldn't be surprised to find an RS232 Linux console there.



But in the end, nothing very interesting on this side of the board... Let's turn it around!

This time it's interesting!

The board reference is "Nav_Wireless_Bridge_MB_DVT1_6420", with "MB" for "Main Board" or "Mother Board" like on TI-Nspire handhelds.

But unlike other Nspire peripherals like the TI-Nspire Lab Cradle or the TI-Nspire ViewScreen, it's not an Nspire board this time.

We've got a 16MB S29GL128N Flash ROM from Spansion, but the CPU is a DaVinci TMS320 from TI.



Oh did I say 2 elements? Well... did you notice on the bottom the Ethernet connector I haven't mentionned up to now? As there is no such connector visible from the outside, then it's an internal connector.

So, to your advice... What is it connected to? Beyond the connector type, there are several other hints in the above images - I'm looking forward to reading your ideas



One additionnal hint is available from the french TI-Planet news:
http://tiplanet.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=124594

[Juju]

Hey nice stuff here.

But is it connected... TO THE INTERNETS???

inb4 we can put 3rd party stuff in the firmware so the Nspires can browse the Internet with a Ndless web browser. That would be too awesome.

[DJ Omnimaga]

This looks cool critor. I'm curious how much TI would charge for such stuff, though...

[piexil]

Oh man, imagine if you could modify that to browse the internet, pretty sweet.
Nothing like using a calculator for
...you know

[Hayleia]

Oh man, imagine if you could modify that to browse the internet, pretty sweet.
Nothing like using a calculator for
...you know

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