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Raspberry basics: Project 28z

Project name: Meet the Raspberry PI 4 model B board

Tags: Raspberry, Raspberry PI 4 model B board

Attachments: none 

In this project, you needed these parts (Dear visitors. You can support our project buy clicking on the links of parts and buying them or donate us to keep this website alive. Thank you):

1.Raspberry PI 4 model B board 1 pc

2. Micro SD card and SD card adapter 1 pc

3. Raspberry Pi 15.3W USB-C Power Supply 1 pc

4. USB keyboard 1 pc

5. USB mouse 1 pc

6. TV or PC monitor 1 pc (can be 2 pcs)

7. HDMI cable 1 pc (can be 2 pcs)

General

We will learn how to setup and use the Raspberry PI 4 model B board.

Understanding the Raspberry PI 4 model B board

The Raspberry Pi 4 is the fourth-generation Raspberry Pi. It replaced the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B in June 2019. It will remain in production until at least January 2026.

Raspberry Pi 4 Model B is the latest product in the popular Raspberry Pi range of computers. It offers ground-breaking increases in processor speed, multimedia performance, memory, and connectivity compared to the prior-generation Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+, while retaining backwards compatibility and similar power consumption. For the end user, Raspberry Pi 4 Model B provides desktop performance comparable to entry-level x86 PC systems.

This product's key features include a high-performance 64-bit quad-core processor, dual-display support at resolutions up to 4K via a pair of micro-HDMI ports, hardware video decode at up to 4Kp60, up to 4GB of RAM, dual-band 2.4/5.0 GHz wireless LAN, Bluetooth 5.0, Gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0, and PoE capability (via a separate PoE HAT add-on).

The dual-band wireless LAN and Bluetooth have modular compliance certification, allowing the board to be designed into end products with significantly reduced compliance testing, improving both cost and time to market.

The new Raspberry Pi 4 has 3 versions depending on the size of RAM, you can choose according to your needs: 

• Raspberry Pi 4 Computer Model B 1GB
• Raspberry Pi 4 Computer Model B 2GB
• Raspberry Pi 4 Computer Model B 4GB

Specifications:

• Broadcom BCM2711, Quad core Cortex-A72 (ARM v8) 64-bit SoC @ 1.5GHz
• 1GB, 2GB or 4GB LPDDR4-2400 SDRAM (depending on model)
• 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz IEEE 802.11ac wireless, Bluetooth 5.0, BLE
• Gigabit Ethernet
• 2 USB 3.0 ports; 2 USB 2.0 ports.
• Raspberry Pi standard 40 pin GPIO header (fully backwards compatible with previous boards)
• 2 × micro-HDMI ports (up to 4kp60 supported)
• 2-lane MIPI DSI display port
• 2-lane MIPI CSI camera port
• 4-pole stereo audio and composite video port
• H.265 (4kp60 decode), H264 (1080p60 decode, 1080p30 encode)
• OpenGL ES 3.0 graphics
• Micro-SD card slot for loading operating system and data storage
• 5V DC via USB-C connector (minimum 3A*)
• 5V DC via GPIO header (minimum 3A*)
• Power over Ethernet (PoE) enabled (requires separate PoE HAT)
• Operating temperature: 0 – 50 degrees C ambient

* A good quality 2.5A power supply can be used if downstream USB peripherals consume less than 500mA in total.

Features:

• With Raspberry Pi 4, you can run two monitors at once — and in 4K, too! 
• The speed and performance of the new Raspberry Pi 4 is a step up from earlier models. For the first time, we've built a complete desktop experience. Whether you're editing documents, browsing the web with a bunch of tabs open, juggling spreadsheets or drafting a presentation, you'll find the experience smooth and very recognisable - but on a smaller, more energy-efficient and much more cost-effective machine.
• Silent, energy-efficient. The fanless, energy-efficient Raspberry Pi runs silently and uses far less power than other computers.
• USB 3. Your new Raspberry Pi 4 has upgraded USB capacity: along with two USB 2 ports you'll find two USB 3 ports, which can transfer data up to ten times faster.
• Fast networking. Raspberry Pi 4 comes with Gigabit Ethernet, along with onboard wireless networking and Bluetooth.
• Your choice of RAM. We're making different variants of the Raspberry Pi 4 available, depending on how much RAM you need - 1GB, 2GB or 4GB.

Raspberry Pi 4 Add-ons

seeedstudio.com prepared lots of add-on for Raspberry Pi. All those hats, displays, and accessories will give the Raspberry Pi more features and possibilities. For Pi 4, we especially recommend the Grove Base Hat for Raspberry Pi, which links the Raspberry Pi to our Grove system, so you can easily use most of the Grove modules with your Raspberry Pi 4. Since the new pi changes the full HDMI interface into two micro HDMI ports, so you may need this Micro HDMI to HDMI Adapter to work with your HDMI display.

Signals and connections of the Raspberry PI 4 model B board

Step by Step instruction

1. A little about equipment required

Before you plug anything into your Raspberry Pi, make sure that you have all the equipment you need:

1. A Raspberry Pi 4 model B board
2. A micro SD card with with a full-size SD adapter. We recommend an 8GB class 4 SD card, ideally preinstalled with NOOBS. To get started with Raspberry Pi, you also need an operating system. If you haven't purchased a pre-installed micro SD card with NOOBS - not a problem, we will explain how to install an operating system onto an SD card.
3. A monitor with the correct cable and adapter (HDMI - HDMI or HDMI - DVI). Can be two 4K displays. Any HDMI/DVI monitor and any TV should work as a display for the Pi. Most modern television sets and monitors have an HDMI port, and are the easiest to get working with the Raspberry Pi. You can use an HDMI cable to connect the Raspberry Pi directly to the television or monitor. Some older monitors have a DVI port. These work well with the Raspberry Pi, although you'll need an HDMI-to-DVI adapter to attach to an HDMI cable, or a one-piece HDMI-to-DVI cable. Some old monitors have a VGA port. These can be trickier to use as you'll need an HDMI-to-VGA converter, which can change digital video to analogue video. A simple port adapter won't work. For best results, use one with HDMI input, but other connections are available for older devices.
4. A wired keyboard and mouse, or a wireless keyboard and mouse with a Bluetooth adapter.Any standard USB keyboard and mouse will work with your Raspberry Pi. Wireless keyboards and mice will work if already paired. For keyboard layout configuration options see raspi-config.
5. Raspberry Pi 15.3W USB-C Power Supply. 
   The official Raspberry Pi USB-C power supply is designed to power the latest Raspberry Pi 4 Model B boards, which were released in June 2019.
   5.1V / 3.0A DC output
   96-264Vac operating input range
   Short circuit, overcurrent and over temperature protection
   1.5m 18 AWG captive cable with USB-C output connector
   Available in four different models to suit different international power sockets
   The official Raspberry Pi USB-C power supply is designed to power the latest Raspberry Pi 4 Model B boards, which were released in June 2019.
   5.1V / 3.0A DC output, 96-264Vac operating input range, Short circuit, overcurrent and over temperature protection, 1.5m 18 AWG captive cable with USB-C output connector. Available in four different models to suit different international power sockets.
6. A T-Cobbler Breakout and GPIO Cable.  This is the perfect extension for Raspberry Pi GPIO to breadboard, with clear GPIO labeling. This is the assembled version of the Pi T-Cobbler.  It only works with the Raspberry Pi Model Zero, A+, B+, Pi 2,Pi 3, Pi 4! (Any Pi with 2x20 connector). The Raspberry Pi has landed on the Maker World like a 40-GPIO pinned, quad-USB ported, credit card sized bomb of DIY joy. And while you can use most of our great Model B accessories by hooking up our downgrade cable, its probably a good time to upgrade your set up and accessorize using all of the 40 pins. That's why we now carry the Assembled Pi T-Cobbler - Breakout + Cable for Raspberry Pi. This Cobbler is in a fancy T-shape, which is not as compact, but is a little easier to read the labels. The T-Cobbler is an add on prototyping board for the 2x20 connector-type Raspberry Pi, and can break out all those tasty power, GPIO, I2C and SPI pins from the 40-pin header onto a solderless breadboard. This set will make "cobbling together" prototypes with the Pi super easy. Each order comes with a 40 pin ribbon cable and assembled T-Cobbler. You can plug the 40-pin GPIO cable between the Pi computer and the T-Cobbler breakout. The T-Cobbler can plug into any solderless breadboard. The T-Cobbler PCB has all the pins labeled nicely so you can go forth and build circuits without keeping a pin-out printout at your desk. We think this will make it more fun to expand the Pi and build custom circuitry with it. Designed for use with any 2x20 connector Raspberry Pi.  No soldering required.
7. An ethernet (network) cable. [Model B/B+/2/3/4 only]. An Ethernet cable is used to connect your Pi to a local network and the internet.
8. 4-pole stereo audio and composite video port. Audio can be played through speakers or headphones using a standard 3.5mm jack. 

2. Raspberry Pi software setup. Install an operating system to Micro SD card

If you haven't purchased a pre-installed micro SD card  - not a problem, we will explain how to install an operating system onto an SD card now.

Beginners should start with NOOBS (New Out Of Box Software), which gives the user a choice of operating system from the standard distributions. The recommended distribution for normal use is Raspbian. Alternatives are available, such as LibreELEC (Kodi media centre) or Arch Linux.

1. Prepare a SD card. The Raspberry Pi works with any compatible SD card. For installation of NOOBS or the image installation of Raspbian, the minimum recommended card size is 8GB. For Raspbian Lite image installations we recommend a minimum of 4GB. Some distributions, specifically LibreELEC and Arch, can run on much smaller cards. If you're planning to use a card of 64GB or more with NOOBS, see this page first. The card class determines the sustained write speed for the card; a class 4 card will be able to write at 4MB/s, whereas a class 10 should be able to attain 10 MB/s. However, it should be noted that this does not mean a class 10 card will outperform a class 4 card for general usage, because often this write speed is achieved at the cost of read speed and increased seek times. The original Raspberry Pi Model A and Raspberry Pi Model B require full-size SD cards. The newer Raspberry Pi Model A+, Raspberry Pi Model B+, Raspberry Pi 2 Model B, Raspberry Pi Zero, and Raspberry Pi 3 Model B require micro SD cards.
2. Format SD card. Before installing anything on SD card you need to have it formatted. You'll also need to make sure your computer has a built-in SD card reader, or you can use a USB SD card reader. Download SD Formatter 5.0 for either Windows or Mac and follow the instructions to install the software. Insert your SD card into the computer or laptop’s SD card reader and make a note of the drive letter allocated to it, e.g. F:/. In SD Formatter, select the drive letter for your SD card and format it.
3. Note: If your SD card has 64GB or more, it will automatically be formatted as exFAT, which is not compatible with NOOBS. Follow these instructions to force your SD card to format as FAT32 so that you can use NOOBS.
4. Download NOOBS files. Visit the official Raspberry Pi Downloads page.
5. Click on NOOBS. Then click on the Download ZIP button under ‘NOOBS (offline and network install)’, and select a folder to save it to. Extract the files from the zip. Drag all the files in the extracted NOOBS folder and drop them onto the SD card drive. The necessary files will then be transferred to your SD card. When this process has finished, safely remove the SD card and insert it into your Raspberry Pi 3 board.

3. Raspberry Pi hardware setup

1. Insert your micro SD card into the TF card slot on the Raspberry Pi 3 board. It will only fit one way.
2. Connect Raspberry PI 4 board HDMI port to your TV or Monitor (Can be 2 4K displays) HDMI port (use HDMI cable (can be 2 cables if you will use 2 displays) ).
3. Make sure that your monitor or TV is turned on, and that you have selected the right input (e.g. HDMI 1,  etc).
4. Plug in your USB mouse and USB keyboard to Raspberry PI 4 USB ports.
5. If you intend to connect your Raspberry Pi to the internet, plug an Ethernet cable into the Ethernet port, or connect a WiFi dongle to one of the USB ports (unless you have a Raspberry Pi 3 board).
6. The Raspberry Pi 4 board comes equipped with a 4-pole stereo audio and composite video port. This will allow you to plug most speakers or headphones into the Raspberry Pi, so that you can listen to the output from fantastic programs like Sonic Pi. You can connect to Bluetooth speakers or headphones. Your success rates may vary depending on the dongle and/or speakers you're using, so ensure that you read the manufacturer's documentation.
7. You can add  extra storage to your Raspberry Pi 4 board. There are several options for increasing the storage capacity of your Raspberry Pi 4 board: bigger micro SD card, USB flash drives, external hard drives.
8. Connect Micro USB power supply to Raspberry PI 4 board USB-C power port.
9. The Raspberry PI desktop will start up.
10. 

4. Raspberry Pi networking

Let's connect your Raspberry Pi 4 board to your local network or the internet. You can use any of the following options to do this:

• Connecting via Ethernet. The Raspberry Pi 4 board has an Ethernet port. If your Raspberry Pi is close to a router, access point, or switch, you can connect to a network using an Ethernet cable. Once you've plugged the Ethernet cable into the Raspberry Pi 4 board Ethernet port and the other end into an access point (AP), your Raspberry Pi 3 board will automatically connect to the network.
• Connecting via WiFi. If you have a Raspberry Pi 4 board, then there is built-in WiFi.  

5. Using Raspberry PI 4 board for programming

GPIO ports allow you to connect electronic components such as LEDs and buttons to the Raspberry Pi.

You can attach T-Cobbler Breakout and GPIO Cable to Raspberry PI 4 board GPIO pins. Insert the other end of TCobbler Breakout (with pins) to breadboard.

Of course you can use jumper cables F-M, F-F to connect your Raspberry PI 4 board to breadboard, sensors too.

Troubleshooting

If you are having trouble with corruption of your SD cards, make sure you follow these steps:

• Make sure you are using a genuine SD card. There are many cheap SD cards available which are actually smaller than advertised or which will not last very long.
• Make sure you are using a good quality power supply. You can check your power supply by measuring the voltage between TP1 and TP2 on the Raspberry Pi; if this drops below 4.75V when doing complex tasks then it is most likely unsuitable.
• Make sure you are using a good quality USB cable for the power supply. When using a high quality power supply, the TP1->TP2 voltage can drop below 4.75V. This is generally due to the resistance of the wires in the USB power cable; to save money, USB cables have as little copper in them as possible, and as much as 1V (or 1W) can be lost over the length of the cable.
• Make sure you are shutting your Raspberry Pi down properly before powering it off. Type sudo halt and wait for the Pi to signal it is ready to be powered off by flashing the activity LED.
• Finally, corruption has been observed if you are overclocking the Pi. This problem has been fixed previously, although the workaround used may mean that it can still happen. If after checking the steps above you are still having problems with corruption, please let us know.

Summary

We have learnt how to setup and use the Raspberry PI 4 model B board.

Library

• No libraries needed in this project

Sketch

• No sketches needed in this project