International Journal of Advances in Engineering and Management (IJAEM)

Volume 2, Issue 12, pp: 225-227 www.ijaem.net ISSN: 2395-5252

A Review Paper on Raspberry Pi and its Applications

1
Hirak Dipak Ghael, 2Dr. L Solanki, 3Gaurav Sahu
1
Student, 2Principal, 3Assistant Professor,
123
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering,
123
BKBIET, Pilani, India.

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Date of Submission: 25-12-2020 Date of Acceptance: 06-01-2021
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ABSTRACT: Raspberry Pi, an efficient and researchers of University of Cambridge came
powerful minicomputer having the dimension forward within aim to raise the number of A level
approximately equal to the size of a credit/debit students opting for Computer Science domain[2].
card. It was invented by the United Kingdom The four researchers behind the development of the
Raspberry Pi foundation with the hope of first model are Eben Upton, Jack Lang, Rob
enlightening and empowering the generation of Mullins, and Alan Mycroft. Raspberry Pi was
learners to be more creative and efficient. Since its incorporated in 2009 with the mission and vision of
launch, many open-source communities have manufacturing an affordable computer so that the
contributed towards open-source operating systems young generation could use it to learn basic
(OS), apps and various other forms of computers computer programming. The first Raspberry Pi,
which are similar to Raspberry Pi. Moreover, model B was launched back in 2012 by the United
various embedded system scholars and researchers Kingdom Raspberry Pi foundation. Initially, it used
across the globe are constantly involved in the a Broadcom BCM2835 Soc which is integrated
development of innovative projects using this with 512 Mb memory storage, 700 MHz ARM
module which is observed to have out-of-the-box ARM1176JZF-S processor and VideoCore IV
application. Since its inception, Raspberry Pi is graphics processing unit (GPU) [3]. The
under constant up-gradation both in terms of both foundation, later on, launched a cheaper model
software and hardware which is thereby making it a which had lower memory storage, single USB port
“Full-Fledged Computer” with a possibility to and no ethernet controller. As of 2019, the
compute intense task within a specific timeframe. company has sold over more than 19 million units
This review paper shall lay a foundation stone to making it a 3rd best-selling “general-purpose
numerous open-source community and will enable computer”.
the embedded students to develop projects to a
whole new level. Also, we will discuss the II. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
application/projects that have built to date. The below Specifications are of the latest
Index Terms: Raspberry Pi, Arduino, IoT, Linux, Raspberry Pi 4 Model B
Small Form Factor Computer, Raspbian, Open  Processor: Broadcom BCM2711, Quad core
Source, Embedded Systems. Cortex-A72 (ARM v8) 64-bit SoC @ 1.5GHz
 RAM: 8GB LPDDR4-3200 SDRAM
I. INTRODUCTION  Bluetooth: Bluetooth 5.0, BLE
The Raspberry Pi is a smaller version of a  Wi-Fi: 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz IEEE 802.11ac
modern-day computer capable of performing task wireless
effectively. The module utilizes various kinds of  USB: 2 USB 3.0 ports; 2 USB 2.0 ports
the processor; therefore, it can only install open-  Ethernet: Gigabit Ethernet
source operating systems and apps on it. Pi also  HDMI: 2 × micro-HDMI ports (up to 4kp60
enables the user to browse the internet, send supported)
emails, write documents using a word processor,  Storage: MicroSD Card Slot
and much more. Raspberry Pi support various
 Power Supply: 5.1V 3A USB Type C Power
programming languages such as Python, C, C++,
(Recommended)
BASIC, Perl and Ruby [1].
 Dimensions: 85.6mm × 56.5mm
Raspberry Pi initially has its own operating system
A. History
previously called Raspbian based on Linux. In the
The foundation stone for the development
emerging software world, there are few non-Linux
of Raspberry Pi was laid back in 2006 when
based OS options available in the market [4]. The

DOI: 10.35629/5252-0212225227 | Impact Factor value 7.429 | ISO 9001: 2008 Certified Journal Page 225
 International Journal of Advances in Engineering and Management (IJAEM)
Volume 2, Issue 12, pp: 225-227 www.ijaem.net ISSN: 2395-5252

preferred OS for the Pi are Linux distribution

(Debian, Puppy Linux, Arch Linux, Fedora Remix
and OpenELEC) as they are easily available at no
cost, but majorly owing to their capability to
function on the Raspberry Pi’s ARM processor.

III. RASPBERRY PI BOOT PROCESS [5]

a) When the Raspberry Pi is first turned on, the
ARM core is off, and the GPU core is on. At
this point the SDRAM is disabled.
b) The GPU starts executing the first stage
bootloader, which is stored in ROM on the
SoC. The first stage bootloader reads the SD
card, and loads the second stage bootloader
(bootcode.bin) into the L2 cache, and runs it.
c) bootcode.bin enables SDRAM, and reads the
third stage bootloader (loader.bin) from the
SD card into RAM, and runs it.
d) loader.bin reads the GPU firmware (start.elf) Figure 1: Extensive Peripheral Support
e) start.elf reads config.txt, cmdline.txt and
kernel.img  Multiple Sensors: It can support and connect
SoCSystem on a Chip multiple sensors at a time, enabling the
ARM Advanced RISC Machine embedded system enthusiasts to create/develop
GPU Graphics Processing Unit innovative projects.
SDRAM Synchronous Dynamic Random-Access  Supports all kind of Codes: This board
Memory supports codesof almost any language, starting
from C,C#,C++,Ruby,Python,Java,etc.…
IV. PROS & CONS OF RASPBERRY PI  Fast Processor: When compared to Arduino
[6] and other microcontroller modules, Raspberry
A. Pros Pi has faster processor. Raspberry Pi is
Some of the key merits of Raspberry Pi are integrated with 1.6 GHz Processor in its 4B
mentioned by variant, whereas Arduino board is integrated
 Inexpensive device and is available easily with a controller. Therefore, this board has a
across worldwide faster and quick response time when compared
 Extensive peripheral support: Raspberry Pi has to other modules.
26 GPIO (General Purpose Input/Output) pins,  Can be Used a Portable Computer: If the user
which makes it easy for the user to connect a attaches a display/monitor to it, then it
greater number of external hardware devices. becomes a pocket friendly computer.
Moreover, it also supports almost all kind of Moreover, various popular apps like VLC and
peripherals supported by Arduino. Google Chrome are also available in Raspbian.

B. Cons
Some of the demerits of Raspberry Pi while using it
are as follows
 Missing eMMC Internal Storage: The major
disadvantage of Raspberry Pi is that it does not
have any internal memory storage and SD card
works as internal storage for the device. Since
the read and write speed of SD Card is much
slower than eMMC (Embedded Multimedia
Card), it increases the boot time of the board.
 Missing Graphics Processor: As we all know
that graphics processor plays an important role
if the handler is into video editing, photo
editing, and gaming. Whereas, its competitors
are providing in-built GPU unit for streamlined
DOI: 10.35629/5252-0212225227 | Impact Factor value 7.429 | ISO 9001: 2008 Certified Journal Page 226
 International Journal of Advances in Engineering and Management (IJAEM)
Volume 2, Issue 12, pp: 225-227 www.ijaem.net ISSN: 2395-5252

experience while running various graphics- 2. By providing an external case and an

built apps/software. appropriate User guide will further boost the
 Overheating: The board does not come with product demand across the globe.
integrated heat-sinks or cooling fan. With the 3. To run a full version of Windows directly over
deployment of a powerful processor and Raspberry Pi it requires GPU unit, and if that
multiple features, the board starts to heat-up is integrated with the device, then Pi will be on
with the average usage of 6-7 hours mainly a whole new level.
due to smaller board size, and no heat 4. The combination of embedded systems and
dissipation unit available onboard. traditional computer features makes Raspberry
 Unable to Install Windows OS: As we all Pi a perfect board for interfacing a wide range
know Windows is the most common operating of external peripherals.
system and is also very user friendly, for 5. The programming of General-Purpose
gaming, video editing, photo editing and much Input/Output (GPIO) pin is very simple when
more alike software. Due to this reason, compared to traditional microprocessor or
Raspberry Pi faces tough competition with FPGA.
counter devices. 6. Enhanced flexibility and endless possibility of
 Real-Time Clock (RTC): The board does not Raspberry Pi, enables the end-user to program
have an RTC with a backup battery. it according to their needs and budget.
7. Lastly, Raspberry Pi can be used as an
V. APPLICATIONS individual computer but cannot replace the
Raspberry Pi’s main aim is to fascinate people traditional computer, owing to its specific
towards computing and programming and even to limitations.
solve their complex mathematical problems. Some
of the applications are mentioned below. REFERENCES
 Home Automation System: The system can [1]. Shrutik Katchiiand Pritish Sachdeva, “A
easily host some of the home automation Review Paper on Raspberry Pi”, Vol.4,
applications with the interfacing of relays, No.6,Dec 2014
sensors and lights with smartphones or [2]. Raspberry Pi for Dummies by Sean
computers. The operator can easily operate the McManus, Mike Cook · 2013
system remotely. [3]. The official Raspberry Pi Beginner's Book -
 Zero-Powered Smartphone: The Volume 1 (2018)
developer/engineer can easily develop a [4]. Raspberry Pi Computer Architecture
homemade smartphone by assembling various Essentials by Andrew K. DennisMarch 2016
electrical parts that are easily available within [5]. John F. Moore, “Raspberry Pi Boot
the vicinity. Process”, January 2017
 AI Assistant: It enables the user to easily [6]. Joseph Muniz , Aamir Lakhani, “Penetration
integrate common language voice commands Testing with Raspberry Pi”, 2015
viaGoogle Assistant SDK as well as Google’s [7]. Harshada Chaudhari, “Raspberry Pi
Cloud Speech API. Technology: A Review”, Volume 2, Issue 3,
 Motion Capture Security Camera: Raspberry 2015
Pi Camera module can get easily connected to
a generic USB webcam to develop a motion
capture security system.
 Live bots: Live bot is a system that enables the
user to handle/control many robots based on Pi
over the internet [7].

VI. CONCLUSIONS
1. Number of users supports the fact that the
device needs some improvement in terms of
availability of internal storage and integration
heat sink which will further enhance the
efficiency of the product.

DOI: 10.35629/5252-0212225227 | Impact Factor value 7.429 | ISO 9001: 2008 Certified Journal Page 227