The Rockchip RK3568 board is one of the most cost-effective and stable embedded single-board computers launched by Rockchip, specifically optimized for industrial IoT, smart display, edge gateway, and lightweight embedded computing scenarios. As a mid-range quad-core embedded platform, it perfectly balances low power consumption, rich peripheral interfaces, stable operating performance, and mass-production cost advantages. Unlike high-performance chips such as RK3588 that focus on AI computing power, the RK3568 board prioritizes long-term operational stability and scenario adaptability, making it the preferred core hardware for most medium and low-power embedded commercial and industrial projects. Developers and hardware integrators widely adopt RK3568 development boards, SOM core boards, and industrial-grade boards for prototype verification, secondary development, and batch product customization.
Core Specifications of RK3568 Board
The RK3568 board is built on Rockchip’s advanced 22nm process RK3568 SoC, with optimized power consumption control and industrial-grade stability. It supports multiple configurations of memory and storage, and is compatible with mainstream embedded operating systems. The complete hardware parameters are listed in the table below, covering core computing, multimedia, interface, and working environment indicators:
| Item | Parameter |
|---|---|
| SoC | Rockchip RK3568, Quad-core Cortex-A55, up to 2.0GHz |
| GPU | Mali-G52 2EE, supports OpenGL ES 3.2, 4K video decoding |
| NPU | 0.8 TOPS computing power, supports lightweight AI inference algorithms |
| Memory & Storage | Up to 4GB LPDDR4 RAM, 32GB eMMC high-speed storage |
| OS Support | Linux, Android 11, Buildroot, Ubuntu embedded system |
| Core Interfaces | Gigabit Ethernet, SATA 3.0, USB3.0/2.0, MIPI, LVDS, I2C, SPI, UART, PWM |
| Working Temperature | -20℃ ~ 70℃ (industrial-grade board), 0℃ ~ 60℃ (standard version) |
| Typical Power Consumption | 3W~5W, ultra-low power standby design |
In practical development, the 4K hardware decoding capability and rich industrial interfaces are the core advantages of the RK3568 board. It can meet dual requirements of multimedia display and industrial data transmission, which is unmatched by many entry-level embedded boards.
Main Types of RK3568 Boards & Usage Scenarios
According to development stages and application environments, RK3568 series boards are divided into four mainstream types, covering prototype testing, product customization, industrial batch production and commercial display scenarios, meeting the full-cycle development needs of embedded projects.
1. RK3568 Development / Evaluation Board
The RK3568 evaluation board is a complete demo board for early project verification. It derives all chip interfaces, pre-burns mainstream system firmware, and supports secondary driver development and function debugging. It is suitable for engineers to complete scheme verification, software development and performance testing in the early stage of the project, greatly shortening the pre-research cycle of embedded projects.
2. RK3568 SOM & Core Board
The RK3568 SOM core board integrates SoC, memory and storage on a miniature module, with stable performance and strong scalability. Developers only need to design a customized carrier board according to project needs, which effectively reduces hardware development difficulty and production cost. It is the mainstream choice for batch customized embedded products.
3. RK3568 Industrial Board
The industrial-grade RK3568 board adopts anti-interference circuit design, wide-temperature hardware adaptation and surge protection design. It supports 7×24 hours uninterrupted operation, and is widely used in industrial gateways, data acquisition terminals, industrial control hosts and other harsh working scenarios with high stability requirements.
4. RK3568 Android Board
Optimized for Android 11 system, this board has perfect touch screen driver and UI adaptation capabilities. It is mainly used in commercial advertising screens, smart display terminals, HMI man-machine interaction equipment and other commercial display scenarios, with excellent multimedia interactive performance.
Typical Industrial & Commercial Applications
Benefiting from ultra-low power consumption, stable operation and rich peripheral expansion capabilities, the RK3568 board covers multiple mainstream embedded tracks, becoming a cost-effective alternative to traditional embedded boards:
- Industrial IoT Gateway: Reliable network transmission and multi-interface adaptation support remote data collection and device management
- Commercial Smart Display: 4K video decoding and Android interactive system adapt to advertising machines and touch display terminals
- Lightweight Edge AI Detection: Built-in NPU meets simple image recognition, personnel statistics and equipment monitoring tasks
- Industrial Data Acquisition Terminal: Rich serial port and bus interfaces adapt to various sensor data collection scenarios
- Smart Home & IoT Terminal: Low power consumption design reduces long-term operation cost for smart control equipment
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is the difference between RK3568 board and RK3568 SOM board?
The standard RK3568 board is a complete development board with a carrier board, which can be directly powered on for testing and development, suitable for early project verification. The RK3568 SOM board is only a core computing module without peripheral carrier circuits. It needs to be matched with a customized carrier board for mass production, featuring smaller size and higher integration, which is more suitable for formal batch products.
Can the RK3568 board support dual-system switching?
Yes. The RK3568 board supports mainstream embedded systems such as Android 11, Linux and Buildroot. Developers can switch or burn corresponding systems according to project needs, realizing flexible switching between multimedia interaction and industrial stable operation modes.
Is the RK3568 board suitable for mass production customization?
Absolutely. The RK3568 chip is mature in technology and sufficient in supply. Its SOM core board solution supports secondary carrier board customization, interface adjustment, power optimization and industrial temperature adaptation. It is very suitable for medium and large-scale mass production of embedded equipment.
RK3568 vs RK3588: Which one is better for embedded projects?
The RK3568 board is more suitable for cost-sensitive, low-power and stable industrial and commercial projects with ordinary AI and display requirements. The RK3588 board with higher NPU computing power is more suitable for high-precision machine vision, complex edge computing and high-performance intelligent equipment projects.
Conclusion
As a mature mid-range embedded hardware platform, the RK3568 board has irreplaceable cost and stability advantages in IoT, industrial control and commercial display fields. Its diverse product forms including development boards, SOM core boards and industrial boards can meet the full-cycle needs from project verification to batch production. For developers looking for low-power, high-stability and cost-effective embedded single-board computers, the Rockchip RK3568 series is one of the most reliable choices in the current embedded market.
