Circa – the stand-alone smart alarm based on liteSOM

Why should you still use an alarm clock in the era of the smartphone? Circa is a stand-alone device designed to help you sleep better while offering fewer distractions. The Circa alarm clock includes a sleep-sensor which wakes you up at the ideal moment and provides feedback about your sleep quality to help you develop a better routine. Smart people get better rest with smart alarms.

Waking up with the Internet of Things

Circa has built-in DAB+, FM and Internet Radio to get you in the mood for the day ahead. And there is so much more to Circa. The device can connect to the smart home using Olisto and link up to other connected devices through a simple app on your phone controlled using the AMOLED screen. In the automated house, you don’t just use Circa for better rest, you can switch on the lights or heating around the home to calibrate your environment to your new routine.

Circa has been designed with scientifically tested light pulses or relaxation sounds to help you get to sleep, and a dark mode which then automatically shuts off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to ensure uninterrupted rest. Waking up is also a soothing experience thanks to Olisto connecting your Circa device to the home and gently turning on the lights in the morning.

Electronic design

Grinn designed all the electronics in the Circa device, based on a Linux operating system for peripherals such as the display, touch screen, audio, Bluetooth, DAB +, FM, Wi-Fi, and keyboard. And because Circa is about a better sleep experience and beautiful living, Grinn also designed the UX and UI elements to make it easy and attractive. The device allows you to play audio from FM radio, DAB radio, Bluetooth, Spotify, and internet radio, with more sources being added all the time.

Based on liteSOM

Circa is based on liteSOM (134-8748) – Grinn’s low-power, state-of-the-art module incorporating an NXP i.MX 6UltraLite microprocessor. By placing the most critical signals in the module, even very complex peripherals can leverage just two PCB layers. This allows the delivery of cost-performance optimized designs and speeds-up time to market. LiteSOM works with all major operating systems and is preconfigured for Linux. The rich set of peripherals mean that the module caters for a wide range of applications.

Sleep-sensor

What is smart sleep with Circa? A thin sensor placed underneath the mattress measures movement and respiration to understand your sleep cycles. Old-fashioned alarm clocks wake you up at a fixed time every day, whether you are in a deep or light sleep. Circa’s smart alarm finds the best moment, within a 30-minute period prior to your set alarm time, to wake you up from a light sleep and introduce you gently to the new day. It means you wake up feeling refreshed and ready to go.