Mudita Pure April production & development update

April 2021 Mudita Pure production & development update

We’re back with another update. Here’s a summary of the progress we’ve made in the last month. In the previous update, we informed you about the ongoing issue connected with the molding form of the exterior body element, which subsequently has caused further the delay of the launch of Mudita Pure. As we mentioned previously, we are continuing to work on resolving this issue. Launching Mudita Pure continues to be our top priority. 

We would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to reach out to us and offer us kind words of encouragement after the last update. Your support and feedback means a lot to us. We really couldn’t have done it without you! 

Molding forms & production schedule

We are continuing to work on correcting the molding form with our current partner. As we mentioned last month, we needed to revise the requirements for the exterior element. The CAD model of the molding form has been modified and sent to the molding manufacturer. The gasket was removed from the project. As a result, the IP rating of the device will be reduced. Just to recap, the IP standard is used to define the levels of sealing effectiveness of electrical enclosures. The previous IP rating was intended to be IP54. The modified IP rating will either be IP30 or IP42, however, the final IP rating will be established after tests. 

Currently the molding form is in a redesign phase. A 3D model is being constructed by our partner. In order to verify that the components are not making any noise when in contact with one another, a milled component for the casing has been ordered and will be shipped in a couple of weeks.

In March, three members of our engineering team traveled to the factory and participated in the third round of NPI (New Product Introduction) implementation. An NPI is the process that takes an idea from an initial working prototype to a thoroughly refined and reproducible final product. During this visit they checked the assembly process, as well as verified the operation of production  testers and other support equipment. During this NPI 46 phones were built. Eight of those phones were sent to various laboratories for testing and the remaining devices were distributed worldwide for field testing. 

Below you can see a couple of pictures of a recent visit to the factory which took place during the latest NPI. 

This photo features some of the machines we use to test our phone. On the left you can see our phone's motherboard tester, which is used to check the MB (Main Board) before mounting it in the phone. The boards are in the box next to it, waiting for testing. The silver device is the End of Line tester. It is used to check the whole device after assembly (test of screen, backlight and keyboard, speakers, microphone, cellular module, flashlight, audio jack).

Photo shows a section of the assembly line, where our team member, Radosalaw, is checking that the assembly process is consistent with what we have prepared in the assembly manual.

Our engineering team member, Andrzej is using a laptop which operates an industrial printer for labels (applied inside the battery compartment). Next to him is an EOL (End of Line) tester, which is used to check the whole device after assembly (test of screen, backlight and keyboard, speakers, microphone, cellular module, flashlight, audio jack).

Electronic engineering

We have some GREAT news concerning our main board (MB Main Board). A new version of the main board has been prepared. The main changes are as follows:

• Increased capacity of SDRAM from 16MB to 64MB. Increased SDRAM will: 

1. Improve development efficiency, which means easier debugging.

2. Allow for more applications to run on Pure in the future - developed by Mudita or the community.

3. Give more space for community developers to modify the MuditaOS that runs on their Pure.

• Enhanced ESD protection (Electrostatic discharge)  ESD is the sudden flow of electricity between two electrically charged objects caused by a build-up of static electricity. Devices which you carry with you, such as a mobile phone, build up ESD in a unique way, because the static electricity that builds up on your body is automatically passed to the device. Then, when the device is connected to another device such as a computer, a docking station, ESD discharge can occur. These common electrical shocks are benign to humans, but they can have disastrous consequences for sub-micron microelectronic-based devices. Without adequate ESD protection, a device can be damaged by ESD events.

• Increased EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) memory for storing device's personalization data (serial number, color, board revision and others).

The boards are currently in production and should arrive at our office sometime this week.  

Please note that none of the above mentioned modifications will have an impact on the current confirmed SAR values and ongoing laboratory tests.

 Additional improvements

We have made improvements to the SIM tray, adding support for the SIM cards, which prevents them from moving or falling out when being changed or handled. 

Improved SIM card tray

Additional testing & software development

While working to fix the exterior molding issue, we can use this extra time for further software development in addition to  thoroughly testing each functionality and putting additional effort into perfecting them! Currently, we have many fully functional Mudita Pure phones and our team members continue to test the devices, in order to determine if any other items may need to be improved. We have been testing the phones in Poland and in several other countries. Currently we are testing the phones in the United States, Canada, and UK. We will share the feedback with you in our next update. We're also in the process of sending phones for the test to other European countries as well as  Australia.

As you might remember, Mudita Pure is equipped with two antennas. One is used for low frequencies and the second one is used for high frequencies. 

We performed another round of pre-testing to ensure that remaining radio certification would go smoothly.

We also performed abrasion testing of case materials - a benchmark and comparative test was performed. The final abrasion test report is being prepared, however, the initial results indicate that we have improved the resistance to abrasion, however, we will continue to work on improving it further.  The test details after the coating look very promising. 

We also performed several series of ESD (Electro Static Discharge) tests - both internally and in a non-accredited laboratory. These ESD tests are one of the testing requirements for the EN 301 489 standard. This  standard is used to measure Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) in electrical and electronic equipment. EMC testing measures the ability of equipment or systems to function satisfactorily in their electromagnetic environment without introducing intolerable electromagnetic disturbance to anything in that environment. More tests are scheduled this week. EMC testing is required by the EU Radio Equipment Directive (2014/53/EU). Meeting those requirements is essential for Pure to bear the CE certification marking.

Furthermore, we are preparing the software for testing to meet the EN 301 489-17 standard as well. The PHT (Pure Hardware Tester) software has been enhanced to include Bluetooth support required by the lab to perform certification testing. 

We are currently also doing pre-compliance testing for the IEC 62368-1 standard. IEC 62368-1 is a safety standard for ICT (Information Computer Technology) and AV (Audio-Visual) Equipment. Testing and measurements in progress. Findings are not yet available.

In addition to the above referenced tests, we are also testing a new shipment of front lights from our supplier. Although the results are not final yet, we can see a noticeable improvement in uniformity.

The above picture shows improved front light uniformity

 MuditaOS

Our embedded engineering team is working as hard as ever delivering daily releases of Mudita Pure’s operating system. We have added support for turning VoLTE on/off, detecting USB charger connection, and introduced custom responses to MMI messages. Multimedia file support has been added for such files as MP3, WAV, and FLAC.

Bluetooth pairing is now fully-functional and stable - this includes handling a simultaneous A2DP/HSP Bluetooth connection, enabling pairing with devices that need a pairing code, and design fixes to the Bluetooth icon. When mentioning Bluetooth, it's also worth adding that we have introduced a separate set of audio settings for each phone mode (Connected / Do not disturb / Offline).

We have improved the user experience when it comes to updating MuditaOS by adding screens which visualize the progress of the phone update process and display a post-update status. We have added SIM PIN2 and vibration handling.

A big change in MuditaOS is switching to a new filesystem - littleFS (little fail-safe file system) which increases the stability of the phone.

We have updated the way the flashlight is being handled so that it’s now fully functional.

Thanks to the work of our open-source community we were able to add the Swedish localization of Mudita Pure If you want to join our community, please join the MuditaOS Developer Preview!

One of our team members, Ola, is placing a call to a colleague. The number visible in the upper left hand corner of the picture to to the right indicates signal strength. It is only visible in our testers to determine coverage & will be replaced with a signal indicator in the final version of Pure.

Mudita Pure has been recognized with another prestigious design award. 

This week, Mudita Pure has received yet another award. The Pure has been awarded the 2021 iF DESIGN AWARD in the Product category since  it addresses the problem of addiction to technology, social media, and impulsive phone checking.  The Pure won over the 98—member jury, made up of independent experts from all over the world, with its one-of-a-kind features, such as a minimalist design, unique, custom-developed, open source OS, an eye-friendly E ink display, and ultralow SAR value. 

The competition was intense: almost 10,000 entries were submitted from 52 countries in hopes of receiving the seal of quality.

What’s next? 

In the upcoming weeks we will continue working on perfecting the modifications to the molding form as well as preparing to complete the radio certification. Current estimation for completing radio certification is mid June. 

We will be sending another update in approximately one month. 

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with us via email (support@mudita.com) or our forum, where our team is happy to address all possible questions, comments, and concerns. 

Thank you for being a part of this journey!