The Duo Pi Blade Rack is a compact cluster server built using ten Duo Pi boards (mounted in a pair of Duo Pi Blade Packs) which can power and mount up to twenty Raspberry Pi without complicated power wiring.
It's perfect for building very low cost cluster servers with Raspberry Pi. Applications include compute, render and build farms, linux based private or hybrid cloud platforms or physical computing platforms where generous USB connected I/O is an advantage, e.g. multi-channel data acquisition, monitoring or automated test with BitScope.
Each Duo Pi in the cluster as a built-in 5V switch mode supply to power each pair of Raspberry Pi and up to eighty peripheral devices can be connected via the Raspberry Pi USB subject to the generous per blade 3A power budget.
HDMI and Audio ports are accessible from the Raspberry Pi in slot one allowing up to ten monitors with optional keyboards and mice to be connected to the cluster making it well suited for educational and maintenance & repair applications. The second (or both) Raspberry Pi on each blade can be used as a headless server connected (via a switch) to the first Raspberry Pi or other computers on the network. Custom SD card system images for cluster computing are available or stock images with the addition of a few packages and adminstration software may be used for each node. A remote desktop server is available for use via any network or WiFi connected PC, Mac or mobile device.
The Blade Rack accepts supply voltages ranging from 9V to 48V making it compatible with 9V, 12V, 24V and 48V power sources and it can provide up to 30A continuously and 40A surge current across the entire cluster including any connected devices such as hard disks or SSD, BitScopes and other USB peripherals. The Blade Rack can be used with plug packs, 12V batteries, unregulated power sources such as PV solar panels and low cost uninterruptible power supplies (UPS).
Individual power, reset and interrupt control is provided for each Raspberry Pi so they may be individually powered down, reset and/or replaced. This is convenient as it allows servicing without powering down the entire server. Blade Racks are 19" rack compatible and network switches, network and USB cables and accessories are available. One or more Duo Pi in the Rack can be substituted with Uno Pi boards. This allows Raspberry Pi HATs to be used in rack configurations.
Specifications
| Product Name | BR20 BitScope Blade Rack 20 |
| Compatible Raspberry Pi Models | Raspberry Pi 3, 2, B+, A+ and Pi Zero |
| Raspberry Pi per Unit | 20 |
| USB Ports per Unit | 80 |
| HDMI & sound outputs | Yes x 10 |
| Primary Power | 5V (Raspberry Pi J8 & USB) |
| Auxilliary Power | Yes (5V via header) |
| Indicator LEDs | Board Power & Devices Available |
| Device power-down header | Yes |
| Processor reset/interrupt | Yes |
| Blade mount tabs | Vcc & Gnd with M3 holes |
| Raspberry Pi mounts | M2.5 per HAT specification |
| 19" rack size | 5RU |
| Power budget | 40A (peak), 30A (continous) |
| UPS compatible | Yes (includes blocking diodes) |
| Power Requirement | 9V (40A) ~ 48 V (5A) |
| Operating Temperature | 0 °C to 40 °C |
| Storage Requirements | -40 °C ~ +40 °C / 5 % ~ 95 % RH |
| Dimensions (W x D x H) | 485 x 130 x 225 mm |
| Weight (Net) | 1250g |