Real Time Clock for BeagleBone

[xe1xus]

Dear Group,

Has anybody tried successfully to integrate a RTC module to a BeagleBone? I have a time sensitive application for BeagleBone using the supplied Angstrom distribution. I just installed and tested NTP successfully but can't sit and wait for NTP to do the necessary corrections over a long period querying online NTP servers, after a reset or power failure.

Sharing your experiences in this arena will certainly be appreciated. I don't fear the soldering iron or it's neighbours, but if the solutions come using Adafruit components, nothing will ever make me more comfortable. Thank you.

Cheers!
xe1xus

[beached]

What about the ntpdate command e.g. ntpdate -b ntpserver

It will set the time immediately and can generally be put into a startup script after the network is available.

[xe1xus]

How kind of you to reply. Thank you.

I am actually in search of integrating a hardware RTC solution into the Beaglebone. I tried your kind advise earlier with decent results. But since my application resides far out in the country with no reliable electrical mains, I thought of doing the HW RTC solution. There are times when there is electrical power available but not internet connection which at times is intermittent. This is a geophysical remote sensing scenario out of the reach of civilization ) We get internet access from a wireless link bridging a distance of +/- 12 miles and electrical power supply is solar with DC to AC inverters. There are instruments who rely on precision time around the NTP server. We can not afford a dedicated ready made GPS, but if GPS integration with the Beaglebone is possible (again using Adafrut's components) that will be even better.

Any thoughts? In the mean time let the experimentation continue. I know something will jump out of the magicians hat.

Cheers!

[Shatrat]

This reply may be coming too late, but I'm using the Adafruit DS1307 breakout kit with my Beaglebone and it's working quite well.
It's been a few weeks since I set it up, but I believe both Angstrom and Ubuntu recognized it and started using it without much configuration from me.

I know I did have to use 'ntpdate pool.ntp.org' and 'hwclock -w' to update the time and then write the time to the DS1307, obviously the time is not set when you first put it together.