Gumstix has launched a $50 “Gumstix Raspberry Pi Zero Battery IMU” board for the RPi Zero or Zero W with a holder for two AA batteries that can be recharged through the Zero plus a 3-axis accelerometer and gyroscope.

Gumstix has added to its line of Raspberry Pi add-on boards such as its Stepper HAT and Pi Conduit PoE with a battery board for the Raspberry Pi Zero and Zero W that offers two hours of battery life. The Gumstix Raspberry Pi Zero Battery IMU has a AA battery holder for rechargeable NiMH or NiCd batteries. You can recharge the batteries via the Zero’s micro-USB port.

Gumstix Raspberry Pi Zero Battery IMU
(click image to enlarge)

To further augment mobile applications, the add-on board incorporates a Bosch BMI160 module with a 3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis gyroscope for motion tracking. Coupled with the WiFi-enabled Raspberry Pi Zero W board, you could add a camera for wireless video streaming on the go, says Gumstix.


Topside view of Gumstix Raspberry Pi Zero Battery IMU
(click image to enlarge)

The Gumstix Raspberry Pi Battery IMU board is further equipped with a 256Kb I2C Serial Board EEPROM, Linear Technology LTC4060 Fast Battery Charger, and a switch slide. The battery pack attaches to the top of the RPi Zero board. Although designed for the Zero and Zero W, the device can power other Raspberry Pi boards and other boards that support the RPi pinout, although battery life will likely decrease.

Raspberry Pi Zero W

The battery board can be customized in the Gumstix Geppetto online drag-and-drop board development service. With Geppetto, you can add and remove features and change the layout and then order custom manufacturing runs. The addition of a GPS chip might be useful.
 

RPi Zero Battery Board demo

 
Further information

The Gumstix Raspberry Pi Zero Battery IMU is available now for $50. More information may be found at the Gumstix product and shopping page. A demo can be found on GitHub.