Hi all! TLDR: My team is using a Jetson AGX Orin in an automotive setting. We have a battery power source (+24 V, always on), and a KEY IN signal (+24 V, high when the vehicle is on and low when it is off; high power supply). How could we configure the Orin to automatically turn on when the KEY IN signal is raised?
More info:
we use a step down converter (~100W, from 24V to 12V) to power the Orin with the barrel power jack from the battery. This way when the vehicle is turned off we have time to do a nice shutdown of the OS
the shutdown trigger is simpler, we do that from software by checking periodically the KEY IN signal and issuing shutdown when we see it low
To have a proper voltage on the KEY input we could buy another converter to 3V/5V/12V
Here’s the major problem: we read on the Orin design guide (section 5.3.2.4, + table 5-5) that the POWER_ON button pin needs a impulsive input: if we keep it pressed for > 10s, it is interpreted as a forced shutdown. Assuming the POWER_ON pin on the automation header is directly connected to it, if the KEY signal is high for all the time the vehicle is on, we would have the same problem, right? Is there another PIN we could use that simply wakes up the Orin on the rising edge of the input signal?
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To power up the Jetson AGX Orin with an automotive KEY IN signal, you can use the Automation header J42. However, as you mentioned, the POWER_ON button pin on the Automation header is directly connected to the POWER_ON button, which requires an impulsive input to avoid being interpreted as a forced shutdown.
According to the provided context, there is no explicit pin on the Orin that indicates an internal SW reset has occurred, and internal SW reset does not propagate to the IO pin. However, one way to set an indicator is to use the internal watchdog timer and use WDT_RESET_OUTA (GP63) or WDT_RESET_OUTB (GP21) as the indicator.
To wake up the Orin on the rising edge of the input signal, you can use the RTC0 or RTC1 pin. The Original default RTC source is set as RTC1 (Orin_RTC), which can not keep time if power off. So a patch to set default RTC to RTC0 (PSEQ_RTC) is needed.
You can also refer to the pinmux documentation and set the GPIO to init PU. This will allow you to drive the GPIO to high at boot and also be able to drive it after boot if required.
It’s worth noting that the context does not provide a straightforward solution to your problem, and some experimentation and testing may be required to achieve the desired behavior.
Here is a summary of the supported content:
Use the Automation header J42 to power up the Orin.
The POWER_ON button pin on the Automation header requires an impulsive input to avoid being interpreted as a forced shutdown.
Use the internal watchdog timer and WDT_RESET_OUTA (GP63) or WDT_RESET_OUTB (GP21) as the indicator.
Use the RTC0 or RTC1 pin to wake up the Orin on the rising edge of the input signal.
Refer to the pinmux documentation and set the GPIO to init PU.
What is not covered:
A detailed step-by-step guide on how to implement the solution.
Information on how to patch the default RTC source to RTC0 (PSEQ_RTC).
Information on how to use the internal watchdog timer and WDT_RESET_OUTA (GP63) or WDT_RESET_OUTB (GP21) as the indicator.
Information on how to set the GPIO to init PU.
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Firstly, the v1.4 Design Guide you linked is dated April 2023, so it is over 3 years out of date. The most recent release is v1.81 in May 2026. There have been several updates in the subsequent releases, including changes/corrections in the power sequence diagrams. The references below apply to Design Guide v1.81.
The problem in the default Power Button Case is the Button MCU on the carrier board looks for the falling edge of BUTTON_POWER_ON_N (BUTTON_POWER_ON*) as in Figure 5-8 to trigger the pulse of the POWER_BTN_N signal to the module and the rest of the power sequence.
It seems the better fit for your usecase is the Auto-Power-On Case using AC_OK, covered by the section after 5.3.2.2 (there is a typo where this section’s number is removed), Figure 5-9, and Table 5-4. Per Table 3-6 Automation Header Description in Jetson AGX Orin Developer Kit Carrier Board Specification, Auto-Power-On is enabled when Pin 5 and Pin 6 are tied together. AC_OK’s I/O is 3.3V.