New development environment supports heterogeneous ARM cores in a single package to accelerate software development and the debug process
AUSTIN, Texas — (BUSINESS WIRE) — July 9, 2013 — Freescale Semiconductor (NYSE: FSL) is now shipping Vybrid controller solutions with the ARM® Development Studio 5 (DS-5™) development environment, simplifying development of traditionally complex applications that need rich human-machine interfaces (HMI) and connectivity, as well as deterministic real-time control and response capabilities. Freescale Vybrid controller solutions are built on an asymmetrical-multiprocessing architecture platform that leverages Freescale's heritage as a leader in microcontroller development and multicore design.
The ARM DS-5 toolchain is offered within the Freescale Tower System to seamlessly generate, debug and optimize code for both ARM cores in Vybrid devices.
“This custom version of the ARM DS-5 toolchain for the Freescale Tower System supports low-cost development and optimization of systems built on Vybrid controller solutions,” said Michael Norman, technical marketing manager for software and tools strategy at Freescale. “Packaging the ARM DS-5 toolchain with the Tower System modular development platform significantly reduces the cost of market entry and gives Freescale customers access to support from the extensive ARM community to supplement the support they receive from Freescale.”
Vybrid devices are ideal for applications including simple HMI in appliances and industrial machines, secure control of infrastructure and manufacturing equipment, energy conversion applications such as motor drives and power inverters, ruggedized wired and wireless connectivity, and control of mobile battery-operated systems such as robots and industrial vehicles.
Vybrid controller solutions: rich apps in real time
Samples of Vybrid F series VF3xx, VF5xx and VF6xx devices are now available. The Vybrid VF3xx family is a single-core (ARM Cortex®-A5) solution with 1.5 MB on-chip SRAM, dual XiP quad SPI memory interface, XGA display controller, dual high-speed USB with PHY, dual Ethernet and an L2 switch. The Vybrid VF5xx family increases performance and adds a DDR2/3 memory interface. The Vybrid VF6xx family adds an ARM Cortex-M4 processor and an analog video ADC.
Vybrid devices also provide a powerful combination of on-chip encryption, secure boot, anti-tamper and anti-clone capabilities to secure sensitive or critical infrastructure applications such as smart grid or industrial control.
By combining ARM Cortex-A5 and Cortex-M4 processors, Vybrid VF6xx devices eliminate the need for an external microcontroller (MCU) or field-programmable gate array (FPGA). With this architecture, system developers can create complex control systems with a user-friendly application HMI. This integration helps reduce development effort, component count, circuit board area and power consumption, saving up to $5 (USD) per system.
“The new Freescale Vybrid controllers are ideal for embedded systems that require both real-time predictability and rich Operating System (OS) capabilities,” said Guilherme Marshall, product manager, DS-5, System Design Division, ARM. “ARM’s DS-5 toolchain enables engineers to more efficiently develop and optimize software for both cores in Vybrid controllers using best-in-class code generation, debug and analysis tools in a single development environment. DS-5 brings excellent Linux support and MQX RTOS awareness to simplify development of next generation intelligent, embedded devices.”
Several Freescale partners have simultaneously integrated ARM DS-5 into their solutions for Vybrid controllers. Timesys is offering a single solution that enables customers to easily develop BSPs with gcc as well as Linux applications with ARM DS-5. The Timesys Eclipse IDE plug-ins have been ported to the ARM DS-5 toolchain for easier setup and more convenient cross-development on both the ARM Cortex-M4 and Cortex-A5 cores. Embedded board solution partner PHYTEC has integrated the ARM® CMSIS-DAP debug unit onto a low-cost kit supporting their Vybrid-based system-on-module (SOM). This integration, along with PHYTEC’s ready Linux and MQX BSPs, provides a robust out-of-box experience with the ARM DS-5 toolchain.
To see a step-by-step demonstration of ARM DS-5 working in the Vybrid controller solutions environment, visit http://blogs.arm.com/software-enablement/878-debugging-multicore-devices-via-usb-with-arm-ds-5/
Tweet this: @Freescale makes designing easy! Vybrid solutions now have their own custom version of @ARMEmbedded DS5.
Key features and benefits of ARM DS-5 for Freescale Tower System
- A flexible integrated development environment that can debug both cores simultaneously
- End-to-end development support, from SoC bring-up to system wide debug and power optimization
- Industry standard ARM compiler for both ARM Cortex-A5 and Cortex -M4 processors, optimized for best code size and performance balance
- Intuitive DS-5 Debugger that brings together the convenience and productivity of integrated embedded development tools, including MQX RTOS awareness, with the power and flexibility of open source tools for the Linux OS
- ARM Streamline™ performance analyzer that enables system-wide performance and power optimization of Linux and Android ® systems through events timeline and profiling reports
- Developed and maintained by experts in ARM processor technology
