MontaVista Mobilinux 5.0 Awarded Best Software Innovation of the Year by EDN
SDC Systems To Exhibit at UK Embedded Systems Show
Kozio Diagnostics Software Available for MPC832X PowerPC's
SDC Systems Announces Embedded BIOS® with StrongFrame™
RapiTime Code Analysis Tool Gets Eclipsed
SDC Expands Development Tool Offering with Rapita Technology
ASIC and FPGA Design Acceleration Launched AAE - 07
SDC to Exhibit Graphical Interface Development Technology
SDC Announces Kozio Diagnostics Package for AMCC’s nP3705 Packet Processor Kit
SDC Announces BIOS Support for Windows Embedded CE 6.0
ADI releases Sidewinder IXP465 Access Gateway Reference Design
Kozio's kDiagnostics ™ Now Ships on ADI Engineering's New Sidewinder
XScale ® IXP465 Access Gateway Reference Design
Embedded BIOS Solution Enables Development for Intel® 3100 Chipset
SDC Supplies GenSoft firmware solution for AMD Geode™ Processor
SDC Provides Data Management Technology for Mobile Phone
ADI Announce Low Cost Reference Platform for the Intel IXP23XX
Kozio's Diagnostic Software Speeds Voice Channel Testing
Encirq 3E to Provide Delphi with Data Management in Next Generation Electronic Devices
Pragmadev Makes Important Enhancements to UML Tool
SDC Systems Announce The Immediate Availability of the MPC8540 and MPC875 Quiccstart Evaluation Systems....
SDC Sign Deal with Kozio to Provide Hardware Test Solution
Kozio Supports AMCC's New PowerPC ® 405EZ Networked Industrial Processor
MontaVista Software and P.A. Semi Collaborate to Bring MontaVista Linux to PWRficient Processor for Telecom Carrier Equipment MontaVista® Software have announced the immediate availability of MontaVista Linux Carrier Grade Edition (CGE) for the dual-core PA6T-1682M PWRficient™ processor from P.A. Semi, Inc., a fabless semiconductor company delivering high-performance, low-power processors. MontaVista CGE is the carrier grade Linux operating system used by 7 of the top 8 network equipment providers (NEPs).
“MontaVista is seeing a lot of excitement around our software for the PA6T-1682M PWRficient processor,” said Patrick MacCartee, director of product management, MontaVista Software. “Performance and power efficiency are big concerns in all multi-core designs, and a combination of MontaVista´s expertise in real-time processing and Linux power management with P.A. Semi´s cutting-edge high-performance, low-power processors is a winning combination for embedded device developers.”
The PA6T-1682M PWRficient processor redefines power, cost, and throughput efficiency for Power Architecture™ technology, delivering high performance with phenomenally low power consumption. For example, running at 2.0 GHz, the P.A. Semi device dissipates just 5-13 watts during typical operations. Depending upon the application, this is three to four times less power consumed than similar high-performance microprocessor platforms.
MontaVista Linux Carrier Grade Edition for the PA6T-1682M PWRficient processor is available now from MontaVista Software.
MontaVista Software, Inc. is the leader in embedded Linux commercialization. MontaVista helps embedded developers get the most out of open source by adding commercial quality, integration, hardware enablement, expert support, and the resources of the MontaVista development community. Because MontaVista customers enjoy faster time to market, more competitive device functionality, and lower total cost, more devices have been deployed with MontaVista than with any other Linux. To learn more, please visit www.mvista.com
Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States and other countries. MontaVista is a registered trademark of MontaVista Software, Inc. The P.A. Semi and PWRficient names and logos, and combinations thereof, are trademarks of P.A. Semi, Inc. The Power Architecture word mark is a trademark licensed by Power.org. Apple is a trademark of Apple Inc. All other names mentioned are trademarks, registered trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.
More on MontaVista Embedded Realtime Linux
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SDC to Exhibit PhotoShop Enabled GUI Tool At Embedded Masterclass
Embedded development tools and software specialists, SDC Systems have announced that they will be exhibiting their Tilcon graphical interface development tool at the UK Embedded Masterclass. The Tilcon IDS Suite has recently been upgraded and has introduced an Adobe® Photoshop® integration. This feature is now available to customers who have requirements for creating world class embedded GUI and HMI solutions in such diverse markets as medical, industrial, defense, and automotive.
"There is no doubt that the user experience of an embedded product can be greatly enhanced through the quality of the graphical user interface," said Stuart Parker, Managing Director of SDC Systems. "For software engineers working on the development of human machine interfaces, this new version of the Tilcon IDS Suite provides the capability for a whole new generation of embedded displays and touch screen applications."
Tilcon IDS is a multi-platform user interface technology (GUI and HMI builder) that delivers robust, highly interactive user interfaces for real-time and embedded applications. It is used to bring graphical capabilities to embedded equipment in the automotive, medical, industrial, consumer and defence sectors and has gained an excellent reputation for its ease of use and its ability to add value quickly to embedded designs.
“We've introduced our Photoshop® integration feature as a way for designers to easily create their UI designs in tools they are familiar and comfortable with. This allows them to import, export, and merge new designs into a functional interface builder, which then enables them to fully prototype and implement a production GUI without any coding.” says Prosanto Sarkar, CEO of Tilcon Software. "This is exciting because UI designers are no longer constrained by their choice of tools for creating their unique look and feel. Additionally, this feature streamlines the process of building an appealing, engaging interface which is both highly functional and easy to use.”
"This is a great fit for the Embedded Masterclass," said Richard Blackburn, the Embedded Masterclass organiser. "This leading edge technology is very much what the event is about. GUI design is an increasingly important part of embedded systems development and I feel sure that there are many engineers who will be keen to learn how this technology can help them develop the next generation of man machine interface.”
The Embedded Masterclass is now in its 6th year, with over 800 embedded engineers having registered for previous events. Each event hosts an agenda of technical presentations that address issues at the cutting edge of embedded development. The event also includes a tabletop exhibition. Some of the world's leading embedded systems tools, hardware and software vendors have already signed up to exhibit.
"The tabletop format has been good for us," said Blackburn, “enabling us to focus more on the technology and less on the sales and marketing. It provides a better environment for engineers to learn about the technology. It also makes the event a lot friendlier and less competitive. As the event has grown, it's been easier to attract the more important world-class players. With people like SDC on board, we feel sure engineers will want to come along and learn about their new offerings."
The Embedded Masterclass is free to engineers and technology managers. Attendance is limited, so early registration is recommended. The Embedded Linux workshop is at a special price of £95 and again places are limited and will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. For more information and registration, visit www.embedded-masterclass.com back to top>>
RapiTime 2.0 Improves The Timing Performance of Real-Time Embedded Software
Rapita Systems Ltd, leaders in measurement based worst-case execution time analysis, announce the release of RapiTime 2.0 ; a comprehensive toolset for performance profiling and worst-case execution time analysis of real-time embedded software.
Within real-time computer systems, understanding, verifying, and improving software timing performance is a critical issue, especially in industries such as avionics, telecommunications, space, and automotive. RapiTime 2.0 is a powerful, Eclipse based tool that will help engineers address software timing challenges, enabling them to develop better systems.
“RapiTime 2.0 enables a systematic and scientific approach to ensuring that time constraints are met,” said Stuart Parker of SDC Systems, Rapita's UK distributor. “It allows engineers to build timing correctness into their system, the result is a much reduced time to market combined with enhanced reliability.”
Beyond providing an in-depth understanding of software timing behaviour, RapiTime 2.0 adds the capability to target optimisation effort precisely where it will have the maximum benefit. Using the advanced features of RapiTime 2.0, engineers can discover the extent to which different software components contribute to the worst-case (often very different from their contribution to the average case), identify worst-case hotspots, and select the best opportunities for source code optimisation.
“RapiTime 2.0 also adds the capability to answer “what-if” questions about achievable performance gains; enabling the headroom for new functionality to be accurately assessed.” said Guiem Bernat, CEO of Rapita Systems, “Exploiting this advanced capability will allow engineers to leverage their efforts, obtaining disproportionately large reductions in overall execution times through optimisations targeted at a tiny proportion of the overall software. The result is an elimination of timing overruns, and the efficient creation of headroom for new functionality, without the need for costly and time-consuming hardware upgrades.”
More info about Software Timing and Ananlysis
For further insight into how effective RapiTime is, engineers can download a copy of the RapiTime BAE Systems Experience Report from www.rapitasystems.com .
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RapiTime Code Analysis Tool Gets Eclipsed
RapiTime 1.3 version to be demonstrated at UK Embedded System Show
Rapita Systems have announced that their acclaimed software analysis tool RapiTime has undergone a number of significant updates, a key feature being that RapiTime is now integrated with the industry standard Eclipse IDE. Rapita's state-of-the-art RapiTime worst-case execution time analysis solution has enjoyed a great deal of success and recognition since its inception and the additional features are expected to broaden its appeal amongst embedded software developers.
The new RapiTime 1.3 version includes full Eclipse based RapiTime report visualisation, fast display of very large reports, integration with standard C Eclipse based source code editor and source code worst-case path colourisation, along with a number of other new features. Rapita's ambition for RapiTime version 1.3 was to enhance usability and also to make RapiTime more easily integrated into existing development environments.
"The RapiTime Eclipse report plug-in makes integration of RapiTime with other tools very easy," said Dr. Guillem Bernat, CEO of Rapita Systems Ltd. "It also provides greater flexibility in presenting and manipulating timing data. We are confident the new RapiTime will be appreciated by engineers working to develop responsive and reliable code."
Other features that contribute to the new RapiTime are customisable report tables, improved support for RTOS integration, support for logic analyser based tracing and improved display and handling of execution time profiles. In the UK, RapiTime is sold through European embedded systems tools specialist, SDC Systems, who will be exhibiting the Rapita toolset at the Embedded Systems Show.
"The RapiTime product has been exciting for us," said Stuart Parker. "It's proven to be best in its class and the new features will certainly put it further ahead in its field. RapiTime is saving some of our customers a lot of development time and energy, and helping to create far more robust embedded software. It's proving to be a product that can really make a difference."
SDC can be found on stand 520 and will also be exhibiting a range of embedded development products that include embedded Linux from MontaVista, embedded BIOS solutions from General Software and embedded GUI tools from Tilcon.
About SDC Systems
SDC Systems Limited is a leading European distributor of embedded development software, tools and hardware. Focused on innovative and leading edge technology, SDC strives to provide "technology that makes a difference", technology that will positively impact the development process and the quality and functionality of the final product. With many years of experience and talented engineering support, SDC Systems work closely with their clients to provide an important source of embedded expertise and products. www.sdcsystems.com
About Rapita Systems Ltd
Rapita Systems Ltd. is a specialist in the worst-case execution time (WCET) analysis and simulation of real-time embedded systems for the avionics, automotive and telecommunications markets. Its innovative RapiTime product makes Rapita Systems the leader in measurement based on-target WCET analysis solutions. www.rapitasystems.com
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General Software Selected by Top Avionics Companies for Specialized and Customized BIOS Designs
General Software has been selected by top avionics companies Boeing, Thales Aviation, Panasonic Aviation, Astronautics and Raytheon to provide customized and specialized BIOS designs for a wide range of projects including security, in-flight entertainment, seat back LCDs and control panel displays, it was announced today.
Along with industry-leading functionality including fast-boot, reliability and quality, General Software is recognized by the FAA and the avionics industry because it supplies full source code vs. binary, and its BIOS can be tailored and optimised for each individual adaptation.
"General Software is fast becoming a BIOS vendor of choice for companies involved in avionics electronics,” said Stuart Parker, Managing Director of SDC, European Distributor of General Software products. “These engineers require not only superior firmware technology, but also a BIOS that reduces risk, accelerates time-to-market, enables quick and reliable boot, and can be customized and 'fine tuned' for differentiated applications. General Software´s product range addresses these needs very well.”
General Software specializes in solving difficult implementation issues across myriad devices and applications including mobile PCs, medical, gaming, kiosks, point-of-sale, DVR, and commercial and military avionics.
With its recently released StrongFrame technology, targeted cores can be created for a wide range of applications. Unlike other firmware offerings, which have a centralized proprietary core and architectural modules for CPUs, chipsets, and other components underneath it, StrongFrame allows the core itself to be a pluggable module, enabling many cores to be supported within the same framework.
StrongFrame Technology then leverages proprietary programming of CPUs, chipsets, SIOs, whole boards, and other building blocks across all General Software's specialized cores. The result is that the same set of silicon programming modules can be used across many unique applications. With StrongFrame Technology, OEMs can quickly produce and differentiate motherboards for multiple markets, saving money and time otherwise spent on having to independently build firmware for these markets.
SDC Systems will be exhibiting General Software BIOS products the Embedded Systems Show to be held at the NEC, Birmingham om the 17th and 18th October.
StrongFrame is a registered Trademark and is protected by Copyright.
About SDC Systems
SDC Systems Limited is a leading European distributor of embedded development software, tools and hardware. Focused on innovative and leading edge technology, SDC strives to provide "technology that makes a difference", technology that will positively impact the development process and the quality and functionality of the final product. With many years' experience and talented engineering support, SDC Systems work closely with their clients to provide an important source of embedded expertise and products. http://www.sdcsystems.com
Contact:
SDC Systems Contact:
Peter Heyes – peter.heyes@sdcsystems.com
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SDC Systems To Exhibit New Embedded Technologies at UK Embedded Systems Show
Specialist distributor of embedded systems development tools, SDC Systems, will be demonstrating several new technologies at this year's Embedded Systems Show (ESS) to be held at the NEC in Birmingham on October 17th and 18th. Amongst these new technologies will be Gensoft's latest Embedded BIOS solution, Rapita's RapiTime software timing solutions and Tilcon's IDS for GUI/MMI development.
SDC Systems has established itself as a leading European supplier of innovative and powerful new embedded technologies that help engineers to shorten their development time. Its customers include some of Europe's major telecom, military and aerospace companies, and the company also plays an important role in such industry sectors as medical, automotive and point of sale.
"We are pleased to be exhibiting at ESS this year; it's a very good forum for us to meet project teams and explain how our products can help them tackle the technical challenges of their next design" said Peter Heyes, European Sales Manager. "The new tools that we have added to our product line are very effective and well proven and they are already getting enthusiastic approval from our customers. We are looking forward to presenting these along with our existing products such as the ADI Xscale hardware, Kozio's kDiagnostics hardware verification and diagnostics tools and the Encirq DeviceSQL embedded data management solution."
The Embedded Systems Show is the leading UK event for engineers that are working with computer technologies that are 'embedded' within devices such as mobile phones, car engine management systems, medical equipment, avionics and similar industries. In addition to an exhibition hall of worldwide vendors of these technologies, the event includes an informative technical conference. This is one of the largest forums for the embedded system design community to share technical knowledge and expertise. Technical sessions cover all of the key topics in system engineering and embedded software development with presentations by leading academics, industry consultants and professional tutors.
"Although the Internet has played an important role in how this industry propagates its technology, there is still no substitute for an exhibition; as it enables engineers to find new products, technologies and vendors that don't show up using standard search criteria. In addition, it is easy to gain an immediate understanding of the technology and the costs to utilise it through face to face meetings" said Peter. "Some of this technology is complex and often its capabilities and benefits are not clear from a review of datasheets or web-based material. Whereas at ESS, engineers get the opportunity to meet with the vendor's engineer to discuss their particular requirements, see live demonstrations and maybe even get some initial training. The UK is a leader in a wide range of embedded applications and this event really does help UK engineers keep up to date with what is available worldwide when planning their next project."
SDC Systems have recently announced the release of their Embedded BIOS with StrongFrame Technology, a new version of their Embedded BIOS product that specifically addresses the Embedded market for use in products such as kiosks, point of sale (POS) devices, medical equipment, gaming, test equipment, and avionics gear such as flight management systems and flight data recorders. This Embedded BIOS solution from General Software offers embedded engineers exceptional configuration flexibility, powerful deployment tools and deep compatibility with x86 industry standards, providing a fast, low risk approach to x86 based development. With the new release, General Software has sought to bring the many elements of their extensive BIOS support into a single framework, enabling engineers to easily configure the necessary libraries and functionality that they need for a new x86 board design.
To register to attend the Embedded Systems Show, visit http://www.edaexhibitions.com
For more information on the tools and products available from SDC visit http://www.sdcsystems.com
About SDC Systems
SDC Systems Limited is a leading European distributor of embedded development software, tools and hardware. Focused on innovative and leading edge technology, SDC strives to provide "technology that makes a difference", technology that will positively impact the development process and the quality and functionality of the final product. With many years' experience and talented engineering support, SDC Systems work closely with their clients to provide an important source of embedded expertise and products. http://www.sdcsystems.com
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Kozio Hardware Diagnostics Software Available for MPC832X PowerPC's
Kozio, the leading provider of automated hardware diagnostics ideally suited for board bring-up, manufacturing test and power on self test, today announced support for custom product designs using Freescale's MPC832x series of PowerPC processors, including the e300 core as well as the QUICC Engine™ technology.
With Kozio diagnostics, those using this series of Freescale processors in a variety of applications, including industrial quality control, will be able to speed product development and reduce time to market significantly. Through its partnership with Freescale, Kozio is able to provide proven, turnkey hardware diagnostics, including its kDiagnostics™, kManufacturing™, and kPOST™ products in just two to ten days.
Kozio’s unique diagnostics tools offer testing and validation support for on-chip memory management units (MMUs), PCI controller, all DMA channels, local bus, and DDR-1/DDR-2 SDRAM memory controllers. In addition, Kozio provides built-in drivers and test suites for peripheral controllers such as Ethernet, USB, I2C, TDM, UART, and others.
“Our first client to use our diagnostics software for the Freescale MPC8323 PowerPC processor is a leading manufacturer of mobile broadband infrastructure equipment,” said Al Arendt, director of sales at Kozio. “We're pleased to bring these turnkey diagnostic suites to our clients, to help them reduce designs costs and deliver reliable products faster. This is part of our effort to attend to growing needs in a variety of industries, by horizontally expanding our CPU and peripheral controller coverage, and vertically expanding our product features.”
He adds that Kozio diagnostic software is a unique tool that can help internal design and quality control teams work more effectively than ever. “Kozio’s software comes with its own boot loader, which performs all necessary CPU, bus, and memory configurations, allowing you to run diagnostics with no other software present,” Arendt said. “In addition, this platform provides an easy-to-use tool for loading other applications into SDRAM, Flash, DSPs, or FPGAs, helping designers accelerate the board bring-up process.”
Kozio's diagnostic software now supports the MPC8321, MPC8321E, MPC8323, and MPC8323E processors from Freescale. An evaluation version of kDiagnostics for the MPC832xE MDS reference platform is available immediately. The evaluation software allows Freescale processor purchasers to test the software, and then purchase a full version for their custom platform after getting a feel for the many benefits the product has to offer.
About Freescale's MPC832x Processor Series
The MPC832x family of cost-effective network communications processors meet the requirements of several small office/home office (SOHO), access, IP services and industrial control applications. They provide better CPU performance, additional functionality and faster interfaces than current PowerQUICC™ II processors while addressing important time-to-market, price, power consumption and board real estate requirements.
Kozio Products www.kozio.com are distributed by SDC in the UK and Europe.
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SDC Systems Announces Embedded BIOS® with StrongFrame™ Technology
SDC Systems have announced the release of General Software's Embedded BIOS® with StrongFrame™ Technology, a new version of their Embedded BIOS product that is used extensively in products such as kiosks, point of sale (POS) devices, medical equipment, gaming systems, test equipment, and avionics products including flight management systems and flight data recorders.
Embedded BIOS® with StrongFrame™ Technology from General Software offers embedded engineers exceptional configuration flexibility, powerful deployment tools and excellent compatibility with x86 industry standards, providing a fast, low risk approach to x86 based development. With the new release, General Software has sought to bring the many elements of the extensive BIOS support into a structured framework, enabling engineers to easily and efficiently configure the necessary libraries and functionality that they need for a new x86 board design. Over the coming months General Software will introduce pre-configured versions of EBSF that will address the needs of specific industry applications, such as software security in gaming systems, to further reduce the time needed to get a new product design to market.
"It's an exciting step forward," said Stuart Parker of SDC Systems. "The new StrongFrame technology will help engineers get the full benefit of the extensive Embedded BIOS libraries that have been developed over the years. Whether it's a short boot up time, tight software security or custom self-test that is required, engineers will be able configure exactly what they need much more easily than before. BIOS developers can produce working prototypes in days, and finish deployments in weeks, thanks to the new core's configuration management that uses intuitive descriptive methods and procedures to build the BIOS image rather than assembly language directives that have been the standard approach to-date."
While assembly code is still used for fine detailed control over the configuration, objects like ACPI, MP, and PCI tables are automatically constructed, as are Setup screens and their fields, based on descriptions of the target entered by the developer. With much less assembly code to control, OEM customers can achieve results much earlier in the development process while at the same time reduce the amount of BIOS code that must be adapted manually. Being able to develop at the functional module level rather than at code level for individual components, it greatly simplifies and shortens the system validation stage of the project.
SDC Systems has been supplying and supporting General Software's BIOS products for several years and its customers include some of Europe's major x86 board developers.
"The Embedded BIOS product is one of our most successful product lines," said Stuart. "It's proven to be a well constructed and equally well supported product, enabling it to make a real difference to our customers developing x86 based products. We've seen several repeat orders for new projects, which demonstrates our customers' confidence in Embedded BIOS and in us as their supplier."
More information on Embedded BIOS® with StrongFrame™ Technology is available on SDC's website www.sdcsystems.com .. SDC Systems is able to provide consultancy and engineering services to assist in BIOS development issues as required.
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SDC Expands Embedded System Development Tool Offering with Rapita Systems' Technology
European distributors of software and tools for high tech development engineers, SDC, have announced a distribution agreement with software timing analysis and simulation experts Rapita Systems. SDC will now be supplying Rapita's state-of-the-art RapiTime worst-case execution time analysis solutions and their equally advanced VirtualTime "software-in-the-loop" simulation technology which accurately models the detailed interactions and timing behaviour of complex RTOS-based systems such as Electronic Control Units, mobile phones and radio base stations.
"For engineers developing complex real-time software, these are very powerful tools and we are very pleased to be including these in our portfolio,” said Stuart Parker, Managing Director of SDC. "At SDC, our objective is always to supply embedded engineers with technologies that make a difference. The RapiTime and VirtualTime products will enable engineers to accelerate development and enhance systems performance, we feel confident that our customers will be excited to learn about these particular products."
SDC's product offering includes reference design hardware for both CPU's and FPGA's, real-time operating systems, debug tools, embedded data management technology, BIOS solutions and graphical user interface development tools. SDC currently supply some the leading companies in Europe that are involved in the development of hi-tech products and SDC are recognised worldwide for their knowledge and experience in the field of embedded systems development.
Rapita Systems Ltd is a specialist in the worst-case execution time analysis and simulation of real-time embedded systems for the Avionics, Telecommunications, Space and Automotive markets. Its innovative RapiTime product makes Rapita Systems the leader in measurement-based worst-case execution time (WCET) analysis solutions. RapiTime provides a practical WCET analysis solution that works for complex embedded software running on the latest generation of advanced microprocessors. Rapita Systems' simulation technology is similarly state-of-the-art. VirtualTime "software-in-the-loop" simulation accurately models the detailed interactions and timing behaviour of complex RTOS-based systems such as Electronic Control Units, mobile phones and radio base stations.
"We are very pleased to be working with SDC," said Guillem Bernat, CEO at Rapita Systems. "Our focus is on developing the core technology and bringing state of the art products to market. We are looking to work with key industry specialists as channel partners in the various geographic regions, so to have a partner such as SDC helping us to take this technology to a wider audience is an important step forward. SDC have a lot of expertise in the area of code analysis and simulation and also a strong understanding of the European embedded marketplace, so we feel very confident that we have chosen the right partner in this respect".
RapiTime is an analysis tool that provides a unique solution to the problem of determining worst-case execution times (WCET) for software components running on advanced microprocessors. Its key features include accurately determining the worst-case execution time, identifying code on the worst-case path, analysis of worst-case hotspots, code coverage analysis and execution time profiling. There is also a RapiTime evaluation kit available to help engineers who wish to assess this technology before committing to using it as part of their software development process. The Evaluation Kit is based on the phy-CORE MPC555 development board with MPC555 Single Board Computer module and includes 128Kbyte SRAM, 512Kbyte Flash, 2x CAN interfaces, 2x RS-232 interfaces and a BDM interface.
VirtualTime is a tool-set for building accurate simulations of complex multiprocessor real-time systems. VirtualTime addresses a key problem in the cost-effective development of reliable telecommunications systems: the need to verify designs, identifying and fixing unexpected timing and performance issues as early as possible in the development life-cycle.
More about the Rapita products...
For more information on the RapiTime WCET software timing analysis solution or VirtualTime simulation technology call Stuart Parker on +44 (0)1462 473 953, or Peter Heyes on +44 (0)118 375 8146 or e-mail: sales@sdcsystems.com
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SDC Announces BIOS Support for Newly Released Microsoft Windows Embedded CE 6.0
SDC has today announced support for Microsoft’s newly released Windows Embedded CE 6.0 operating system with General Software's Embedded BIOS® 2000, an OEM-configurable firmware layer that provides the essential functions needed by the operating systems as well as applications for PC-compatible embedded systems, consumer electronics, telecommunications and data communications devices, single board computers, point-of-sale terminals, kiosks, thin clients and pads, industrial automation devices, and other embedded devices.
“As embedded hardware becomes more complex, General Software's support of Microsoft Windows Embedded CE becomes more crucial,” said Jane Gilson, director, Windows Mobile and Embedded Devices Group, Microsoft Corp. “Today's embedded hardware platforms can require significant amounts of initialization and configuration in order to perform optimally. General Software provides the firmware backed with the level of support our embedded customers require.”
“General Software is excited about Microsoft's commitment to continuing support of its Windows CE operating system used by embedded developers worldwide,” said Steve Jones, General Software’s CTO. “We continue to support Microsoft's embedded OEM customers by providing the essential hardware initialization firmware, together with a fast Windows CE loader, needed to make great consumer products.”
General Software has a long-standing relationship with Microsoft and is a Gold Windows Embedded Partner. Keeping in step with Microsoft’s embedded road map, General helps ensure that designers of embedded systems using Windows Embedded CE 6.0 have the firmware tools they need.
For more information on SDC's Embedded BIOS peoducts contact - sales@sdcsystems.com
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RTLinux Fires Up ColdFire Microcontrollers
SDC Systems has announced today the release of FSM Labs' RTLinuxPro 2.2 development kit for Freescale's MCF5485 ColdFire microcontroller family. RTLinux for ColdFire controllers provides a low-power, highly integrated, hard real-time enterprise-level embedded platform. Even at a power-frugal 200MHz clock speed with a 100MHz bus, the MFC5485 is designed with sufficiently fast real-time capability for demanding SCADA, instrumentation and non-traditional control applications. SDC Systems provide an optional Eclipse based integrated development environment (IDE) for ColdFire with the development kit.
"RTLinux allows real-time developers to conserve power and minimize bill of material costs without needing to go back to a primitive bare-bones software environment," said Principal Architect Michael Barabanov. "The performance is outstanding for a 200MHz controller."
FSMLabs' patented hard real-time virtualization technology decouples the POSIX RTCore real-time kernel from an embedded Linux or BSD client operating system and is completely preemptible by time-critical code. Control system developers working with the ColdFire architecture and RTLinux will be able to control motors, acquire data and move packets in real-time, while also taking advantage of the enterprise software platform provided by the Linux OS.
"The combination of ColdFire controllers and RTLinux provides an embedded enterprise platform that helps control system developers leverage existing middleware and utilities and focus on their applications instead of low-level OS issues," said Renee Mitchell, operations manager for Freescale's Consumer and Industrial Microcontroller Operation.
The Linux system provides a complete, fully functional, enterprise-class platform operating system with a complete set of development tools, sophisticated networking and storage, and comprehensive security, all running under the modular POSIX API hard-real-time RTCore. FSMLabs ColdFire development kit also includes real-time digital I/O (DIO) and Canbus drivers. The RTLinux DIO driver can easily drive a 25KHz square wave!
Real-time performance 200Mhz MCF5485
Worst case interrupt latency 44 microseconds
Worst case Scheduling jitter
(worst case interrupt latency plus context switch plus scheduling overhead) 90 microseconds
Worst case context switch 56 microseconds
FSMLabs Embedded Enterprise initiative aims at exploiting the productive synergy between state of the art POSIX real-time in FSMLabs RTCore and the sophisticated capabilities and rich base of drivers, middleware and applications available on the Linux and BSD clients.
RTLinuxPro 2.2 for ColdFire controllers is available immediately. E-mail sales@sdcsystems.com
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Kozio's kDiagnostics ™ Now Ships on ADI Engineering's New Sidewinder XScale ® IXP465 Access Gateway Reference Design
Product designers can obtain a complete validation package for custom IXP465 boards in just two weeks
Longmont, Colo., September 28, 2006 – Kozio, Inc., the leading provider of advanced embedded functional-test and diagnostics ideally suited for board bring-up, manufacturing test and power-on self test, today announced that evaluation versions of the company's kDiagnostics software product now ship with ADI Engineering's new Sidewinder XScale ® IXP465 Access Gateway Reference Design.
Kozio's turnkey validation package includes proven test suites for DDR SDRAM, Flash, Mini-PCI and connected devices, 10/100 Ethernet, Ethernet Switch, FXS and VoIP ports, USB 2.0 ports, USB 1.1 device port, SATA 1.0 host port, ATA port, RS-232 port. This validation suite is provided for evaluation purposes, and a complete validation package can be configured for custom IXP465 boards in just two weeks.
“We've been working with Kozio for more than two years to make it easier to prove out our hardware board designs, and kDiagnostics is a key product for us” notes Barry Dallavalle, software director of ADI Engineering, Inc. “It has proven to be extremely useful, and is a cornerstone of the factory test production we do for our customers, and a key part of testing boards that are returned. Kozio is extremely responsive and very technically capable, and they are a pleasure to work with.”
Kozio continues to expand its FullCircuit evaluation program, and continues to expand its long-running partnership with ADI Engineering, Inc. This release of Kozio's validation software supports the new XScale IXP465 processor; Intel's latest processor in the IXP4XX family, and includes updates to its automated VoIP and USB test packages.
“We are pleased to continue our strong and productive partnership with ADI Engineering as they expand their offering of XScale reference platforms,” stated Joseph Skazinski, president of Kozio. “This year we are shipping on twenty processor reference platforms for PowerPC ® and XScale ® , and are very pleased with how our evaluation program has taken off.”
kDiagnostics' USB validation suite verifies the operation of Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 and 1.1 host and devices. Tests and commands are provided to perform a full reset of the host controller, start the host controller running, perform device enumeration tests, validate the basic functionality of an internal USB device, and display information about internal USB devices, including USB 2.0 support, bulk transfers, and supported endpoint packet sizes. In addition, mass transfers to a connected USB storage device are offered when the device supports such a feature.
The Voice/Audio test commands verify the higher-level functionality of voice channels utilizing SLIC (Subscriber Line Interface Circuit) components. Tests in this category validate data transfer to and from SLICs using the high-speed serial interface. Tests include voice recording and playback from a connected telephone and DTMF (Dual Tone Multiple Frequency) tone generation and detection (also known as touch tone dialing). Low-level commands are available for generating dial tones, busy signals and can also be used to generate a perfect 1 kHz test tone.
Kozio's support is available immediately for any custom IXP465 board design. Kozio can deliver turnkey diagnostics for custom boards using the Intel XScale IXP465 in two weeks after a purchase order is received, and even sooner, if required.
Benefits of Using Kozio Products
Kozio provides proven hardware validation software for automating and accelerating the development of new processor-based devices. Kozio's software is proven during processor validation and through processor reference platform partnerships. Product developers using Kozio products save time during board bring-up, during production test, and throughout the product lifecycle. Using Kozio's products saves development effort and reduces the risk of processor-based projects.
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Sidewinder IXP465 Access Gateway Reference Design
Sidewinder is a fully-featured reference platform for the Intel® IXP465, IXP460, and IXP455 network processors, targeting small and medium business and embedded computing applications.
Sidewinder enables rapid evaluation and development of converged "office in a box" products - integrating enterprise-grade wireless access, scalable multi-line VoIP, VPN, firewall, intrusion prevention, content filtering, switching and routing, storage, print serving, and WAN access. Sidewinder is also targeted at general-purpose evaluation and development requirements in support of the IXP46x and IXP45x product lines. The board is fully RoHS compliant and is in full production.
Operating system and application software support is being provided by ADI and leading software partners including Intoto and Kenati Technologies.
For customers needing to take custom IXP46x or IXP45x products to market, ADI can very quickly and cost effectively create complete product solutions leveraging Sidewinder. ADI follows this up with emissions certifications, enclosure design, and flexible manufacturing from initial prototypes to high volume. Alternatively, volume production can be performed directly by customers under license from ADI.
For further details contact sales@sdcsystems.com
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Embedded BIOS Solution Enables Development for Intel® 3100 Chipset
SDC Systems, the European distributor of embedded technologies have announced the availability of their embedded BIOS solution for the Intel® 3100 Chipset from General Software. The new Embedded BIOS 2000 support module enables designers to build differentiated products around the new chipset. With the server-class memory and I/O controller functions combined in a single component, the Intel 3100 chipset is the first integrated Intel chipset specifically optimized for embedded, communications and storage applications. The chipset addresses the need for high performance, high reliability, and low power designs within a small form factor when combined with Intel processors.
"For engineers looking to develop powerful embedded systems based on an Intel platform, this is an exciting development," said Stuart Parker, Managing Director of SDC. "The 3100 has a lot of power and features and our BIOS solution from General Software enables engineers to get a new board design up and running quickly and to easily configure the 3100 according to what they need to achieve. There is a lot of expertise and resources within this solution that we believe will prove to be critical in getting Intel 3100 chipset-based products to market in the shortest possible time."
General Software’s new Intel 3100 Support Module is provided as an option for Embedded BIOS 2000 and is licensed in source code form. Developers customize the BIOS to fit the exact needs of the device they are creating. The support module includes full support for the chipset’s key features which include: PCI Express, DDR2 memory devices, and Enhanced Direct Memory Access (EDMA).
Embedded BIOS 2000 is a leading BIOS SDK for embedded x86 designs, with over 850 OEM-customizable configuration parameters, support for multiple embedded operating systems, and support for major OS and hardware initiatives. Embedded BIOS 2000 addresses the entire lifecycle of products, from board bring-up, configuration prototyping, testing with system diagnostics, and product manufacturing to in-field diagnostics and software reload. Features include an integrated debugger; quick boot; console redirection; highly configurable POST; manufacturing mode; ROM, RAM, and Flash file systems; support for a host of industry initiatives; and much more. Embedded BIOS 2000 supports industry-standard operating systems that run on PC-compatible hardware, including the full spectrum of Windows, Linux, and real-time operating systems.
More about General Software Products
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SDC Sign Deal with Kozio to Provide Hardware Test Solution
SDC Systems have signed an agreement with Kozio to provide and support their hardware test solution in the UK and Europe.
Kozio is the premier provider of embedded software for hardware bring-up, manufacturing test, and power-on self-test for 32-bit RISC processors. Kozio delivers a line of software products that deliver extensive hardware validation knowledge in turn-key packages, offering maximum control. Kozio builds it knowledge base by working with the latest processor reference designs from Intel, IBM, AMCC, Freescale and Motorola.
This expertise is then built into a finely architected library system, allowing Kozio to deliver a complete solution in as little as four hours. A brilliantly precise tool set, Kozio software was made for organizations that are creating leading-edge technology and are the first to offer dependable products.
For more information on this product, contact sales@sdcystems.com
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SDC Systems Introduces Automotive Grade Linux® Solution
This Metrowerks Linux solution is specifically engineered to meet industry requirements such as fast device boot time, a real-time execution environment and a comprehensive power management framework.
Automotive grade Linux technology from Metrowerks makes the Linux operating system viable for the Telematics market, and responds to the performance requirements that automotive original equipment manufacturers demand.
The technology delivers:
· a sub-40 millisecond response time for in-vehicle bus communication;
· high performance, real-time capabilities for enhanced responses to system events; and
· very low power consumption, as evidenced by Metrowerks' optimization of the Freescale™ Semiconductor Total5200™ Development Platform.
"Linux is an attractive operating system for the automotive market, but until now has not been a viable option because of the stringent requirements automotive manufacturers have regarding fast boot time, determinism and power consumption,” said Ian Riches, director, Automotive Electronics Service, Strategy Analytics, Inc. "The Metrowerks automotive grade Linux technology will help overcome some of the barriers associated with using the Linux operating system for automotive Telematics applications. Their continued commitment to Linux technology and the transportation industry will help increase the use of Telematics and further perpetuate the adoption of Linux technology for automotive devices."
The Metrowerks Professional Services Group is available to help automotive manufacturers integrate open source or proprietary middleware technologies from third-party vendors to deliver networking, security/encryption, memory or consumer interface capabilities.
In addition to standard Board Support Packages (BSPs) for automotive reference platforms based on Freescale's MPC5200 device, Metrowerks offers custom BSP development for a variety of platforms and comprehensive Linux development solutions to support the entire development process from board bring-up and Linux kernel-level debugging to application creation and testing.
For further details contact sales@sdcsystems.com
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iSystem Break Through The 1000 Micro Barrier !
iSystem Tools Now Support Over 1000 Microcontrollers
iSystem have always taken great pride in the fact that their in-circuit emulators and development tools support a very broad range of microprocesors, however, this month it has been time to celebrate as their microcontroller tool support has jumped to over 1000 devices.
" We've just completed our latest support for some of Freescale's new Coldfire devices as well as PowerPC and PowerQuiccIII and it's exciting to think that we now support in excess of 1000 micro's. For us, it further establishes iSystem as one of the world's leading developers of embedded tools; and for our customers, it means that they can be sure of iSystem support for a very broad range of devices." said Jonathan Hector, UK Manager. "One of the strengths of iSystem's products has always been that each of our emulators can support a range of micro's, so that engineers can use the same tools for any number of projects. Having over 1000 devices supported makes our products even more attractive to development teams working with more than one family of microcontrollers ".
iSystem Emulators are used by over 10,000 engineers worldwide. They use active FPGA technology to enable them to be dynamically reconfigured to optimise the link to each microcontroller; rather than using a compromise set up for all. This provides the best achievable performance at all times. In addition to this, the iSystem Integrated Development Environment, winIDEA, has a powerful feature set that helps engineers optimise their tasks and be more productive. Furthermore, iSystem Emulators are universal, enabling each emulator to be used for a broad range of microcontrollers. Engineers can work on a number of projects without having to re-invest in further emulator technology.
All iSystem's emulators are driven by the easy to use winIDEA™, an integrated development environment. winIDEA™ runs on all Windows based operating systems. As well as a powerful debugger, winIDEA™ includes a project manager and build manager where all well-known compilers can be integrated, thus allowing the user to write, download, debug and edit their code from a single interface. For more information on iSystem's excellent range of debug tools please contact our sales engineers sales@sdcsystems.com
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SDC Provides Data Management Technology for Mobile Phones
SDC has announced that its ENCIRQ embedded database technology is now being developed for use with the Symbian mobile phone operating system. SDC Systems distribute and provide technical support for Encirq products across Europe.
US based ENCIRQ, a leading provider of embedded data management software, announced that it has joined the Symbian Platinum Program to support the growing market for smartphones based on Symbian OS™. As a Platinum Partner, ENCIRQ is extending its award-winning Data Foundation Framework to the Symbian OS ecosystem. Symbian develops and licenses Symbian OS, the operating system that powers today’s most popular smartphones. Symbian OS is licensed by the world’s leading mobile phone manufacturers and to date, over 47 million phones based on Symbian OS have shipped worldwide.
“This partnership reflects our dedication to the growing mobile market and our commitment to further enhance our mobile strategy,” said Mark Vogel, CEO of ENCIRQ. “By becoming a Symbian Platinum Partner, we can expand the advanced capabilities of our solution and strengthen our relationships with users, application developers, smartphone manufacturers and carriers. In today’s rapidly growing smartphone market, we have considerable opportunities for ENCIRQ to contribute to the value of current advanced mobile phones and those models still in development.”
Symbian OS phones are growing in popularity worldwide. As of Q3 2005 year-on-year phone shipments grew more than 131% compared to the same quarter last year. According to technology analyst firm Canalys, overall global shipments of smart phones were up 75% year-on-year in Q3 2005 with Symbian emerging as the market leader.
The ENCIRQ® Data Foundation™ Framework provides development teams with an innovative and more efficient approach to building software for intelligent, data-driven devices. The ENCIRQ Framework radically simplifies the creation of data management software for mobile applications while enabling new capabilities and services. By reducing complexity, automating the generation of source code, and providing an ultra-efficient runtime environment, the ENCIRQ Framework helps engineering teams to:
Reduce development time and costs by up to 80%
Optimize mobile phone performance while improving system resource utilization
Improve application quality, flexibility and portability
Increase engineering capacity for product innovation and differentiation
“With the rapid growth of the smartphone market, high performance data management has become a fundamental component of today’s advanced mobile phones,” said Jerry Panagrossi, vice president, US operations, North America, Symbian. “The addition of ENCIRQ to the Symbian Platinum Program underscores our joint commitment to bring advanced data management capabilities to the ever expanding and increasingly sophisticated Symbian OS ecosystem.”
For further details contact sales@sdcsystems.com
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SDC Systems Announce The Immediate Availability of the MPC8540 and MPC875 QUICCStart Evaluation Systems.
These evaluation systems are simple yet powerful platforms that enable evaluation and development to begin before production hardware is available. These products offer a solid platform for both hardware and firmware engineers to use in evaluating and prototyping their designs. These evaluation systems also give software engineers a platform on which to begin developing and testing their application code. These products come complete with
· Evaluation board
· Wall mounted power supply
· Associated cables (Ethernet, RS-232)
· WireTAP Host Target Interface device
· Evaluation version of CodeWarrior Development Studio for PowerPC ISA, Platform Edition
· Evaluation version of CodeWarrior Development Studio Embedded Linux Edition (Windows and Linux hosted)
· Evaluation version of ARC International ' s MQX RTOS .
· Flashed with Embedded Linux
· Full documentation with QuickStart guides for fast evaluation setups
These products have been designed so that development engineers can be productive within 30 minutes . For more information...
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General Software's BIOS Products Enable Wider Cyberspace
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has developed a small form factor motherboard to be used in their new Personal Internet Communicator (PIC) product featuring AMD's Geode GX 533@1.1w processor. The PIC has been developed as part of AMD's global “50x15” initiative of providing affordable Internet and computing capabilities to 50 percent of the world's population by the year 2015. This new product targets large scale communication companies in third world and developing countries in order to provide a reliable and cost efficient means to expose these markets to computers and technology. The PIC is designed to be a high-quality, affordable, easy-to-use, robust consumer device that can operate under less than ideal conditions such as inconsistent power voltage, dust and dirt. A fully managed system with features and functionality controlled by the service provider in each market, the PIC is a highly integrated, low-power computing sub-system.
AMD selected General Software to design and develop the BIOS/firmware for the PIC. Embedded firmware is the enabler that can allow a hardware feature to scale across all the operating systems, or an OS capability to scale across all the hardware components. Firmware is a two-way enabling layer that gates or accelerates the ability to deliver these capabilities to the application developers of embedded devices.
Stuart Parker of SDC Systems, the European distributor for General Software explained, “General Software is dedicated to the unique needs of embedded x86 customers and has partnered on thousands of successful designs in all major industry segments. Unlike any other BIOS/Firmware company, General Software's proven ability, years of embedded experience, and unique product offerings shorten development time so quality products get to market on schedule.”
General Software's Embedded BIOS® 2000 , with Firmbase® Technology v1.3 , was used for the design and development of the PIC BIOS/firmware. Embedded BIOS® 2000 is a configurable firmware layer that provides the essential functions needed by operating systems and applications for PC-compatible embedded systems, consumer electronics, telecommunications and data communications devices, Single Board Computers, point-of-sale terminals, kiosks, thin clients and pads, industrial automation devices, and other embedded devices.
For further details contact sales@sdcsystems.com or tel : 01462 473953
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ADI Announces Low-Cost Reference Platform for the Intel IXP23xx Product Line
ADI Engineering have announced their new “Roadrunner” reference platform to be available in February 2005. The Roadrunner platform based on the Intel® IXP23xx product line is optimized as a single-board reference design that enables cost-effective Gigabit Ethernet applications where an AdvancedTCA® platform is not required. Qovia, one of ADI Engineering's customers, will be using ADI's expertise to build their next-generation communications equipment.
“Our customers depend on our products to manage their VoIP phone systems,” said Eric Bear, VP of product management at Qovia, the leading developer of VoIP management software and appliances. “For Internet Telephony, management is critical for ensuring call quality, ease of operations and even emergency services. And with our upcoming management appliance aimed at large enterprise and carrier customers – users that demand 99.999 percent reliability from their phones – we needed processing power and high availability. That's why we plan to use the Intel® IXP2350 network processor as the core of our carrier class appliance. The combined experience of Intel and ADI Engineering will ensure carrier-class power and reliability from our new generation appliance.”
Demo applications from third party providers, such as Parallogic, including IPv4/v6 routing, cryptography, and TCP/IP termination ensure immediate customer validation of the Intel® IXP23xx product line with respect to features, function, and performance in actual end-user applications. For more information contact sales@sdcsystems.com .
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Encirq 3e to Provide Delphi with Data Management in Next Generation Electronic Devices
Encirq Corporation announced today that Delphi Delco Electronics Systems has selected the Encirq 3e Database Suite for Embedded Systems to be used in various audio systems.
The Encirq 3e Database Suite for Embedded Systems provides extremely compact, high-performance full-featured data management functionality. Encirq 3e offers electronics manufacturers, reduced technology risk, lower total cost of ownership, functional scalability and helps them get to market faster.
"The Encirq 3e Database Suite for Embedded Systems will become a key software component in Delphi's future car audio systems," said Dr. Robert Schumacher, business line executive for Wireless at Delphi Delco Electronics Systems. "Encirq's data management technology will allow Delphi to provide our customers with a technically advanced and feature rich audio receiver.
" Automotive electronics , especially telematics devices, are growing in their capabilities and need sophisticated, yet compact data management technology for speed, reliability and innovation," said Mark Vogel, founder and CEO of Encirq. "Manufacturers are looking for ways to get their products to market faster with enhanced reliability and at lower overall cost. Delphi is an innovative company that recognized the overall advantages that Encirq 3e can provide while at the same time being able to deliver to its customers new products with advanced features."
A free trial download of the Encirq 3e Database Suite is available, please click here to request download.
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Pragmadev Makes Important Enhancements to UML Tool
Pragmadev are about to release "RTDS G3", version 3 of their acclaimed UML tool, Real Time Developers Studio. RTDS G3 contains important enhancements such as the ability to import SDL'88, SDL'92, and SDL'96 files containing CIF information. In RTDS G3, the SDL models can be executed with the RTDS SDL simulator that has basically the same features as the SDL-RT debugger.
Real Time Developer Studio is the first commercial off the shelf tool based on SDL-RT concept. It targets all development teams working with a Real Time Operating System and goes through: Specification, Design, Code generation, Unitary testing, Conformance and Documentation. Its pragmatic approach and low price make it a good candidate to be widely accepted in a market where 90% of the developments use no graphical tools, In addition to this the PragmaDev MSC tracer is a graphical tracing tool based on ITU-T Message Sequence Chart and on OMG UML2.0 Sequence Diagram standards. It allows engineers to trace on-line or off-line target behaviour with a standard graphical representation. For more information on Pragmadev UML tools, please contact sales@sdcsystems.com
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SDC Supplies GenSoft firmware solution for AMD Geode™ Processor
General Software, the leading supplier of embedded x86 firmware solutions has announced support of Embedded BIOS® 2000 for the AMD Geode GX Single Board Computer Reference Design Kit (AMD Geode GX SBC RDK). AMD’s near manufacture-ready reference design kit is a compact, low-power, high-performance system designed to help facilitate the next generation of single board computer and network appliances. Target application markets include single board computer, point-of-sale, corporate thin client, network appliances and kiosks.
Embedded BIOS 2000, with Firmbase® Technology, provides maximum configurability with high-level firmware tools and full source code. With modular architecture, custom adaptations of the BIOS can be made with ease, speed and power. Designers using the AMD Geode GX SBC reference design kit can obtain a reference binary ready to install and evaluate. Additional product feature enhancements can be added using General Software’s Firmware Application Suite™. These applications provide advanced functionality in simple to configure and deploy packages; boot security, platform updates, and high availability.
“Our customers demand designs that can be quickly turned into on the shelf products,” said Erik Salo, director of marketing, AMD Microprocessor Solutions Sector. “The software offering from General Software alleviates one more hurdle that designers have to clear before their device is ready for the market.”
"AMD continues to provide embedded x86 customers with platforms targeted at low-power, high-performance applications," said Steve Dearden, General Software VP of sales and marketing. "General Software is committed to supporting AMD embedded customers with our best of class firmware solutions and technical support."
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General Software announces BIOS Support for VIA CN700 IGP Chipset
General Software have announced further expansion of its product line with their Embedded BIOS® 2000 support for the new VIA CN700 IGP chipset
The VIA CN700 IGP chipset features leading digital media technologies and an advanced low power design to enable system design innovation across a wide range of VIA C7™ processor-powered devices, such as mini PCs, fanless embedded commercial systems and stylish, quiet home entertainment appliances. Combined with the VIA VT8237A South Bridge, the VIA CN700 offers a comprehensive range of integrated storage, multimedia and connectivity options, including native Serial ATA and multiple configuration V-RAID, support for VIA Vinyl High Definition Audio, and high-throughput Gigabit Ethernet with the VIA Velocity controller.
“Continued innovation in the embedded VIA chipset family is setting new standards for low power dissipation at a high performance level. General Software is pleased to offer VIA’s customers Embedded BIOS 2000 support for this exciting new chipset," said Steve Dearden, General Software’s vice president of sales and marketing. "We look forward to empowering our mutual customers on many new VIA C7™ and CN700 IGP based designs.”
The support module is offered as an option for Embedded BIOS 2000, the world’s most configurable BIOS development kit. Licensed in source code form, developers are free to tailor the BIOS to fit the exact needs of the device they are creating, rather than being constrained by architectures more applicable to desktop PCs. The support module includes full implementation for the chipset’s important features, including all ACPI power management modes, graphics and audio support. Full support of the companion chip is included, along with BIOS level UDMA and quick boot. The processor is fully compatible with General Software’s unique Firmbase® Technology and Firmware Application Suite™, an integrated set of prewritten applications employing Firmbase Technology that enable important device management functions; boot security, platform updating and high availability. The module is available for immediate shipment.
For more information on General Software's BIOS and Firmware products....
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Kozio's Diagnostic Software Speeds Voice Channel Testing
Product developers can perform direct testing of the voice hardware
before the boot loader, operating system or drivers are ready
Longmont, Colo., August 1, 2006, – Kozio, Inc., the leading provider of advanced embedded functional-test and diagnostics capabilities ideally suited for board bring-up, manufacturing test and power-on self test, today announced support for Voice-over-IP (VoIP) voice channel testing, reducing the current test time from the 12 minute minimum per channel to just 10 seconds per channel.
“Time-to market is paramount for companies in the highly-competitive VoIP equipment market. Companies that can deliver their product today have a keen market advantage, as their customers compete to deliver the next-generation of telephone service,” stated Al Arendt, Kozio's director of sales. “Our turnkey hardware test products provide clear value as customers design and manufacture new products incorporating Voice over IP.”
Traditional analog and digital phone services are increasingly converting to VoIP technology. The new technology is being developed in a highly competitive industry, and companies producing VoIP products need every advantage to beat competitors to market.
“Kozio's kDiagnostics™ not only saved our team weeks of development time, they repeatedly prove their value as we continue with additional development,” notes Mark Dzwoncyzk, chief executive officer at Sigpro. “We have decided to ship all of our units with an embedded set of kDiagnostics™ for self-test during the manufacturing process, which we are sure will deliver addition return on investment as we ramp production.”
Dzwonczyk continued, “Running my business for 10 years, I have never met an outfit as responsive to a customer's needs as Kozio has been to ours. I have learned a lot about how to improve our business by watching Kozio respond and deliver to a customer under pressure.”
Before this support from Kozio's kDiagnostics™ and kManufacturing™ software, baseline hardware performance measurements could only be run after the boot loader, operating system and board support package was functional, possibly months after a new board arrives. When a board was manufactured, VoIP channels could only be tested after loading the operating system and application software, taking up to twelve minutes. If the board failed, it would have to be repaired and the reloaded before testing could resume.
Now, kDiagnostics™ provides product developers with performance measurements on their VoIP channels within minutes. Kozio delivers a turnkey image that requires no bootloader, OS or application software. kDiagnostics™ increases the engineer's visibility into new hardware with direct hardware access, pre-verified comprehensive functional tests and unparalleled tracing and test control. Also, with kManufacturing™, the time required to complete VoIP tests is just 10 seconds, helping streamline the production test efforts and reduce per unit touch-time.
Kozio delivers pre-built test commands and suites providing focus and flow validation of Foreign eXchange Subscriber (FXS) and Foreign eXchange Office (FXO) ports. Tests are also provided to validate voice ports by validating data transmitted between FXS and FXO ports. In addition to port testing, Kozio's turnkey diagnostics package includes comprehensive test suites for all devices on the board such as: processor, Flash (NAND or NOR), SDRAM, SRAM, PCI, PCI-X, PCI Express, USB, Ethernet (MII, PHY, & Loopback), 12C, Programmed I/O, Timer, UART, SATA, and SAS. (This list is adjusted for custom boards based on receiving a customer's block diagram.) The new capability was developed using the Coyote IXP425 evaluation board and Texas Instruments' TNETV1060.
Kozio's support for VoIP voice channel testing in now available. Delivery is typically made two weeks after a purchase order is received. Evaluation versions of kDiagnostics are now available for PowerPC ® and XScale ® processors.
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Kozio Supports AMCC's New PowerPC ® 405EZ Networked Industrial Processor
Kozio supports new high-performance networked MPU, and all AMCC PowerPC ® 405xx and 440xx processors
Longmont, Colorado – Kozio, Inc., the leading provider of advanced embedded functional test and diagnostics capabilities ideally suited for board bring-up, manufacturing test and power-on self test, today announced support for AMCC's new PowerPC ® 405EZ networked industrial processor. The 405EZ is the first in AMCC's family of high-performance networked industrial processors. Kozio will offer a turnkey diagnostics package for hardware test and debug solutions for custom 405EZ-based boards, giving product designers a complete diagnostics solution in two weeks that will save development effort, board bring-up, and production testing time.
“We use Kozio's diagnostic software internally to accelerate our validation of new PowerPC processors”, said Pini Herman, Senior Manager of Hardware Development at AMCC. “We have found the kDiagnostics package invaluable in allowing us to quickly debug our validation hardware and thereby minimize the bring-up time for new SoCs. We are delighted that Kozio has announced support for the 405EZ processor and look forward to using their tools as we debug this new product.”
“We see more and more companies turning to 32-bit SoCs to replace their 8-bit and 16-bit MCUs and Kozio is providing an excellent set of software tools to help with this transition,” stated Joseph Skazinski, president of Kozio. “Our turnkey hardware test products provide clear value as customers design and manufacture new products incorporating 32-bit processors such as AMCC's 405EZ PowerPC processor.”
The shift to 32-bit processors is being driven by industrial controller applications that require the increased computing power of 32-bit SoCs to handle the additional tasks of networked communications, more sophisticated algorithms and more complete operating systems. 32-bit processors continue to drop in price, and in some cases their cost is lower than traditional 16-bit MCUs.
Kozio's diagnostics software kDiagnostics™, kManufacturing™, kPOST™ and kField™ provide a full board test report within minutes of running the software. Kozio's turnkey diagnostics package includes pre-verified test suites for analog and digital peripherals, timers, IEEE 1588 Fast Ethernet, USB, CAN, comprehensive memory test suites for SRAM , and CellularRAM, and support for the 64-bit on chip-bus. The package also includes full Flash memory capabilities as well as detection and testing of peripherals.
Evaluation versions of kDiagnostics are now available. Kozio continues to partner with AMCC to provide complete support for their newest processors, including the PowerPC ® 405EZ, the first of a family of high-performance, low-power-consumption solutions for SoCs. Kozio will be ready to support the 405EZ product developers when the chips are available, and will deliver turnkey diagnostics for custom boards to customers using the AMCC PowerPC ® 405EZ within two weeks after a purchase order is issued.
Components tested include the PowerPC ® 405EZ, SRAM, CellularRAM, GPIO, 12C, IEEE 1588 Ethernet, USB USB 2.0, two CAN 2.ob ports. 10-bit ADC, 10-bit DAC, PWM, Flash memory. This list is adjusted for custom boards based on a product's block diagram.
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SDC Announces Kozio Diagnostics Package for AMCC’s nP3705 Packet Processor Kit
SDC has announced that Kozio, the leading provider of automated validation software ideally suited for board-bring up, manufacturing test and power on self test, has an evaluation version of its kDiagnostics™ software now shipping as part of Applied Micro Circuit Corporation’s (AMCC’s) new Saguaro evaluation kit for the nP3705 packet processor. Access to Kozio's full-featured evaluation software, as well as support from the company, is available immediately for custom designs using the PowerPC 440EP processor.
This continues Kozio's long-running partnership with AMCC, as well as the company's FullCircuit evaluation program, which provides an evaluation version of kDiagnostics with a variety of third-party processor evaluation platforms. Users have access to a full-featured evaluation version of the software, enabling them to test out the entire board in minutes and explore all the features of the technology.
"If you can get proven, pre-verified third-party diagnostics at a fraction of the cost of writing them yourself, it's hard to justify spending the engineering time developing custom code," notes Al Arendt director of sales at Kozio. "Our customers are enjoying increased success because their development engineers are spending more time developing products with higher performance, improved reliability and a wider range of features than their competitors. Kozio is helping them deliver better products – on time."
Kozio’s turnkey validation package is pre-installed on the Saguaro evaluation platforms, allowing potential customers to explore various benefits of kDiagnostics, including proven test suites for 440EP core and expansion bus, memories and all peripherals, with full access to all special-purpose Power PC registers. Kozio’s standard package includes test suites for DDR, SDRAM, EEPROM and DMA, with full programming capabilities during testing of UART, Ethernet (10/100), Gigabit Ethernet, PCI and connected devices, 12C and connected devices, USB port, and temperature sensor.
Kozio’s support, including a full validation suite for board bring-up, is available immediately for any custom board using the 440EP processor. Validation suites are provided for evaluation purposes, and a complete validation package can be prepared for custom 440EP boards in two weeks – even before the first custom board arrives from assembly. In addition, Kozio can provide a fully automated test suite for manufacturing or production test and power-on-self-test, delivering the same test functions used for board bring-up.
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ASIC and FPGA Design Acceleration Tools to be Launched At Advanced Automotive Electronics Event At the forthcoming AAE-07, automotive electronics event, SDC Systems will be announcing the UK launch of a range of ASIC and FPGA Design Acceleration Tools.
The AAE-2007 (Advanced Automotive Electronics Show)is to be held at the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon on January 31st and SDC Systems will be exhibiting a range of leading edge embedded development tools and software.
An important new technology to feature on SDC's stand will be the powerful ASIC and FPGA development tools from Austrian company GE-Research, a member of the MSC group. Consisting of hardware development platforms and SEmulation, a powerful FPGA design simulation and emulation tool, SDC are anticipating considerable interest around this technology.
"We have been looking for a development platform for FPGA’s for a while and we are delighted to have found GE-Research and their development platforms and SEmulation technology, as it fits with our key objective of identifying and promoting new and highly productive tools to the UK market," said Stuart Parker, Managing Director of SDC Systems. "The SEmulation technology will be of great benefit to designers building increasingly large and complex FPGAs that do not have the budget for a fully featured emulator but are faced with the need to undertake extensive simulation before committing the design to full production. SEmulation will increase design security and decrease development time without any additional hardware cost.
The UK has a very active ASIC and FPGA development community, we feel sure this technology will be of great interest to this part of the embedded engineering sector."
SDC claim that one such FPGA development platform, the Hpe_midi, is the most flexible FPGA and ASIC development system available on the market today. The FPGA is contained on a removable module with different FPGA modules available and more in development. Currently SDC offer modules with ALTERA StratixII ™ and StratixIII™ will follow shortly.
AAE-2007 is the follow up to the very successful AAE-2006. Last years event has been held in high regard for its excellent conference, high quality
visitors, broad range of exhibitors and overall management. Key to the
success and attraction of this event is the fact that electronics now form the backbone of many systems which result in safer, more efficient, economical and environmentally-friendly modes of transport. With an ever-increasing range of leading-edge technologies emerging into the automotive market, this is one of the most exciting and dynamic manufacturing sectors in the world. In fact, global industry analysts are already estimating that by 2010 a massive 40% of the content of a mid-sized car could be accounted for by electronics. The AAE events have become the leading UK conference and exhibition to address this growing part of the technology sector.
For more information on AAE-07 visit www.aae-show.co.uk
SDC Systems will also be exhibiting a broad range of embedded software tools and hardware solutions such as their Encirq embedded data management solution, their Kozio hardware verification test suite, their ADI Xscale wifi hardware platforms and their FSM Labs realtime Linux operating system.
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SDC Systems to Exhibit Graphical Interface Development Technology at Advanced Automotive Electronics Show
SDC Systems will be exhibiting a new and innovative graphical interface development technology at AAE-2007 (Advanced Automotive Electronics Show), to be held at the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon on January 31st. The Tilcon Interface Development Suite is one of SDC's latest products and enables engineers to develop powerful graphical user interfaces (GUI's) for embedded systems such as telematic systems, man machine interfaces, consumer devices and medical systems.
"This is a very exciting product for us," said Stuart Parker, Managing Director of SDC. "For engineers looking to develop realtime or deeply embedded systems, the Tilcon Interface Developer Suite(IDS) will be a very attractive solution. It is now a mature and proven product that runs on a broad range of operating systems, providing a very high quality graphical solution that will add considerable value to an embedded system."
The Tilcon IDS is a multi-platform user interface technology (GUI and HMI builder) that delivers robust, highly interactive user interfaces for real-time and embedded applications. The Tilcon solution is based on a scalable graphics kernel that manages all aspects of the display and user interaction as a service to distributed API clients and works directly with the native RTOS (such as VxWorks) and core graphics library (such as WindML, Win32, Photon and upcoming OpenGL ES). The Tilcon IDS also takes full advantage of the hardware platforms (such as SH4, PPC, ARM, XScale and X86) in order to enhance performance speed.
"The Tilcon IDS is an out-of-the-box solution," said Stuart. "It will save many man-hours of writing low level graphical C/C++ code, providing reduced development costs, faster time to market and almost certainly a more refined solution. With its proven performance within telematic systems, the AAE Show seemed the ideal place for us to launch it!".
AAE-2007 is the follow up to the very successful AAE-2006. Last years event has been held in high regard for its excellent conference, high quality visitors, broad range of exhibitors and overall management. Key to the success and attraction of this event is the fact that electronics now form the backbone of many systems which result in safer, more efficient, economical and environmentally-friendly modes of transport. With an ever-increasing range of leading-edge technologies emerging into the automotive market this is one of the most exciting and dynamic manufacturing sectors in the world. In fact, global industry analysts are already estimating that by 2010 a massive 40% of the content of a mid-sized care could be accounted for by electronics. The AAE events have become the leading UK conference and exhibition to address this growing part of the technology sector.
More about the Tilcon Graphical User Interface (GUI) Development Tool
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MontaVista Mobilinux 5.0 Awarded Best Software Innovation of the Year by EDN
Mobilinux 5.0 awarded as year’s most significant advance in embedded software technology
MontaVista® Software, Inc., the leader in embedded Linux® commercialization, announced that its MontaVista Mobilinux™ 5.0, the best-selling commercialized Linux operating system software for mobile devices, is the winner of this year’s EDN Innovation Award as Best Software Innovation of the Year. Instituted in 1990, the EDN Innovation Awards honor significant people, products, and technologies that have shaped the semiconductor industry over the past year.
“The EDN Innovation Award for best software is the most prestigious and important industry award that an embedded software product can receive,” said Jim Ready, CTO and founder of MontaVista Software. “EDN’s selection criteria state that finalists ‘must have demonstrated innovation that resulted in a significant advance in technology’ during the past year. “We are pleased for the recognition of the ‘innovation’ and the ‘significant advance’ that Mobilinux 5.0 has delivered to mobile device designers and their customers.”
Mobilinux 5.0 enables mobile device manufacturers to deliver new products with advanced functionality to consumers more quickly, and at a lower total cost. MontaVista provides quality software with innovative features, integration, hardware enablement, engineering services, and the MontaVista development community, which includes more than 100 MontaVista partners that provide middleware, applications, and tools ready to use in Mobilinux-powered mobile devices. Mobilinux helps mobile engineers get the most out of open source, making MontaVista the most widely-used provider of Linux operating system software for the mobile telephony industry, according to analyst firm VDC.
“Every year the difficulty of technical challenges increases, the pressures of schedule, cost, and energy efficiency grow, and the resources available to design teams dwindle. That makes the achievements of this year’s EDN Innovation Award winners all the more impressive,” stated Ron Wilson, executive editor of EDN Worldwide. “Selected by their peers in the design community for their outstanding results, these innovators stand in the front rank of the best and brightest electronics engineering has to offer.”
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