CNXSoft – Embedded Software Development

CoAction Hero is a tiny board based on an ARM Cortex-M3 micro-controller (NXP LPC1759), that makes use of  CoActionOS ecosystem that includes the hardware, but also an open source RTOS allowing multiple app to run concurrently, and a graphical interface to communicate with the board.

First, let’s have a look at the hardware specs:

• Micro-controller – NXP LPC1759 ARM Cortex-M3 processor @ 120MHz with 64kB RAM and 512kB  Flash ROM.
• Storage – 1MB serial flash chip (pre-loaded with CoActionOS)
• Expansion port
• micro USB connector.
• 40 I/O pins are available on both sides of the board, and the board can be inserted in a breadboard.

You can currently connect 2 modules to the board: Bluetooth and LCD device boards.

CoActionOS RTOS will come pre-loaded on the board, and if you don’t want to, you don’t even need to know it’s there, and it’s use will be transparent. But let’s have a quick look at this real-time OS, which allows multitasking on Cortex M3 MCU, supports an unnamed filesystem, and they also provide a C/C++ library to help with hardware peripherals (GPIO, ADC, SPI, UART,…) programming.

Documentation, source code, and tutorials are available on CoActionOS website.

The desktop development environment, based on Qt 4.8 and GCC, currently runs on Windows and MacOS, with Android and iOS support coming once Qt 5.x is available for those mobile OS. Linux may also be supported at a later stage. The board connects to your computer via its micro USB port, and CoActionOS Link software allows you to browse the board’s filesystem, provides terminal access, install programs, re-flash the kernel, and monitor running processes. They recommend using Eclipse for compiling programs.

Several example projects are showcased on their kickstarter page such as driving a 1.8″ LCD, a DC Motor with PWM and PID, and an LED strip.

You can pledge as low as $29 to get the CoAction Hero board with a USB cable, and with a $99 pledge, you can add the Bluetooth and LCD expansion boards. Devkits should ship to backers in July 2013.

Texas Instruments has just announced the Tiva ARM MCU platform, and specifically the Tiva C Series TM4C123x ARM Cortex-M4 MCUs, which are the first Cortex-M MCUs to be built on 65 nanometer flash process technology. The Tiva C Series TM4C123x MCUs, formerly known as Stellaris LM4F MCUs, are available now and target home, building and industrial automation.

Key features and benefits of Tiva C Series MCUs:

• MCU Core – ARM Cortex-M4 floating-point core, operating at up to 80 MHz.
• Mixed-signal applications with high-performance analog integration – 2×12-bit ADC and 3 comparators.12-bit ADC accuracy is achievable at the full 1 MSPS rating without any hardware averaging.
• On-chip connectivity options - USB (host, device and On-The-Go), UARTs, I2C, SSI/SPI, CAN, etc..
• Non-volatile storage of user interface or configuration parameters to reduce system cost – Thanks to integrated EEPROM.
• Low power -  Standby currents as low as 1.6 uA.
• Large choice of MCU RAM and storage sizes – Up to 256KB flash and 32KB SRAM.

On the software side, TI-RTOS, a real-time operating system, is available to all TI MCUS, and for applications that do not need an operating system, TivaWare for C Series MCUs is a free toolkit allowing “no OS” software development. Support is available through FAE or via E2E online community. As with its other MCUs, Texas Instruments also provides a low cost evaluation kit.

EK-TM4C123GXL Launchpad Evalkit

EK-TM4C132G LaunchPad includes:

• A TM4C123G LaunchPad Evaluation board with TM4C123GH6PM MCU (256KB Flash / 32KB SRAM)
• On-board In-Circuit Debug Interface (ICDI)
• USB Micro-B plug to USB-A plug cable
• Preloaded RGB quickstart application
• ReadMe First quick-start guide

The board is compatible with TI’s BoosterPacks should you need to extend the capabilities of the board.

The Tiva C Series TM4C123x MCUs are available now and price starts at 2.15 USD in 10K quantities. The LaunchPad kit (EK-TM4C123GXL) can be purchased on TI e-Store for $12.99 now, but you’ll need to wait 8 to 10 weeks before delivery. TI also announced Tiva C Series devices with Ethernet capabilities will be available in in the near future. Further information can be found in Tiva C Series page.

Energy Micro has recently announced the availability of the Keil RTX real-time operating system (RTOS) as part of its Simplicity Studio tool suite. The Keil RTX has been optimized for ARM Cortex-M processors to provide flexible scheduling and high-speed operation, and has been improved to enable an ultra-low power, deep-sleep mode between tasks.

Energy Micro has implemented a tickless mode in Keil RTX. This mode allows the EFM32 Cortex M3 MCUs to wake up only when needed, either at a scheduled time or on an interrupt event. This results in much lower power consumption in sleep mode compared to other SysTick implementations.

The video below shows the difference between SYSTICK mode where the system consumes about 2.7mA in active mode, and 830 uA in sleep mode to the new tickless mode where the MCU still consume the same amount of energy in Active mode, but only 1uA in sleep mode, or in other words, an 830x improvement in power consumption.

ARM Keil RTX RTOS is available for free (as in beer), and is also provided with full source code under a BSD license that is free of charge even for commercial usage. The Keil RTX implements the RTOS API of the ARM Cortex Microcontroller Software Interface Standard (CMSIS). Windows users can download this RTOS via Simplicity Studio software suite, however it can’t be retrieved from Simplicity Studio in Linux (or I missed it), but you can still download the source code, documentation and samples from Energy Micro in a zip file.

Via Embedded.com

Design West 2013, previously known as the Embedded Systems Confertence, will take place later this month, on 23-25 April to be exact, at San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California, US. The event will be divided into 22 tracks dealing with software development, hardware design, operating systems, security and more:

• Android Certificate Program – Two-day hands-on embedded android workshop.
• Black Hat Summit – The Black Hat Embedded Security Summit will provide electronics professionals with essential information and tools, as well as a forum for the discussion and evaluation of the latest solutions for securing their embedded systems. Training courses will focus on topics such as Network Security, Incident Response, Web Application Security, and Exploit Development.
• Connectivity and Networking – The Connectivity and Networking track educates design engineers on wired and wireless communications, spanning need-to-know topics from essentials of USB device development to antenna and RF system design.
• Debugging and Test – This track features a mix of lectures focusing on useful insights on troubleshooting real world embedded software, and tips and tricks with highly practical takeaways that embedded systems designers can apply immediately.
• Embedded Android – This track covers the tradeoffs of Android versus Linux in a real-world case study, teaches engineers how to streamline Android implementation on embedded systems, and provides information on how to apply USB technology and provide connectivity to various configurations of Android platforms.
• Hardware: Design, I/O, and Interfacing – This track examines how to ameliorate the challenges associated with design element such as the interface between hardware and firmware; synchronizing I/O, integrating embedded vision and motion control, and leveraging existing sensor drivers.
• Internet of Things – This track covers some of the specific challenges and opportunities for embedded designers, including today’s fragmented sensor and device market, the move from IPv4 to IPv6, and the return to resource-constrained embedded systems.
• Linux Kernel and Operating Systems – The Linux Kernel and Operating Systems Track focuses on the kernel itself, and the operating system and programs running above it. Sessions cover best practices for engineers to leverage the use of open source software within embedded systems while avoiding common pitfalls, plus a session showing how Linux, though not a real time kernel, is likely good enough for your application.
• Low-Power Design – The Low-Power Design track covers the latest techniques to conserve power at the system; architectural and component level as well as the advantages and trade-offs of different power optimization techniques.
• Processors and Programmable Devices – The Processors and Programmable Devices track focuses on embedded systems that feature the use of processors (MPUs, MCUs, DSPs) and/or programmable devices (FPGAs, Programmable SoCs).
• Programming – The Programming track focuses on embedded system programming languages, tools and techniques. Sessions provide practical tips and tricks and actionable information that developers can apply immediately to their code.
• Prototyping – The Prototyping track focuses on the science and art of rapidly creating embedded systems for proof of concepts, demonstrations and iterative product developments.
• Real Time Operating Systems – This track focuses on delivering real-time performance with the assistance of a real-time scheduler and related tools and techniques. Sessions include practical information on the design of real-time embedded systems that will be timely and predictable, design options for achieving real time without an RTOS, and the application of RTOS in safety critical applications.
• Safety, Security and Hacking Embedded Systems – The Safety, Security, and Hacking Embedded Systems covers the latest techniques for designing and managing more secure systems. Sessions cover a mixture of hacking history, security knowledge, techniques for building more secure embedded system, and coping with the special case of Android.
• Software Architecture and Design – Using practical, real-world advice from experts, this track will guide you through everything from requirements and specification development techniques, to optimizing your multicore and user-interface design. Agile design techniques will also be introduced.
• Software Development – The Software Development Track will guide you toward a more disciplined approach to software development to improve performance, while emphasizing agility. A special session on common traps and pitfalls when developing real-time software will underscore the importance of such approaches.
• Systems Engineering – The Systems Engineering Track’s objective is to improve analytical skills, impart an enhanced understanding of the impact of your engineering decisions on others on the design team, and the impact of other decisions on you. Engineers will learn the benefits of looking at the big picture, in addition to focusing only on the detail.
• Hello World! – Track engineers share their embedded design experiences and provide information that will help you bring your ideas to life more quickly and successfully.
• Lessons and Lessons Learned – Engineers share their successes and failures along with some practical tips, tricks, and how-tos to jump start your next big embedded systems project.
• Connected Devices – Learn about the whacky wonderful future of mobility and learn about some real world examples of products with embedded systems that are already talking to the cloud.
• Tech Fundamentals – This 3-day series consists of 18 45-minute sessions designed specifically for engineers who are new to embedded or experienced embedded engineers who want an introduction to topics outside of their core expertise. These practical sessions delivered in a tutorial format cover topics ranging from Embedded 101 to Analog for Digital Designers to Why the Programming Language C matters.
• Hands-on Speed Training – Attendees can get some drive time on the latest development boards, hardware, and software tools and face time with expert engineer-trainers.  Developments boards include Arduino, Beaglebone, Raspberry Pi… software tools include Microchip MPLAB X, TI WEBENCH Power Designer, etc..

To select the sessions, the best way is to use the schedule builder available on UBM website.

If you plan to only access the expositions, attend a few of the many vendor-sponsored sessions, and listen to keynotes, the pass (Expo Only Pass) is free and you only need to register. For details about the other pass see table below.

	All Access Pass	Expo Plus Pass	Expo Only Pass	Black Hat Summit
Advanced | Feb 16 – Apr 18	$1,999	$199	Free	$1099
Onsite | April 19 – 25	$2,299	$199	Free	$1199

Conference Sessions April 21 – April 25
Black Hat Conference Sessions April 23 – April 24
Monday Workshops
Monday Lunch
Vendor Sessions April 22 – April 25
Keynotes April 23 – April 25
Expo April 22 – April 25 Sketch to Shenzhen, Fundamentals, and Hands-On Training Lab Included
Parties & Giveaways April 22 – April 25
DESIGN West Conference Proceedings
Black Hat Summit Proceedings
Android Certification April 22 – April 23
IEEE Certification April 22 – April 25
Expo Plus Extras – 3 Class Passes

Further details are available on Design West Official Website.

Microsemi SmartFusion2 SoC family combines an ARM Cortex-M3 Core @ 166 Mhz and FPGA Fabric with up to 12M Gates, and comes with up to 512 KB eNVM and 64 KB eSRAM, 1 CAN A & B interface, 1 GbE port, 1 USB 2.0 OTG, and diverse serial interface. Last year I received Emcraft SmartFusion Starter Kit using the first generation of the starter kit, and Microsemi (previously known as Actel) and Emcraft Systems have recently announced the second generation with the SmartFusion2 Starter Kit.

SmartFusion2 Starter Kit

The main hardware features include:

• SmartFusion2 SoC FPGA in FG896 package (M2S050T-FG896ES) with 256KB eNVM, 64KB SRAM,  and 48,672 logic modules.
• JTAG interface for programming of the SmartFusion2 device
• 10/100 Ethernet interface and RJ-45 connector
• USB OTG interface and mini-USB connector
• USB based Wi-Fi Module
• 64MB LPDDR, 16MB SPI flash
• User push-button connected to GPIO on the SOM
• Two user-controlled LEDs connected to GPIO on the SOM
• Breadboard area available for GPIO or FPGA I/O connection
• Power good LED indicating presence of the +3.3 V SOM power
• Reset push button, Reset-out LED
• On-module clocks
• Watchdog Timer (WDT)
• Serial console interface at UART CMOS levels
• Low power mode with fast wake-up times
• Depending on the design, can provide necessary power supply voltages (+5 V, +3.3 V, +1.5 V for power-optimized SOM operation) from external sources through dedicated pads on the breadboard.

The company can provide Emcraft uClinux BSP to run Linux on the device, or Libero SoC software toolset for those who want/need to run RTOS (FreeRTOS, SAFERTOS and Micrium uc/OS-III), or bare metal applications on the kit. Emcraft has just released a demo for those who want to try out the later. Microsemi also provides getting started guides, hardware manuals, hardware design files (schematics and BoM) for the baseboard, and application notes on SmartFusion2 Starter Kit page.

This development kit (SF2-STARTER-KIT-ES) includes M2S-SOM SmartFusion2 system-on-module, SOM-BSB-EXT SmartFusion2 baseboard, a FlashPro4 JTAG programmer, a USB 2.0 A male to mini-B Y-cable for UART/power interface (up to 1A) to PC, a USB 2.0 A male to mini-B cable for connection of SmartFusion2 to PC in USB device (“gadget”) mode, a Mini-B to USB 2.0 A female cable for connection of USB devices to SmartFusion2, an Ethernet cable, a USB WiFi module, and a leather case. It can be bought for $299 online via Avnet Memec and Digi-Key, or via Microsemi’s local distributors.

Microsemi and Emcraft recently organized a “SmartFusion2 Starter Kit” webinar where they gave an overview of SmartFusion2 SoC and the starter kit, and demoed USB Wi-Fi, USB OTG, uClinux development and 0.5 second boot to uClinux prompt. If you are interested, you can now watch the webinar recording (The webcast does not work in Linux, only Windows).

Back in November, I came across the Gizmo Explorer Kit, an embedded development platform based on AMD G-Series G-T40E dual core APU that includes the development board itself (Gizmo Board), two expansion I/O boards, Sage SmartProbe JTAG development tool, some accessories such as cables and power supply, and a DVD with the documentation and SDK.

Gizmo Explorer Kit: Gizmo Board, Explorer Board, Smartprobe and Other Accessories

Today, Sage Electronic, Texas Multicore Technologies, and Viosoft officially launched GizmoSphere community that aims at “fostering innovation and development for x86-based embedded Accelerated Processing Units (APUs), and driving and enabling technology projects of interest to independent developers with a focus on stimulating and encouraging innovation for existing and new applications that leverage APUs”. To help with this initiative, they also produce the Gizmo Board, and corresponding Gizmo Explorer Kit, a development board that boots with coreboot, and can run a variety of operating systems such as Android, Linux, Windows, and other RTOS. You can refer to my previous post for a complete description of the Gizmo Explorer Kit.The Gizmo board is not available for purchase directly, but the Gizmo Explorer Kit is available for $199. At the moment you can only order by email, but the company says it will eventually be sold via distributors.

The video below shows how to assemble the Gizmo Explorer Kit, and boot it for the first time.

Steven Rostedt, working at Red Hat, talks about Real-Time Linux at the Embedded Linux Conference Europe, in Spain on November 6, 2012.

Abstract:

The real-time patch (which provides CONFIG_PREEMPT_RT), has been around since 2005. Started by Ingo Molnar and maintained by Thomas Gleixner and several others, it has grown from a hobby RTOS into a very serious contender. Several distributions (Red Hat, SuSE, Debian, Ubuntu) supply a kernel version that includes this patch. The embedded world has started adding the -rt patch to their own devices that they ship. But do the embedded developers understand what the -rt patch supplies? Programming for real time, and especially when writing kernel code requires special knowledge to avoid real time traps. This talk will explain what the real time patch provides and special programming tips that will ensure embedded developers will get the best from their devices.

Real-Time Linux Option in Make menuconfig: “Fully Preemptible Kernel (RT)”

He goes through the following key points during the presentation:

• Real-time OS definition – Deterministic, does not mean fast (but still nice), meet deadlines.
• Goal of PREEMP_RT – 100% Preemptible kernel and quick reaction
• Different levels of preemption in Linux:
  • No preemption – Do as most possible with as little scheduling overhead. Use for server in Linux 2.4
  • Voluntary preemption – Schedule only at “preemption points”
  • Preemptible Kernel – CONFIG_PREEMPT. Preempt anywhere except within spin_locks
  • Preemptible Kernel (Basic RT) – For debugging, it will most probably go away…
  • Fully Preemptible Kernel – PREEMPT_RT_FULL. Preempts everywhere except from preempt_disable and interrupts disabled.
• Details of PREEMPT_RT in the Linux kernel – priorities, spin_locks, interrupts, threaded interrupts, etc…

You can also download the slides for this tutorial/presentation. You may also want to access the source code via the Git repo, or get the PREEMPT_RT patches at http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/projects/rt/. Full details cane be found on the Real-Time Linux Wiki.