Embedded system designers recognise the benefits of combining digital signal processor (DSP) performance with microcontroller (MCU) functionality on a single processor.
The Blackfin processors from Analog Devices were designed from the ground up to perform both functions equally well. With 16-bit DSP support, a 32-bit RISC instruction set, and newly integrated peripherals including a CAN controller and a high-performance Ethernet MAC, Blackfin processors provide designers who want to minimise overall system costs a nice alternative without sacrificing performance.
The most recently-announced ADSP-BF537/6/4 Blackfin processors provide new connectivity and extended temperature ranges, making them ideal choices for distributive and sophisticated automotive and industrial applications. With bus systems like Ethernet and CAN combined on the same product, these Blackfin products can be used in a broad range of automotive and factory automation systems for impressive efficiency gain, providing completely new options for system designers. Each device is ideally suited for a broad range of industrial, instrumentation, and automotive applications - allowing for scalability based upon the required network bandwidth and mix of control, plus signal processing needed in the end product.
The ADSP-BF537 is the higher performance series member, with more embedded memory enabling higher throughput needs for embedded applications such as industrial-environment-based distributed control/factory automation applications. The ADSP-BF536 offers exceptional performance and is designed for low-cost connected devices such as remote monitoring devices, VoIP, and biometrics/ security applications. The lower cost ADSP-BF534 is offered without the on-chip Ethernet MAC and targets performance control and automotive applications requiring wider temperature ranges (-40 to 125°C) and a CAN interface.
Support and development tools
Blackfin processors are an ideal partner for many third party products. A wide range of third party OS and network support is now available, including support from Quadros, Unicoi, Accelerated Technologies, Express Logic, and GreenHills. Analog Devices also recently released VisualDSP++ 4.0, which includes a TCP/IP stack as well as device drivers and system services for the ADSP-BF533/2/1 and the ADSP-BF537/6/4 processors. And, for those designers interested in Linux support, uClinux support is also provided at www.blackfin.uclinux.org.
For evaluation purposes, Analog Devices offers the ADSP-BF537 EZ-KIT Lite. This kit provides designers with a cost-effective method for initial evaluation of the ADSP-BF534/6/7 family of processors. This evaluation board is designed to be used in conjunction with VisualDSP++ as a complete code development and debug system and is based on the ADSP-BF537 embedded processor.
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