Design Automation


IDE supporting RISC-V instruction set architecture

19 July 2017 Design Automation

Microsemi announced the release of its SoftConsole version 5.1, the world’s first available Windows-hosted Eclipse integrated development environment (IDE) for designs utilising RISC-V open instruction set architectures such as RV32I. SoftConsole is Microsemi’s free software development environment enabling rapid production of C and C++ programming language designs for its field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

SoftConsole v5.1, a GNU compiler collection (GCC), now supports both Windows and Linux for RISC-V designs and can be used for RV32I implementations including extensions to the baseline RV32I architecture such as M,A,F,D,G and C. Offering low power and an open architecture, it supports Microsemi’s PolarFire, RTG4, SmartFusion2 and IGLOO2 FPGA-based RISC-V soft CPUs as well as the HiFive1 Arduino kit from SiFive, a fabless semiconductor company that produces computer chips based on the RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA). SoftConsole v5.1 is ideal for developing a wide variety of applications within the aerospace and defence, communications, data centre and industrial markets.

RISC-V, an ISA which is now a standard open architecture under the governance of the RISC-V Foundation, offers numerous benefits, including enabling the open source community to test and improve cores at a faster pace than closed ISAs. As the RISC-V intellectual property (IP) core is not encrypted, it can be used to ensure trust and certifications not possible with closed architectures. Portability is another benefit of the technology. For example, designers can begin development with Microsemi’s RISC-V core in its FPGAs and then move to an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) royalty-free.

For more information contact ASIC Design Services, +27 (0)11 315 8316, [email protected], www.asic.co.za



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