Free Tool Speeds Development Of Embedded Aps

SoftConsole, a free software program development environment for Actel’s CoreMP7 soft 32-bit ARM7 microprocessor core, allows designers to quickly and easily create embedded system applications for the company’s single-chip, flash-based FPGAs. SoftConsole is based on the open-source Eclipse Integrated Development Environment (IDE) and the ARM7 GNU compiler and debugger. The new package seamlessly integrates with the company’s complete FPGA development tool environment, including the CoreConsole IP Deployment Platform (IDP) and Libero IDE. Users can download CoreMP7 via the CoreConsole IDP, then use SoftConsole to write and debug software programs to run on the core.

In addition to the Eclipse IDE and ARM7 compiler, SoftConsole includes a GNU debugger and simulator for CoreMP7. The tool also supports the import of memory map and drivers from Actel’s CoreConsole IDP. The tool works with the company’s FlashPro3 programmer to program and debug memory. SoftConsole support for Core8051 as well as other Actel-supported processor and microcontroller cores will be added in the future.