Development Kit Hastens Digital Video Designs

Development Kit Hastens Digital Video Designs
www.ti.com/dvsdkpr
www.thedavincieffect.com
Based on DaVinci technology, the TMDXDPU6446-L digital-video (DV) software development kit includes the company's eXpressDSP configuration tool, Data Visualization Tool (DVT), and MontaVista's Linux, a trio promising a reduction in application-development cycles from months to weeks.

Hailed by the company as the industry's first optimized digital video configuration tool, eXpressDSP allows system integrators to feed software inputs into the DaVinci technology, which automatically integrates discrete modules and combines them within a single, executable output. Inputs include the company's video, imaging, speech, and audio codecs, custom codecs that comply with xDM algorithms, codec engine framework, DSP/BIOS, Linux, and the DSP/BIOS Link.

The DVT graphical-analysis tool provides system visibilityand supports analyzing and identifying problems by capturing and graphically displaying interactions, performing load distribution analysis, isolating bottlenecks, identifying unexpected behavior, and benchmarking application performance. Another first, this tool promises to maximize design efficiency and performance.

Lastly, the kit includes a Linux board-support package from MontaVista, optimized for DaVinci-based video applications. This is yet another first, and yet another way to speed application development.

Including the aforementioned tools and features, introductory pricing for the kit is $6,995. For designers embracing unique DaVinci-based designs, the TMDXDPU6446-3L adds an emulator and Code Composer Studio version 3.2, bringing the price to $10,995.
TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INC., Dallas, TX. (800) 477-8924.
Enter 123 at www.eepn.com

Key Components

1. eXpressDSP^™ Configuration Tool This tool allows seamless integrationof off-the-shelf and custom software. By creating custom bundles of codes for specific applications, the configuration technology makes it easy to reuse code and gives developers time to focus their engineering efforts on adding features and value to their products.
2. Data Visualization Tool
   The DVT (shown above) is a comprehensive system-level graphical analysis tool that provides unprecedented visibility into the system design, enabling developers to identify and solve problems faster to achieve maximum performance. This tool is noninvasive and aids in analyzing and identifying problems by capturing and graphically displaying:
   • system interaction
   • load distribution
   • bottlenecks in data throughput
   • other types of behavior
   As the tasks run on both the DSP and ARM cores of the company's TMS320DM644x processors, the DVT captures and displays the data on a single timeline allowing developers a complete system view of their application for the first time, eliminating the tedious process of manually collecting and comparing data on each core before optimization can begin.
3. MontaVista's Linux Operating System (OS) This OS is a proven, system-tested-Linux board support package optimized for digital video applications and the TMS320DM644x processors. Developers using the platform will license and receive support for the MontaVista kernel and DevRocket integrated development environment directly from TI, giving access to the industry's vast store of Linuxbased resources.

See associated figure 1

See associated figure 2