In the search for easier ways to develop complex real-time software, many designers turn to FreeRTOS—a scalable, easy-to-use real-time kernel designed for small, low-power embedded systems. Cadence Design Systems recently announced that the FreeRTOS operating system (OS) would now be available for its Tensilica processors and digital signal processors (DSPs).
FreeRTOS provides specific support for Internet of Things (IoT) applications, which is the province for the Tensilica processors. The OS has minimal ROM, RAM, and processing overhead and is relatively simple—the RTOS kernel’s core employs just three C files. A typical RTOS kernel binary image requires only 4 to 9 kB, and the platform contains a pre-configured example for each port to ease setup.
Cadence’s offerings include the Tensilica Fusion DSP, a scalable solution that can be designed into SoCs for wearable activity monitoring, indoor navigation, context-aware sensor fusion, secure local wireless connectivity, face trigger, voice trigger, and voice recognition. It combines a 32-bit Xtensa control processor with DSP features and flexible algorithm-specific acceleration for a more programmable approach.