Configurable Systems to match your application
We have developed a validated methodology for hardware / software co-design. Based on this methodology we can provide configurable Applications Processors / microcontrollers (MCU) running a full GNU/Linux software stack integrated into a pre-validated system platform where hardware and software can be customized for your application.
Field-Programmable Gate-Arrays (FPGA) are the foundation technology behind these Configurable Systems. They offer additional degrees of freedom for cost and performance optimizations, give you the flexibility to perform changes throughout your product's life cycle and can protect you from device obsolescence.
Opening Up Configurable Systems Design
Implementing digital logic inside Field-Programmable Gate-Array (FPGA) devices is well established. However, when it comes to Configurable Systems design including hardware, FPGA design, operating system and software it is more than an FPGA board and a free download from kernel.org:
Without a proper development toolchain, iterating between cross-compilation and debugging can be very time-consuming. Programmable Systems design almost always means hunting bugs right at the border between hardware and software. It may also require retargetting the software stack to another target processor.
Implementing reliable kernel modules for those custom peripherals must go hand in hand with picking appropriate FPGA IP cores for processing and connectivity functionality. At the lower levels this includes instantiating IP cores from the FPGA design suites and determining correct kernel memory-maps.
It requires applications processor design and implementing the applications processor as a System-On-Chip inside a programmable device. Without a proper board architecture system-level control of wakeup and reconfiguration of the FPGA will not work. Without proper hardware / software partitioning the applications processor will be suboptimal in terms of cost and performance.
Connectivity reaches from Phy-level all the way up to protocol level. In case of timing critical buses like CAN it requires parallel processing under timing constraints. In case of networked devices, this means implementing Internet security.
To tackle the inherent risks and costs associated with FPGA-based system-on-chip design and hardware / software integration Missing Link Electronics has developed an integrated solution platform. As a result, Missing Link Electronics is opening up Configurable Systems design for companies who do not specialize in embedded and FPGA technology and rather want to focus on their market's applications.
Platform Technology
The platform technology from Missing Link Electronics is hardware-agnostic and suitable for a wide variety of programmable devices from many FPGA vendors. The MLE platform technology comprises standard and customizable I/O connectivity, an extendable Applications Processor / microcontroller (MCU) architecture, a full Linux operating system, and a GNU/Linux application software stack, all fully integrated and tested - i. e. application-ready.
The "Soft" Hardware technology on the so-called Software-Defined Printed Circuit Board (TM) enables programmability at all layers, including the I/O connectivity layer and the applications processor layer. At the same time, parallel processing can be implemented more efficiently starting from data processing inside the massively parallel compute fabric of today's FPGA devices all the way up to running multiple processes in the multi-user, multi-tasking GNU/Linux system.
This GNU/Linux system comprises a full Linux 2.6 kernel, customized by Missing Link Electronics to support the relevant peripheral devices, plus an application software stack of many hundred Open Source software packages.
The result is a unique combination which closely resembles a full single-board Linux workstation - running inside a programmable device. This enables the design of very compact, power- and cost-efficient embedded electronic systems.