This paper takes a look at what you can build with suitable hardware (Single Board Computer Modules) and Linux. It shows the enormous functionality and flexibility available and includes a look at some of the gadgets we have designed. These include a laser controller for nightclubs, a high–capacity digital storage unit for the telecoms industry, and a handheld computer.
ARM is the world's leading supplier of silicon IP, accounting for around half the market. The ARM7TDMI released in 1994 set off a revolution in the cellphone market. Its excellent code density shaved a significant amount of code size for Nokia, partly due to an additional 16bit instruction set which still provided 32bit registers and addressing. It's efficiency allowed a clock speed of only 13MHz even with a massive increase in functionality from the previous generation, thus reducing power consumption. From 1998, using a cellphone was no more a matter of holding a heater to your ear and talking quickly before the battery gave out.
Designing electronic products is becoming more complex as markets demand more features, higher integration and short design cycles. The traditional monolithic approach to design (which long ago ran out of steam in silicon design) is become more expensive, risky and inflexible. This paper describes the problems with the current approach to design and how a new modular method can provide significant benefits.
This is a short paper on where the next generation of ARM microprocessors are going to take us in terms of performance, integration and features. It will also address how the cost of ARM based product innovation has fallen dramatically and what companies who are looking to develop tomorrow's high tech products should be considering in terms of the ARM core options available, circuit design strategy and development tools. ARM designs technology that lies at the heart of advanced digital products, from mobile phones and digital cameras to games consoles and automotive systems.