Austin, Tex. — Freescale Semiconductor and Tundra Semiconductor Corp. (Ottawa, Ontario) have introduced a development platform that combines Freescale's multi-core MSC8144 programmable digital signal processors (DSPs) with Tundra's low-power Tsi578 Serial RapidIO (sRIO) switch. The platform leverages Serial RapidIO interconnect technology, using Tundra's Tsi578 switch to cluster four Freescale MSC8144 multi-core DSPs in an AMC single-width form factor.

Tundra and Freescale created the solution to address interconnect bandwidth requirements of up to 10 Gbits/s between on-board components in key applications such as wireless base stations, radio network controllers, media gateways, video conferencing and radar signal processing. These processing-intensive applications require high-performance DSPs and the high throughput, low latency characteristics of a RapidIO solution, said the companies.

The Tsi578 switch is well suited to interconnect multiple Freescale MSC8144 multi-core DSPs on a single channel card that allows base station and media gateway manufacturers to achieve optimal performance while spanning a wide range of air interfaces. Interoperability between the two products has already been tested in Tundra labs. The Tsi578 has also passed interoperability testing to DIL-3 certification by RIOLAB.

The Tsi578 switch enables low latency RapidIO interconnect capabilities at up to 10 Gbits/s, and Freescale's MSC8144 multi-core DSP offers up to 10 Gbits/s per sRIO port. This platform can be used in standalone mode within MicroTCA and ATCA systems, or alongside Tundra's recently announced Tsi578 Serial RapidIO Development Platform.

The MSC8144 combines four StarCore DSP cores at up to 1 GHz each and delivers high performance, equivalent to a 4-GHz single-core DSP. The device integrates a large embedded memory, enabling higher throughput to memories than external DDR while reducing chip count and bill of materials (BOM), said Freescale. The part leverages dual RISC QUICCEngine technology at 400 MHz to offload networking protocols, and it offers high speed interfaces such as the x4 Serial RapidIO and dual SGMII Gigabit Ethernet interfaces.

Tundra will demonstrate its line of System Interconnect products at the Freescale Technology Forum in Orlando, Florida, June 25-28.

Product information: Tsi578, MSC8144 multi-core DSPs, and Tundra Tsi578 and Freescale MSC8144 AMC product features

Freescale Semiconductor, www.freescale.com
Tundra Semiconductor, www.tundra.com