Product category:
Embedded Software and Operating Systems
News Release from: Express Logic | Subject: ThreadX Microcontroller Edition
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 29 August 2007
RTOS delivers low-overhead operations
ThreadX/MCU is a 16bit edition of Express Logic's 32bit ThreadX RTOS and is available for Microchip's 16bit PIC24 MCUs and dsPIC30/33 DSCs.
Express Logic has released ThreadX Microcontroller Edition for the 16bit PIC24 microcontrollers (MCUs) and dsPIC digital signal controllers (DSCs) from Microchip Technology Until now, ThreadX has been available only for 32bit processors and DSPs
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 8 Mar 2005 at 8.00am (UK)
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Through a co-operative effort with Microchip, Express Logic has created ThreadX MCU Edition (ThreadX/MCU), to support Microchip's PIC24 MCU and dsPIC DSC families.
ThreadX/MCU is a 16bit edition of Express Logic's 32bit ThreadX RTOS and is available for Microchip's 16bit PIC24 MCUs and dsPIC30/33 DSCs.
ThreadX/MCU provides full pre-emptive scheduling, interrupt management, message passing, thread synchronisation, resource locking, event management and timer control; and supports up to 10 threads, queues, timers, mutexes, event flag groups, block pools and byte pools.
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ThreadX/MCU is fully upward-compatible with Express Logic's ThreadX RTOS, employed in over 450 million electronic products based on 32bit processors.
Like ThreadX, ThreadX/MCU is royalty-free, making it ideal for high-volume applications in real-time motor control, speech/audio, and wireless networking targeted by Microchip's PIC24 MCUs and dsPIC DSCs.
ThreadX/MCU is designed to reside in an extremely small memory footprint, as small as 1.6Kbyte, and to deliver low-overhead operations that execute in only 50 - 150 clock cycles, leaving more CPU cycles for the application.
"Express Logic's ThreadX is an industry leader among 32bit architectures, for many of the same applications that we target for our 16bit PIC24 MCU and dsPIC DSC product lines", noted Derek Carlson, Microchip's Vice President of Development Tools.
"ThreadX/MCU is tuned for Microchip's 16bit line, and delivers true RTOS services in a small footprint that nicely fits our customers' needs".
"We're happy to welcome Express Logic and ThreadX/MCU to the network of Microchip partners and our product ecosystem".
Microchip's PIC24 MCU and dsPIC DSC family consists of the PIC24F, PIC24H, dsPIC30, and dsPIC33, all 16bit controllers with a powerful architecture, flexible memory technologies and easy to use development tools.
Microchip provides complete technical documentation and post design-in support through a global sales and distribution network, providing developers with the confidence that their design-in questions will be met.
ThreadX/MCU is designed to work with Microchip's MPLAB development tools.
The MPLAB integrated development environment is an intuitive and productive focus for Microchip's comprehensive suite of compilers, debuggers and device programmers.
The MPLAB tools include: in-circuit debuggers; simulators with an extensive stimulus capability; C compilers, assemblers and linkers; integrated support for third-party compilers, programmers and version control systems ; demonstration boards covering many applications and devices; and a graphical peripheral initialisation tool (MPLAB VDI).
The MPLAB IDE provides kernel-awareness for the ThreadX/MCU RTOS, giving developers insight into the status and operation of their application using ThreadX/MCU.
To speed application development and reduce time to market, ThreadX/MCU is pre-configured to work with MPLAB out of the box, enabling applications using ThreadX/MCU to be built, compiled, linked and downloaded with ease.
In addition to introducing ThreadX/MCU for Microchip's 16bit controllers, Express Logic also has ported its NetX TCP/IP stack, FileX embedded file system, USBX USB host/device stack, and PEGX graphics development kit for use with ThreadX/MCU on Microchip's PIC24 MCU and dsPIC DSC family.
"Microchip has developed an impressive portfolio of 16bit MCUs and DSCs, so when we decided to extend ThreadX support into that area, Microchip was the ideal partner", commented William Lamie, President of Express Logic.
"Microchip's PIC24 MCUs and dsPIC DSC products are used in many applications that can benefit from the multithreading capabilities of ThreadX/MCU". Request a free brochure from Express Logic ...
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