CoWare has announced that the latest version of its electronic system-level (ESL) product supports chipset, handset, and software development for the Open Handset Alliance's Android platform. The Android-ready CoWare ESL 2.0 offers virtual hardware platforms and tools for designing sub-systems, processors, DSPs, and… software.

According to CoWare, complex development environments such as the Android mobile phone specification challenge traditional development methods that are based on register transfer level (RTL) for hardware design and prototype boards for software development. CoWare ESL 2.0 is said to streamline the process with a software-driven design approach that uses virtual hardware platforms.

CoWare ESL 2.0 processor design flow

CoWare ESL is said to support the design of programmable accelerators, high-end processor cores, and application sub-systems. Its various virtual hardware platforms can help optimize and validate performance, says CoWare, and handle system-level debugging of hardware required during the design and verification of multi-core chipsets and handsets. CoWare also claims its platforms are easier to deploy and more productive than prototype boards, and thus accelerate software development.

CoWare ESL 2.0 software design diagram

Stated Marc Serughetti, VP of marketing and business development for CoWare, “With the introduction of Android as an open platform, differentiation can be reached through better hardware architecture design and faster software development, system integration and test, but a new system level development approach is required.”

In addition to supporting the Android SDK, CoWare touts support for Microsoft Windows CE, Symbian OS, Wind River Linux, and MontaVista Linux.

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