Lineo Solutions Inc. (Japan) has released a hardware/software evaluation kit for Renesas Technology's H8S integrated microcontroller which includes a port of uBooster, Lineo's small footprint “Linux-like” real-time operating system (RTOS), running on an H8S-based reference board. The kit targets outdoor applications requiring extreme temperature operation, and other networking applications.

(Click for larger view of Lineo H8S reference board)

Lineo says its uBooster RTOS is a Linux-like embedded operating system that provides hard-real-time performance and a tiny memory footprint of just 256KB to 2MB. It features a POSIX interface, to support a variety of free software applications, high-speed boot, and TCP/IP network capability. Drivers and debugging environment are included in the kit.

Renesas's HS8 is a system-on-chip (SoC) targeting printers, scanners and fax machines, network systems like high-speed buffer products for content download from the Internet, and low-end multimedia and handheld devices.

Lineo lists the following features for its uBooster:

• One-chip microcomputer operation to drive maximum CPU capacity
  • Provides equivalent environment to Linux
  • Enables “Kernel + Application” operation with built-in flash memory capacity
• Support MMU-less systems with 256 KB to 2 MB (approx.) footprint size
• POSIX-Compliant interface
  • Availability of ample GPL resources
• Hard real-time support
  • POSIX-compliant pthread interface
• TCP/IP implementation-standard (embedded specific original TCP/IP stack)
  • Supports PPPd, TELNETd, FTPd, httpd, SMTP
• VFAT Support
• WAN interface driver support (For DoPa, Air-H, P-in, @FreeD, and CF Type)

Lineo lists the following features for its uBooster Starter Package for H8S:

• Board Development Kit: kernel resource, toolchain and other
• Reference Board System:
  • Platform board: supports JTAG, ROM-ICE and other debugging environments
  • Solution Board: LAN, CompactFlash, serial, and other interfaces
• The “Solution Board” (measuring 90x60mm, business-card size) is available independently for OEM use

Lineo lists the following features for its H8S reference board:

• CPU: H8S/2339F 25MHz
• Memory
  • RAM/MPU built-in SRAM: 32KB, external SRAM: 1MB
  • ROM/built-in FROM: 384KB, external FROM: 2MB
  • EEPROM: 8Kbit (I2C bus)
• RTC: S-3530A (I2C bus)
• 3 RS-232C ports
• AD converter: 1 channel, 0-5V
• Digital I/O: 4 in / 4 out
• CompactFlash Type II slot
• 10Base-T Ethernet port
• I2C bus
• LCD interface: 16 digits x 2 lines LCD display
• Expansion bus: H8S extended bus
• ROM-ICE and H-UDI connector
• Power source: +5V +/- 5%

“While there is no doubt that the one-chip microcomputer should take a vital and enormous role in realizing the ubiquitous network age, it is also true that there will be many applications that find difficulty in overcoming the hardware resource limitation of one-chip microcomputer with Linux,” said Yoshinobu Ushiyama, president and CEO of Lineo. “In order to provide practical solutions to overcome such situations, we had been developing 'Lineo uBooster', a POSIX compliant micro RT kernel.”

“Network connectivity in the open air environment is becoming increasingly essential, and many of the outdoor installed devices, including network connective sensors and security/emergency monitoring devices, [must] be operable in severe temperatures ranging from minus 20 degrees centigrade to 80 degrees centigrade. In such cases, the use of one-chip microcomputer with temperature-guaranteed RAM and POSIX compliant micro real-time kernel solutions that have high affinity with Linux is very much awaited,” said Takafumi Matsunaga, general manager, MCU business unit.

 
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