An IP (intellectual property) vendor in Ljubljana, Slovenia has licensed a RISC/DSP processor and several cores to a British Virgin Islands-based company specializing in TV tuner chips. Beyond Semiconductor says E3c Inc. will use its BA12 RISC/DSP processor and associated cores in ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits) targeting consumer electronics applications.

Beyond claims its BA12 processor delivers ARM9-like performance, while enjoying “complete” GNU tools support. The company also appears to have a Cortex-A8 competitor in the works.

The BA12 is described as a 32-bit RISC/DSP processor that can be configured with an MMU (memory management unit), instruction and data cache, power management unit, and timer. Also available is an “advanced” debug unit said to let programmers debug software in ROM or in RAM. Additionally, the processor is available with various peripheral cores.

Beyond's BA12 processor and various peripheral cores

For customers wishing to verify silicon designs or commence application development prior to ASIC availability, the BA12 core is available as Verilog RTL that can be synthesized in an FPGA (field-programmable gate array). Specifically, two “predefined platforms” are available as RTL, including:

• Kiwi
  • BA12 processor
  • UART 16550 serial controller
  • Debug interface controller
  • TAP controller
  • Embedded RAM/ROM memory
  • Runs eCos

• Hawk
  • BA12 processor
  • MAC 10/100/1000 Ethernet controller
  • UART 16550 serial controller
  • PCI 32 bridge controller
  • SDRAM/FLASH/SRAM memory controller
  • VGA display controller
  • GPIO controller
  • Debug interface controller
  • TAP controller
  • Runs Linux or eCos

Both platforms include Verilog test benches, simulation and synthesis scripts, software development tools for the processor, OS source code, and documentation, Beyond said.

In addition to the BA12 core, E3c has reportedly licensed Beyond's AC97, LCD, and VGA controllers.

Damjan Lampret, VP of strategic alliances for Beyond, stated, “Our technology is a good match for the consumer entertainment market.”

Availability

Beyond's BA12 processor and associated peripheral cores appear to be available for licensing now by ASIC integrators.

 
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