[Updated Jan. 8, 2003] Transmeta Corporation this week announced an embedded processor family based on its Crusoe processor technology. The new family, dubbed “Crusoe Special Embedded (SE) processors” (Crusoe SE), target a wide range of embedded applications, including industrial automation, scientific instrumentation, retail kiosks, point-of-sale terminals, automotive infotainment, process… control, and home automation systems.

According to Dr. Matthew R. Perry, Transmeta president and CEO, “the new Crusoe SE processors meet a growing requirement for combining x86-compatibility, high performance, power efficiency, low heat dissipation and chipset integration to create compact, passively cooled embedded systems.”

Crusoe SE processors use LongRun, an advanced power management technology, to dynamically optimize processor frequency and voltage while monitoring chip temperature, keeping power use and heat at minimum levels. The processors are designed and tested for long-term use in harsh environments, where a chip's temperature can reach as high as 100 degrees C, and future versions will support even wider temperature ranges, according to company sources.

Here is a summary of key Crusoe SE features . . .

• Processor speeds currently include 667 MHz, 800 MHz and 933 MHz
  
• Each processor available in a standard or low power version
  
• LongRun power and thermal management maximizes embedded system performance while reducing power consumption and heat dissipation, enabling fanless designs
  
• Upgraded Code Morphing Software (CMS) maximizes real-time performance while maintaining x86 compatibility
  
• Integrated Northbridge
  
• Extended availability program supports long-term embedded product life cycles

In support of the new Crusoe SE processors, Transmeta has also launched an Embedded Partners Program for leading BIOS/firmware companies, embedded operating system companies, and silicon component suppliers committed to supporting customers developing efficient embedded designs based on the new processor family.

In particular, Linux support for the SE processors will be offered by Insyde Software, LynuxWorks, MontaVista Software, and Red Hat. In October, Transmeta announced a partnership with embedded Linux vendor MontaVista Software for Linux OS support for its processors.

Transmeta, the employer of Linux founder Linus Torvalds, has consistently made Linux support a key aspect of their product offerings.

According to Tom Lee, Transmeta's director of embedded business development, the company is in the process of developing specialized versions of the code morphing software (CMS) that defines the Crusoe processor's instruction set and allows it to emulate x86 instructions, which will “alter the personality” in a manner that will “improve the real-time performance capabilities of the product.” More highly integrated embedded processors based on Crusoe technology which would compete more directly with system-on-chip processors like Intel's XScale and Motorola and IBM's PowerPCs are also being considered, but the roadmap for such devices is “unclear right now,” Lee said.

The new Crusoe SE processors are available immediately. Pricing for the 667 MHz Crusoe SE is under $50, in volume.

 
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