NXP Semiconductors has expanded its MCUXpresso toolset with a completely new integrated development environment (IDE) that expands support for open source projects, streamlined access to specialized middleware, and hardware abstraction.

NXP Semiconductors announced on the 14th that it has released a new MCUXpresso tool set.

The new toolset provides developers with improved scalability, usability, and portability, making it easier and faster to develop complex embedded applications.

The new MCUXpresso toolset extends existing capabilities with a new integrated development environment (IDE) product.

This includes a custom MCUXpresso extension for Microsoft’s Visual Studio Code, open-source-based hardware abstraction for code reuse, simplified partner code delivery using Open-CMSIS-Packs, and a new Application Launch Pad for easy, interactive access to NXP’s application software and documentation.

Developer experience is the foundation for efficient, fast, and innovative product development. The flexibility to choose the software and tools that best fit your project benefits both new and experienced developers. NXP’s new MCUXpresso toolset invests in the open source community to support rapid development and time-to-market, while also making it easier for NXP partners to provide specialized software to developers. This gives software developers the choice they need to innovate quickly.

“Today’s developers want choice and open source options, not being locked into proprietary systems,” said Charles Dachs, vice president and general manager, Industrial and IoT Edge, NXP. “The new MCUXpresso toolset gives developers more flexibility and control over their development process by providing the tools and resources they need to accelerate software development. By expanding access to the open source community and simplifying the integration of expert partner software, we are enabling developers to drive innovation, scale projects, get complex products to market faster, and easily migrate across NXP devices and platforms.”

The new MCUXpresso toolset includes the newly released MCUXpresso for VS Code for fast, responsive source code editing. The new IDE includes build systems favored by open source projects like Zephyr and Matter, while maintaining support for developers using the existing MCUXpresso SDK. This provides greater flexibility by expanding the choice of build systems and provides access to existing IDE options including MCUXpresso IDE, IAR Embedded Workbench, and Arm Keil development tools.

Additionally, the new MCUXpresso toolset provides a one-stop-shop for embedded ecosystem integration.

The toolset provides a hardware abstraction layer (HAL) that simplifies code reuse and portability across NXP’s broad microcontroller (MCU) portfolio.

The open-CMSIS-pack for code delivery is supported by all IDEs within the MCUXpresso ecosystem. As a result, ecosystem partners can significantly simplify the product evaluation and integration process for their customers, and developers can easily browse existing software collections.

Meanwhile, the new Application Launchpad acts as a central repository for application design resources, including application software packs, application notes, and application code examples, and provides an intuitive portal for discovering available software.