Micro/sys, integrated FPGA and Spartan-6 FPGAs from Xilinx
Building a Single-Board Computer with an ARM Cortex-A8 Processor

Using integrated FPGAs, manufacturers can apply a wide range of I/O configurations to single-board computers.
Increased flexibility, faster time to market, and reduced design and production costs

Xilinx Korea (CEO Heung-Sik Ahn) September 22, 2011 – Xilinx, Inc. announced that Micro/sys has created a small, low-power rugged board with the MicroBlaze™ processor subsystem and an integrated Spartan®-6 FPGA with an ARM® Cortex™-A8 processor. The Micro/sys SBC1651 commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) single-board computer (SBC) allows embedded users to implement a wide range of I/O (input/output) configurations for a variety of applications, while reducing production costs and time to market.

“Continued advancements in CPU design and FPGA technology have made it possible to integrate these two technologies into single-board computers,” said Susan Wooley, president of Micro/sys. “The combination of a Cortex-A8 processor and a Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA on a P/104-sized board represents a significant advancement in embedded board products. “Customers gain I/O flexibility with the onboard FPGA and low power, while the Cortex-A8 RISC processor enables embedded systems to build sophisticated, advanced multimedia user interfaces with extended thermal performance,” he said.

She also said, “Xilinx’s tool chain, with its flexibility to offer a wide range of choices from standalone IP cores to simple I/O for distributed-control applications, and its development-friendly design, is ideal for COTS customers with high demands for custom or proprietary I/O.” “Furthermore, the performance and innovative low-power design of the Spartan-6 FPGAs position Micro/sys ahead of the competition, delivering a 200 percent performance boost and 30 percent power reduction over similar Intel/x86 solutions. We anticipate further expansion of our FPGA and ARM processor single-board computer product portfolio with the next-generation 28nm Xilinx FPGAs.”

Micro/sys specializes in high-performance, compact, low-power industrial single-board computer (SBC) products and solutions for manufacturers who want to produce custom, off-the-shelf SBC solutions tailored to their specific needs. With a wide selection of FPGA I/O options, the new Micro/sys SBC1651 allows manufacturers to configure the board and tailor the SBC to their specific I/O requirements, meeting embedded I/O requirements in markets such as automation, medical, transportation, energy, military, and communications.

The Micro/sys SBC1651 gives users access to the Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA in a low-power, high-performance SBC featuring the i.MX515 ARM Cortex-A8 processor from Freescale Semiconductor. Matched to the latest Freescale i.MX processor series, which includes Xilinx's extensive library of I/O expansion IP modules, the SBC1651 provides maximum commercial I/O flexibility in a single-board computer. The onboard FPGA allows manufacturers to configure the board to meet specific I/O requirements, including simple I/O such as UART, DIO, and CAN, as well as higher-level functions such as DSP, Gigabit Ethernet, SATA, and dual video.

Increased I/O flexibility allows manufacturers to meet all their I/O requirements simply by reconfiguring the FPGA with a single SBC, maximizing cost efficiency in both design and production. This approach reduces the need for multiple I/O board plugs, alleviates the effort of changing hardware configurations for each manufacturing model, and allows for version integration by installing a single IP in the FPGA. Pursuing this efficiency in future designs will allow manufacturers to more easily upgrade these products, eliminating specialized integrated circuits and extending their product lifespan.

Because COTS solutions demand a high degree of customization, FPGA I/O is a welcome change for companies that previously couldn't even dream of COTS customization. Now, with access to FPGAs, Micro/Sys customers can install and upgrade their own IP, maintaining their software application differentiation strategy while also enjoying the efficiency of commercial single-board computers.

Xilinx 6 Series FPGAs
First introduced in 2009, the award-winning Xilinx 6 series FPGAs are used by a wide range of customers across applications and key end markets worldwide, including aerospace and defense, automotive, consumer, industrial, medical, scientific, and wired and wireless communications. To date, Xilinx has shipped more than 10,000 Targeted Design Platforms (TDPs), and over 30 TDPs and 70 FMC daughter cards are currently in production from Xilinx and its global ecosystem members (distribution channels and alliance programs).

Spartan-6 FPGAs are designed for cost-sensitive applications that require high-speed connectivity and low-power execution, with embedded serial transceivers, advanced power management, and a proven 45nm architecture. The Virtex®-6 FPGA family serves as the high-performance silicon foundation for Xilinx target design platforms, offering the right combination of programmability, integrated blocks for DSP, memory, and connectivity support, including high-speed transceiver performance, to meet the demanding needs of high-bandwidth, high-performance customers. (For more information, visit www.xilinx.com/products/index.htm .)

About Micro/sys, Inc.
Micro/sys has specialized in high-performance, compact, low-power industrial single-board computer products for custom manufacturers since 1976. Micro/sys, which pioneered the USB revolution in the stackable computer market, is a leading provider of host/client USB microcomputers and microcontroller boards. Micro/sys embedded computers serve manufacturers in a wide range of industries, including semiconductor processing, medical, military, mail processing, pharmaceutical, industrial marking, process control, and many others. (For more information, visit www.embeddedsys.com .)

About Xilinx Inc.
Xilinx is the world's leading provider of programmable platforms. For more information about Xilinx, please visit www.xilinx.com .