Embedded moves to multicore By Warren Webb
Although multicore processors have had a limited role in the embedded landscape for years, today’s performance, power, and form factor requirements compel designers to consider their use on almost every new project.
Whether you design or purchase the CPU board to power your next embedded project, the processor architecture and integrated features are important elements in the selection process. This architecture will become the heart of the new embed- ded system and will influence system performance, component count, future updates, I/O configuration, and over- all power dissipation. Fueled by recent announcements of new silicon archi- tectures targeting long-life embedded applications, multicore processors have moved into the spotlight and now offer designers a wide range of advantages over their single-core counterparts.
One of the prime reasons to incorporate multicore is to boost performance through parallel processing. Developers have access to multiple techniques to enable this performance gain, including sym- metric or asymmetric multiprocessing
and virtualization. In the symmetric case, a single operating system allocates threads or tasks across the available cores while managing common memory and hardware resources. In contrast, asym- metric multiprocessing allows each core to run independent software so that a single system can easily combine real-time, deterministic tasks with a graphical user interface. With virtualiza- tion, a hypervisor isolates and allocates system resources between the operating environments so that real-time, general- purpose, and legacy software can be readily integrated in a multicore system.
Multicore shrinks embedded designs
By combining several functions into a single package, multicore-based systems often result in fewer overall components and lower recurring costs. For example, the latest embedded multicore offerings
8 | April 2011 Embedded Computing Design
combine a graphics processor with one or more general-purpose processors. This not only eliminates the separate display processor, but also simplifies and speeds up graphics processing by sharing inter- nal cache and memory with the CPU cores. Designers can also use additional cores to lower the component count by integrating external DSP or FPGA units dedicated to signal processing or spe- cialty functions. Along with this reduced package count, multicore systems benefit from lower power dissipation and smaller form factors. Multicore embedded system designers may be able to reduce or eliminate the cooling fan, while portable devices can benefit from both a smaller battery and enclosure.
At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, Intel announced its 2nd Generation Core family based on 32nm process tech- nology, which included seven multicore
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Silicon | Multicore CPUs, DSPs, GPUs
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