Embedded Processor Watch

Editor: Tom Halfhill

In This Issue:

• ARC Expands DSP Capabilities
• Nintendo to Battle Sony and Sega With PowerPC
• Industry Resources: Diefendorff Headlines Vail Workshop
• New Embedded IC Announcements

ARC Expands DSP Capabilities

At the recent Embedded Processor Forum, microprocessor IP vendor ARC Cores announced the release of version 3.0 of its customer-configurable 32-bit processor core. ARC spokesman James Hakewill described the new core's expanded DSP capabilities, reduced power consumption, and speeds of up to 250 MHz for the basic core (without cache or DSP extensions) in 0.25-micron technology.

Like its predecessors, the V3 core is sold in VHDL form. ARC's customers (more than 30 at last count) customize the VHDL code for their needs. The register file, caches, and on-chip memories can be implemented to fit a specific application. Even the instruction set itself can be changed, if needed. Once the design is set, the VHDL code may be synthesized to optimize for speed, die size, or power consumption.

The previous V2.1 ARC core provided basic signal-processing capabilities in the form of a 16 x 16-bit multiply-accumulate block, scratchpad RAM, zero-overhead loops, and a few special-purpose instructions (min/max, normalize, swap, and barrel shift). The V3 core expands its utility for DSP applications with a more flexible MAC block and saturating add and subtract instructions.

ARC says the V3 core, configured with the DSP extensions, can perform 800 million integer operations per second -- two 16 x 16-bit multiply-accumulates per cycle at 200 MHz, faster than many dedicated DSP chips. This level of performance should help ARC achieve even more design wins by displacing traditional DSPs in applications that require signal-processing capabilities plus the flexibility of a general-purpose processor. -- P.N.G. (The full version of this article appears in the May 31 issue of Microprocessor Report.)

Nintendo to Battle Sony and Sega With PowerPC

IBM and Nintendo's billion-dollar deal for the next-generation Nintendo video-game console will breathe new life into the PowerPC. Nintendo's new DVD-based console, code-named Dolphin, is scheduled to ship before next year's holiday season -- just in time to go head-to-head with Sony's PlayStation 2000 and Sega's Dreamcast. Nintendo also has a deal with home-appliance giant Matsushita (Panasonic) to put Dolphin technology in a variety of home-entertainment and networking products.

Neither IBM nor Nintendo has released any technical information about their new PowerPC processor, code-named Gekko. As a result, it's impossible to tell how the part will stack up against the Sony/Toshiba Emotion Engine in the PlayStation 2000 (see EPW #48, 5/17/99) or the Hitachi SH7750 in the Dreamcast (see EPW #2, 6/29/98). IBM and Nintendo claim that Gekko will have 3D-graphics game performance second to none -- a goal that will be difficult to achieve, given the competition from the Sony/Toshiba and Hitachi chips.

IBM says Gekko will be heavily customized for Nintendo, operate at 400 MHz, and be built in IBM's 0.18-micron copper CMOS-8 process. Although 400 MHz is well below the capability of CMOS-8, IBM is undoubtedly being conservative to assure maximum yield and lowest cost. -- K.D. (The full version of this article appears in the May 31 issue of Microprocessor Report.)

Industry Resources: Diefendorff Headlines Vail Workshop

Keith Diefendorff, the editor in chief of Microprocessor Report, will present the keynote address at the IEEE Computer Elements Workshop in Vail, Colorado. The workshop, held June 2730, will have several presentations related to embedded computing, including talks about the next-generation Sony PlayStation, system-on-a-chip technology, and embedded DRAM. The informal atmosphere encourages interchange among system designers and architects.

The $620 fee covers workshop registration, meals, and lodging during the event. Discounts are available for IEEE members. For more information or to register, contact John Polhemus (Englewood, Colorado) at 303.781.6190 or go to http://pweb.netcom.com/~j_boney/vail99/vail99.htm.

New Embedded IC Announcements

Amazon (AMCC): a highly integrated device for OC-48c SONET and SDH traffic that performs clock recovery and synthesis, serial/parallel conversion, SONET/SDH framing, and ATM or packet-over-SONET mapping. Price: $325/1,000; production: now. Call 619.450.9333 or go to http://www.amcc.com/.

Si3000 (Silicon Laboratories): a 16-bit codec for modems, phones, and fax machines that integrates a microphone pre-amp, an analog mixer, a headphone driver, a digital volume control, and a 2-4 wire hybrid for handset support. Price: $2.35/10,000; samples: now; production: June. Call Silicon Laboratories at 512.416.8500 or go to http://www.silabs.com/.