ARM Supercharges MCU Market with High Performance Cortex-M7 Processor
September 23 2014 - 7:01PM
Business Wire
ARM® Cortex®-M7 processor brings high performance and efficient
digital signal processing to enable devices featuring superior
embedded intelligence across the industrial, infrastructure and
domestic sectors.
ARM has unveiled a new 32-bit Cortex-M processor that delivers
double the compute and digital signal processing (DSP) capability
of today’s most powerful ARM-based MCUs. The ARM Cortex-M7 is
targeted at high-end embedded applications used in next generation
vehicles, connected devices, and smart homes and factories. Early
licensees of the Cortex-M7 processor include Atmel, Freescale and
ST Microelectronics.
“The addition of the Cortex-M7 processor to the Cortex-M series
allows ARM and its partners to offer the most scalable and
software-compatible solutions possible for the connected world,”
said Noel Hurley, general manager, CPU group, ARM. “The versatility
and new memory features of the Cortex-M7 enable more powerful,
smarter and reliable microcontrollers that can be used across a
multitude of embedded applications.”
The Cortex-M7 achieves an impressive 5 CoreMark/MHz1. This
performance allows the Cortex-M7 to deliver a combination of high
performance and digital signal control functionality that will
enable MCU silicon manufacturers to target highly demanding
embedded applications while keeping development costs low. Expected
uses of Cortex-M7 include smart control systems employed in a range
of applications such as motor control, industrial automation,
advanced audio, image processing, a variety of connected vehicle
applications and other Internet of Things (IoT) uses.
Enabling faster processing of audio and image data and voice
recognition, the benefits delivered by the Cortex-M7 processor will
be immediately apparent to users. The core also provides the same
C-friendly programmer's model and is binary compatible with
existing Cortex-M processors. Ecosystem and software compatibility
enables simple migration from any existing Cortex-M core to the new
Cortex-M7. System designers can therefore take advantage of
extensive code reuse which in turn offers lower development and
maintenance costs.
In 2013, ARM’s partners shipped some 3 billion ARM-based
microcontrollers, making it the industry-leader in its class.
ARM Cortex-M7 features:
- Six stage, superscalar pipeline
delivering 2000 Coremarks at 400MHz in a 40LP process
- AXI interconnect (supports 64-bit
transfer) and fully integrated optional caches for instruction and
data allowing efficient access to large external memories and
powerful peripherals
- Tightly coupled memory interfaces for
rapid, real-time response
- Extensive implementation
configurability to enable a wide range of cost and performance
points to be targeted
- Optional full instruction and data
trace via the Embedded Trace Macrocell enabling greater system
visibility
- An optional safety package and built-in
fault detection features contribute toward ASIL D and SIL 3
compliance, meaning Cortex-M7 is the perfect choice for companies
targeting safety-related markets including automotive, industrial,
transport and medical applications
- Widest third-party tools, RTOS,
middleware support of any architecture, provided by the ARM
Connected Community of complementary partner companies.
Partner quotes:
“The Cortex-M7 is well positioned between Atmel’s Cortex-M based
MCUs and Cortex-A based MPUs enabling Atmel to offer an even
greater range of processing solutions,” said Reza Kazerounian,
senior vice president and general manager, microcontroller business
unit, Atmel. “Customers using the Cortex-M-based MCU will be able
to scale up performance and system functionality, while keeping the
Cortex-M class ease- of-use and maximizing software reuse. We see
the ARM Cortex-M7 addressing high-growth markets like IoT and
wearables, as well as automotive and industrial applications that
can leverage its performance and power efficiency.”
“Freescale Cortex-M7-based solutions dramatically extend MCU
performance, opening new opportunities for our business,” said
Geoff Lees, senior vice president and general manager, MCU group,
Freescale. “Our solutions will enable significant innovation and
system-level efficiency in areas such as motor control, industrial
automation and power conversion. These are rapidly growing markets
where the high performance of the Cortex-M7 core eliminates the
need for additional DSPs and microcontrollers.”
“Offering customers more intelligence and processing power on
our STM32 microcontrollers is a major objective for ST, and the
Cortex-M7 delivers that impressively,” said Daniel Colonna,
microcontrollers marketing director, STMicroelectronics. “The
Cortex-M7 core supports upwardly-scalable compatibility with our
existing wide range of 500 Cortex-M STM32 microcontrollers,
associated tools and software ecosystem, allowing developers to
rapidly adopt our next-generation STM32 Cortex-M7-based MCUs.”
Supporting ARM technology:
- The Cortex-M7 processor is ideally
suited for implementation using the ARM Artisan® 7-track SC7 Ultra
High Density Standard Cell Library and Power Management Kit
(PMK)
- The Cortex Microcontroller Software
Interface Standard (CMSIS) contains core support, optimized DSP
library, and RTOS kernel reference implementation for the Cortex-M7
processor. CMSIS-Pack ensures rapid device coverage in tools with a
delivery mechanism for software components, device parameters and
evaluation boards
- The Cortex-M7 processor is fully
supported from launch by the ARM Keil® microcontroller development
kit (MDK), which integrates the ARM compilation tools with the Keil
µVision IDE and debugger. Widely acknowledged as the world's most
popular development environment for microcontrollers, MDK together
with the ULINK family of debug adapters now supports the new
features available in the Cortex-M7 processor
- Together with CMSIS and MDK, the
Versatile Express Cortex-M Prototyping System is an ideal platform
for evaluation of Cortex-M7 processor based designs
- By utilizing these tools, ARM Partners
can take advantage of a tightly coupled application development
environment to rapidly realize the performance and low-power
features of the Cortex-M7 processor
- The processor is also supported by
third-party tool, software and RTOS vendors including Express
Logic, FreeRTOS, IAR Systems, Atollic, DSP Concepts, Mentor
Graphics, Micrium and SEGGER.
About ARM:
ARM is at the heart of the world’s most advanced digital
products. Our technology enables the creation of new markets and
transformation of industries and society. We design scalable,
energy efficient-processors and related technologies to deliver the
intelligence in applications ranging from sensors to servers,
including smartphones, tablets, enterprise infrastructure and the
Internet of Things.
Our innovative technology is licensed by ARM Partners who have
shipped more than 50 billion Systems on Chip (SoCs) containing our
intellectual property since the company began in 1990. Together
with our Connected Community, we are breaking down barriers to
innovation for developers, designers and engineers, ensuring a
fast, reliable route to market for leading electronics companies.
Learn more and join the conversation at
http://community.arm.com.
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1 CoreMark 1.0 : IAR Embedded Workbench v7.30.1 --endian=little
--cpu=Cortex-M7 -e -Ohs --use_c++_inline --no_size_constraints /
Code in TCM - Data in TCM
ARMAndy Winstanley +44 1223 405244/+44 7788 249712Head of
corporate PRandy.winstanley@arm.com
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