SMX Support

Micro Digital, Inc. has announced SMX support for the Turbo186 microprocessor core from VAutomation. The 24-bit address mode is fully supported, giving a 16 MB memory space in extended real mode. Currently, the smx kernel, smxNet, and the UART driver have been ported to run on VAutomation's TIPS2 development board. Future plans are to verify operation of the USBLink stack on it.

With the resurgence of interest in 186-class processors, it is fortunate to have a mature RTOS that closely supports this new 24-bit architecture. Micro Digital has supported x86 real mode since the first version of SMX, initially released over 10 years ago. SMX continues to be highly efficient and small, and it offers a high-performance scheduler written in x86 assembly language. SMX offers a diverse set of components to choose from including a real-time multitasking kernel, TCP/IP stack, file system, GUI, and extensive drivers. The kernel and most components support all memory models.

An excellent toolchain is supported for both the 20- and 24-bit addressing modes, consisting of Paradigm C++ and the First Silicon Solutions VSA-186 JTAG system analyzer. These companies have worked closely with each other and VAutomation to ensure a smooth toolchain. With the JTAG unit, the user gets access to a hardware trace buffer and the ability to inspect peripheral registers such as serial ports and the interrupt controller.

Micro Digital is happy to announce its new partnerships with VAutomation and First Silicon Solutions. Micro Digital and Paradigm have had a strong partnership since the early days of SMX.

Micro Digital, Inc. , 2900 Bristol, G204, Costa Mesa, CA 92626. Tel: 714-437-7333; Fax: 714-432-0490.