From start to finish:
A product development roadmap for Sitara™
processors
Schuyler Patton
Sitara Processors
Overview
• Example Phases for a Product Development
• Evaluation Phase
• Board Development Phase
• Software Development Phase
• Production Phase / SW Lifecycle
2
Phases of Product Development
3
One Example of a Product Development Timeline
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
4
One Example of a Product Development Timeline
Sitara Processor Evaluation
Board Development
Software Development
Product Lifecyle
HW Platform Options
Custom (Product) Board
TI EVM
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
5 5
Processor Evaluation
6
Product Development Timeline - Evaluation
Sitara Processor Evaluation
HW Platform Options
Processor Data Sheet
Processor Technical Reference Manual
Board Developmen t
White Papers / Application Notes
SYSCONFIG Tool
Softwa r e D ev el o p men t
Power Estimation tool
EVM with RTOS or Linux SDK
TI Reference Designs
Training
e2e Forums
TI EVM
Timeline
Pr o d u ct L i fecy l e
Custom (Product) Board
t = Production t = 0
7 7
Processor Evaluation – Datasheet & TRM
• Datasheet
– ARM processor frequencies supported
– Available Peripherals
– DDR Memory types supported
– Power, Clocking Capabilities
• Technical Reference Manual (TRM)
– Companion guide to Datasheet
– details the integration, environment,
functional description, programming
models for each peripheral and
subsystem in the device
8
Processor Evaluation – Technical Documentation
• White papers
– Power Optimization Techniques
– Sitara Processor Security
• Application Notes
– Hardware Design Guide
– Schematic Checklist
– EMIF Tool
• E-Books
• Technical Articles
9
Processor Evaluation - SYSCONFIG Tool
• Software tool that provides a
Graphical User Interface for
configuring pin multiplexing
settings, resolving conflicts
• Perform “what -if” on possible pin
mux configurations for a
particular application
10
Processor Evaluation - TI Reference Designs
• Leverage TI technology to solve
your system-level challenges
• Some designs use TI Evaluation
Modules
• Schematics and other
documentation provided such as
PCB layouts, Bill of Materials
(BOM) and User Guide
11
Product Timeline - Evaluation
Use TI Processor SDKs to run demos as well
as build experimental applications on TI
Evaluation Modules
12
Product Evaluation Summary
• Use the Datasheet and The Technical Reference Manual to determine
processor compatibility
• Review the available Application Notes, Whitepapers and other technical
documentation available on ti.com
• Use the SYSCONFIG tool to evaluate possible pin mux outputs to determine
“what if” processor configurations
• Review TI Reference Designs for design elements to be used in a new product
• Experiment with TI Evaluation Modules and the RTOS and Linux Software
Development Kits to evaluate processor capabilities
13
Board Development
14
Product Timeline – Board Development
Sitara Processor Evaluation
Board Development
Software Development
HW Platform Options
Custom (Product) Board
TI EVM
Product Lifecyle
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
15 15
Product Timeline – Board Development
• The purpose of this application report
is to walk hardware designers through
the various stages of designing a
board on this platform.
• Block diagram of suggested of
hardware design flow for a board
design
• Use Reference material provided by
TI in the Technical Documentation tab
of the Processor Product folder
SPRABU5
16 16
Product Timeline – Board Development
B o ar d D ev el o p men t
17 17
Product Timeline – Board Development
B o ar d D ev el o p men t
Processor Datasheet
Technical Reference manual
18 18
Board Development – Datasheet & TRM
• Datasheet
– Designing
• Device interconnections
• Electrical & Timing requirements
• Pin Muxing
• Power
• DDR Memory Interfacing
• Technical Reference Manual (TRM)
– Boot Modes
– Peripheral Clocking and operations
– Control Module, register descriptions
19
Product Timeline – Board Development
B o ar d D ev el o p men t
SYSCONFIG
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
20 20
Board Development - SYSCONFIG Tool
• SYSCONFIG tool can be
downloaded or has cloud access
21
Product Timeline – Board Development
B o ar d D ev el o p men t
IBIS Models for Timing Analysis
22 22
Product Timeline – Board Development
B o ar d D ev el o p men t
EVM Schematics
AM335x Schematic Checklist
(SPRABN2A)
23 23
Product Timeline – Board Development
B o ar d D ev el o p men t
High Speed Interface
Layout Guidelines
(SPRAAR7H)
24 24
Product Timeline – Board Development
• The Technical documentation
Tab of the product folder
contains the list of available
documentation for a
Processor.
25
Board Development Summary
• Follow the steps shown in the Hardware Design guide
• Leverage the documentation provided in the processor product folder
• Use the Datasheet and TRM to create system block diagram
• The tools for SYSCONFIG, EMIF tool assists with determining pin mux
configuration
26
Software Development
27
Product Timeline – Software Development
Sitara Processor Evaluation
Board Development
Software Development
HW Platform Options
Custom (Product) Board
TI EVM
Product Lifecyle
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
28 28
Product Timeline – Software Development
Software Development
SW Development/Testing/Release
Board Port Development – U-Boot/Linux
Board Port Development – RTOS
HW Platform Options
Custom (Product) Board
TI EVM
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
29 29
Product Timeline – Software Development
Software Development
SW Development/Testing/Release
Processors SDK RTOS
Processors SDK Linux
HW Platform Options
Custom (Product) Board
TI EVM
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
30 30
Product Timeline – Software Development RTOS
• Robust real-time TI-RTOS kernel
including TCP/IP networking stack
• Posix thread-compatible API layer
available
• Driver libraries that can be used with
TI-RTOS or without a kernel
• Free and available as open source
sprt646a.pdf
31 31
Product Timeline – Software Development Linux
• Updated to the latest Long Term support
(LTS) Linux kernel, boot loader and Yocto file
system on an annual basis
• U-Boot community boot loader
• Robust, commercial-grade Linaro® GNU
compiler collection (GCC) toolchain
• Yocto Project™ OE Core compatible file
systems support enables tailored Linux
application support
• RT-Linux releases include a fully pre-emptible
kernel for real-time applications
32 32
Product Timeline – Software Development
Board Port Development – U-Boot/Linux
• Porting - Bring up U-Boot/Linux on Custom Hardware
– Processor SDK Linux has the processor initialization,
driver support for Linux and U-Boot
– Leveraging TI EVM code makes porting strait forward
– Use the EMIF and SYSCONFIG tools to assist with the
port effort
HW Platform Options
TI EVM
Custom (Product) Board
Timeline
t = Production t = 0
33 33
Product Timeline – Software Development
Board Port Development – U-Boot/Linux
Porting U-Boot
Leverage TI Code
DDR Settings
Pin Mux Configuration
TI U-Boot Code in SDK
EMIF Tool
SYSCONFIG
EMIF Tool
SYSCONFIG
TI Processors SDK Linux
34 34
Product Timeline – U-Boot Board Port
board/ti/am335x/board.c
board.c
TI Processors SDK Linux
The board.c file is a key file for
porting U-Boot to a custom board
35 35
Product Timeline – U-Boot Board Port
board/ti/am335x/board.c
board.c
EMIF
Settings
EMIF Tool
36 36
Product Timeline – U-Boot Board Port
board/ti/am335x/board.c
board.c
EMIF
Settings
Pin Mux
Settings
SYSCONFIG
37 37
Product Timeline – Software Development
Board Port Development – U-Boot/Linux
Porting Linux
Leverage TI Code
Pin Mux Configuration
TI DTS Code
SYSCONFIG
38 38
Product Timeline – Linux Board Port
arch/arm/boot/dts/<board>.dts
<board>.dts
TI Processors SDK Linux
The <board>.dts file is the key file
for porting Linux to a custom board
39 39
Product Timeline – Linux Board Port
arch/arm/boot/dts/<board>.dts
<board>.dts
devicetree.dtsi
SYSCONFIG
40 40
Software Development Summary
• TI Provides an RTOS and Linux SDK operating system for each processor
• The SDKs provide the starting point for application development
• The SYSCONFIG and EMIF Tools should be used to accelerate porting
operating systems to a new board
41
Production and Lifecycle
42
Product Timeline – Production UniFlash
43
Product Timeline – Lifecycle
TI Processors Linux SDK
Current Annual LTS
Current SDK Support Window
SDK release date
Initial board port
TI Processors Linux SDK
Next LTS
TI Processors Linux SDK
Next LTS
Time
Issue detected during testing;
Fixed in later SDK version
TI Processors Linux SDK
Next LTS
Production
44
SLYP729
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