Xilinx Embedded Development Kit 6.2i Slashes Development Time from Weeks to Days for MicroBlaze & PowerPC Designs

Company ships over 10,000 Embedded Development Kits demonstrating rapid adoption of Xilinx programmable platforms for embedded design

SAN JOSE, Calif., March 30, 2004 — Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX) today announced its next generation Embedded Development Kit (EDK) version 6.2i – enabling designers to create custom, fully-functional embedded platforms within a matter of days. The new software suite dramatically accelerates embedded development by automating previously manual steps and unifying hardware/software debug to find and fix bugs faster. Additionally, new EDK Platform Studio features and enhancements enable both hardware and software designers to develop platforms targeting PowerPC™ hard processors or Xilinx MicroBlaze™ soft processor cores using a single design environment. Xilinx is demonstrating Platform Studio 6.2i at the eUSA/Embedded Systems Conference being held on March 30 through April 1, 2004, at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, booth #1326.

By combining a speedy and intelligent software suite with FPGA flexibility, Xilinx is accelerating the industry transition towards programmable platforms for numerous embedded applications. With over 10,000 Embedded Development Kits shipped worldwide in just 16 months, the embedded industry has rapidly adopted Xilinx’s hard and soft processor solutions.

“Xilinx has a legacy of leadership in state-of-the-art design tools proven by the ISE series, and we’re leveraging that innovation with our embedded technology,” said Rich Sevcik, executive vice president of FPGA Products at Xilinx. “Platform Studio Technology provides a platform development IDE, intelligent design wizards, revolutionary hardware and software generators, and a ‘Platform Debug’ capability, together enabling our customers to rapidly implement fully-custom processor solutions.”

Platform Studio Automates and Accelerates the Platform Design Process
To accelerate and ease platform development, the Platform Studio IDE now includes time saving features like automatic Board Support Package (BSP) generation, example software application generation, and IP creation. The new software suite expands the capability - based on target board, processor choice and selected IP - to generate BSPs for Wind River Systems’ VxWorks®, MontaVista Linux, and the ultra small footprint Xilinx MicroKernel (XMK) to reduce a previously manual process from days or weeks, to a matter of minutes. Additionally, the XMK footprint has been reduced in size and the kernel improved to support POSIX threads as well as a FAT file system. Improvements to the Base System Builder wizard within Platform Studio enable designers to generate, download and boot a custom, fully functional hardware and software system within a matter of minutes rather than days, weeks or even months using traditional methods.

The software suite now includes new Platform Debug functionality, providing engineering teams with unique visibility to rapidly identify problems spanning hardware/software domains with unsurpassed debug of the programmable platform as a whole. This new functionality enables advanced debug capabilities, including synchronized, cross triggering of the GNU gdb software debugger from the Xilinx ChipScope™ Pro embedded bus/logic analyzer and vice versa. The Platform Debug solution supports multi-processor implementations including PowerPC and MicroBlaze soft processors with hardware breakpoints and JTAG control without problematic on-target software debug stubs.

Tool and IDE Enhancements Make Platform Design Easier
Additional Platform Studio enhancements streamline the design experience, including support for multiple software applications, which enables a previous working system to be easily reverted to during the development process. Faster software code download for the MicroBlaze soft processor - up to 500Kbs – is now available as well as VHDL/Verilog simulation improvements via support for Cadence’s NCSim™ and Bus Functional Model (BFM) support.

Price, evaluation versions, platform and availability
The EDK with Platform Studio 6.2i is immediately available and supports PowerPC and MicroBlaze soft processor designs for Xilinx’s Virtex-II Pro™, Virtex-II Pro X, and Spartan™-3 Series FPGAs. The $495 US EDK software package includes licensing for the MicroBlaze soft processor, supports Windows 2000, Windows XP, Solaris and introduces support for native Linux RedHat versions 7.3 and 8.0 (including Enterprise Edition). Time limited evaluation versions of ISE 6.2i, ChipScope Pro and partner tools are also included. EDK v6.2i updates are available free for licensed users in the EDK download lounge. For complete information on EDK, visit www.xilinx.com/edk.

About Xilinx
Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX) is the worldwide leader of programmable logic and programmable system solutions. Additional information about Xilinx is available at www.xilinx.com.

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