Timesys provides first commercial open-source Linux solution for the Texas Instruments OMAP-L137 processor

Comprehensive OMAP-L137 Linux® solution already in use by LinuxLink customers developing medical and industrial automation products

Pittsburgh, PA, USA – July 28, 2009 – Timesys Corporation (https://timesys.com), provider of LinuxLink, the first commercial software development framework for building custom embedded Linux based products, today announced LinuxLink availability for the new OMAP-L137 processor from Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI). This represents the first LinuxLink release for the low-power OMAP-L1x applications processors and will be followed by support for the OMAP-L138 processor.

LinuxLink allows customers to choose from the latest GNU-based toolchains enabled with uClibc and glibc libraries optimized for the ARM926EJ-S™ core. The Linux kernels initially available through LinuxLink are both the 2.6.18 and the recent 2.6.30 versions. Newer versions of Linux kernels will be available in LinuxLink as they become available from kernel.org. Device drivers are included for the full range of internal OMAP-L137 peripherals as well as for external devices present on TI’s OMAP-L137 evaluation module (EVM).

Customers are already using LinuxLink to develop OMAP-L137 processor based designs such as medical instrumentation and industrial control systems. LinuxLink allows customers to accelerate the development of products for these applications by providing access to hundreds of relevant middleware and packages such as lmsensors, Alsa, GStreamer, Qt/Embedded for Linux and bluez, making it simple and easy to create footprint-optimized Linux platforms with a rich set of APIs well matched to their end applications.

Linux developers can take advantage of both the online build system and the desktop-hosted version of LinuxLink. With either interface, customers leverage the best Linux code from TI as well as from the open source community. The desktop version offers more flexibility than any other Linux build platform by allowing users to integrate third-party packages, custom applications and proprietary software. LinuxLink’s update service automatically notifies customers of changes to any of the components used in their project.

LinuxLink users have access to the Eclipse-based TimeStorm IDE tools for application development and debugging. These development tools help customers ensure the quality, reliability and performance of their final product. Customers receive technical support from expert Timesys engineers and have access to a vast suite of documentation.

The OMAP-L1x low-power devices include a TMS320C674x™ digital signal processor (DSP) as well as the ARM926EJ-S core. LinuxLink subscribers use the Timesys environment to develop the Linux platform for the ARM® core, while leveraging TI’s DSP tools to develop and debug their DSP code.

“Many of our customers use the Linux operating system for our OMAP-L137 low-power ARM plus DSP processor,” said Kanika Carver, C674x and OMAP-L1x Marketing Manager, Texas Instruments. “LinuxLink platform support from Timesys for the OMAP-L1x platform provides our mutual customers with an easy-to-use Linux framework, high-quality commercial support, expert advice and the professional services often needed for getting products to market quickly.”

“LinuxLink for the OMAP-L137 processor provides our customers with the ability to build a variety of Linux-based products that include specific functions accelerated by the DSP core,” said Charlie Ashton, Vice President of Business Development at Timesys. “The LinuxLink business model is perfectly aligned with customers’ open source needs as well as TI’s product strategy, allowing for quick development of low-power, optimized Linux-based products.”

For a limited time, developers can obtain free LinuxLink access to quickly configure, build and evaluate embedded Linux on TI OMAP-L137 development boards by registering at https://timesys.com/register.

Additional information about LinuxLink subscriptions for TI development boards can be found at https://timesys.com/supported/processors/ti.

About Timesys

Timesys is the provider of LinuxLink, a high-productivity software development framework for embedded Linux applications. The LinuxLink framework includes the Linux kernel, cross-toolchain, application development IDE, an award winning build system called Factory, a vast library of middleware packages, software stacks and libraries, documentation and expert technical support. LinuxLink enables development teams to consistently build and maintain a custom, open source embedded Linux platform through regularly updated Linux sources, proven middleware packages, and a scriptable GNU-based build environment. LinuxLink reduces the time, resources, risk and cost associated with building a product based on open source Linux. For more information, visit https://timesys.com.

Timesys Press Contact

Theresa Kisha
Tel: (+1) 412.325.6362
Email: theresa.kisha@timesys.com

About the Texas Instruments Developer Network

Timesysy is a member of the TI Developer Network, a community of respected, well-established companies offering products and services based on TI analog and digital technology. The Network provides a broad range of end-equipment solutions, embedded software, engineering services and development tools that help customers accelerate innovation to make the world smarter, healthier, safer, greener and more fun.


Editors’ Notes:

Timesys is a registered trademark of Timesys Corporation.
Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States and other countries.
ARM is a registered trademark, and ARM926EJ-S is a trademark of ARM Limited.
TMS320C67x is a trademark of Texas Instruments.
All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners.