Multicore Programming on TI AM572x Devices

Elco Solutions supported a large factory automation supplier to implement a multicore software platform on TI AM572x SOC. Elco Solutions implemented the entire Board Support Package enabling the SoC to boot VxWorks OS on the general purpose ARM Cortex A15 Core and RTOS on the C66x DSPs available on the SoC and that were used for digital processing and real time control. 

A customer specific IPC has been developed to ensure real time communication between the different cores. 

The customer is one of the largest provider of Factory Automation Equipment worldwide. The Customer apporached us with the challenge to support multicore on the VxWorks BSP for TI AM572x that supports only one single Core. 

Elco Solutions delivered the Software Platform to support multicore and is working with the customer on several embedded software projects since more than 5 years.

The development was conducted on the AM572x customer specific board. 

The following features have been added to VxWorks BSP delivered by WindRiver: 

• Board Bring up with Multicore Support: Modification of the Boot Process - Use Remoteproc to Boot up different Cores and Load the Images to these Cores.
• ARM Cortex A15 running VxWorks and C66x DSP running RTOS. 
• Implementation of the boot mechanism and a light weight IPC to support communication between the cores. 
• Used Shared Memory Mechanism for the IPC implementation 
• Support of Real-time Communication Using Hilsher Module: EthernetIP, EtherCAT, ProfiNET etc.