New multicore DSPs from TI packs improved performance and power in small form factor

According to TI the new TMS320C6654, TMS320C6655 and TMS320C6657 multicore DSPs, will help developers more effectively meet vital requirements of high performance and portable applications in markets such as mission critical, industrial automation, testers, embedded vision, imaging, video surveillance, medical, audio and video infrastructure.

Based on the KeyStone multicore architecture, the new C665x processors offer developers access to devices that are high performance while still being power and space efficient. The low power consumption and small form factor of 21mm x 21mm enable portability, mobility and low power energy sources such as battery and interface powering to drive breakthrough products. The C665x DSPs meet the need of applications such as video security and traffic management, where there is a need to carry out both video processing and analytics at the end point. In addition, a wide range of high performance real-time applications such as on-board radar, software defined radios, video and image processing and portable ultrasound will now be smaller, lighter and easier to use.

TI’s C665x processors consist of three fully pin compatible low-cost, power optimised solutions for developers migrating from single core to multicore. The C6657 features two 1.25-GHz DSP cores, delivering up to 80 GMACs and 40 GFLOPs, while the C6655 and C6654 single core solutions deliver up to 40 GMACs and 20 GLOPS and 27.2 GMACs and 13.6 GLOPS, respectively. Under normal operating conditions, the C6657, C6655 and C6654 power numbers are at 3.5W, 2.5W and 2W, respectively. TI’s C665x DSPs also feature large on-chip memory coupled with a high bandwidth and efficient external memory controller, making them an ideal choice for developers of mission critical, test and automation, imaging, medical and audio and video infrastructure applications where low latency is critical.

“This latest addition to TI’s KeyStone platform delivers a solution that combines low power and high performance signal processing in a very compact package,” said Will Strauss, president and principal analyst of Forward Concepts. “This is a combination that will enable portability with long battery life or line power in advanced imaging, sensing and analytics based applications, where attributes like these are key.”

The new DSPs support extended temperature ranges from -55C to 100C for applications required to work under extreme physical conditions or provide sustained operating life. This feature makes the C665x DSPs suitable for mission critical, outdoor imaging and analytics applications, where high reliability is a key requirement. In addition, the C665x DSPs provide abundant performance and connectivity to tackle the challenging specifications in imaging applications, including high bandwidth serial interfaces such as RapidIO, PCIe and Gigabit Ethernet and the ability to extend processing to a pool of DSPs. An optimised set of peripherals, including Universal Parallel Port (UPP) and Multichannel Buffered Serial Ports (McBSP), in TI’s C665x processors, reduce system cost and size, as well as simplify migration from previous designs with minimal board redesign.

TI is also offering easy-to-use, low cost evaluation modules (EVMs) so developers can quickly get started designing with the C6654, C6655 and C6657.

Texas Instruments

Check Also

Allegro MicroSystems and BMW Group collaborate on high efficiency traction inverters for battery electric vehicles

Allegro MicroSystems, a global specialist in power and sensing semiconductor technology for motion control and …