OREANDA-NEWS. October 26, 2011.Fujitsu Semiconductor Europe (FSEU) today announced that Green Hills Software, the largest independent vendor of embedded software solutions, will provide a full-featured support package for Fujitsu’s (FSEU) Emerald and Jade graphics processors, which are targeted primarily at driver assistance and automotive infotainment applications. The Green Hills offering includes the high reliability INTEGRITY® real-time operating system (RTOS) and board support packages (BSPs) that enable developers to reduce time-to-market.

Fujitsu’s Emerald processor delivers a novel 360-degree wraparound view in automotive applications and is particularly well suited for virtual instrument clusters. Using Fujitsu’s system, the driver sees images from four cameras that are combined to appear as if taken from a bird’s-eye view. These video images are projected onto a virtual 3D-curved surface and are displayed with much less distortion than in conventional systems. This makes it easier for drivers to recognise obstacles around their vehicles.

The Emerald chip utilises an ARM® Cortex™-A9 processor core, which has an integrated ARM-Neon-SIMD engine, and features four video input ports that enable simultaneous processing of different high-resolution video images. Fujitsu’s Jade chip incorporates an ARM926EJ-S CPU core, together with an enhanced version of the Coral PA graphic processor and a number of external interfaces. It is optimised for applications such as on-board and mobile navigation systems, graphical dashboard systems, HUD (head-up display) units and rear-seat entertainment systems.

Initial market feedback for the Green Hills board support package has been extremely positive.

Markus Mierse, GCC director at Fujitsu Semiconductor Europe comments, “Modern semiconductor devices are extremely complex, forcing vendors to add more and more value to their products that enables the design-in and development of competitive customer products. A strong partnership between hardware and software vendors is essential to be successful.”

He continues, “Green Hills Software and Fujitsu, both market leaders across various embedded and automotive applications, have developed a consistent partnership over many years. The latest products of this cooperation are the Green Hills INTEGRITY board support packages created to support Fujitsu’s new graphic SoCs from the ‘Jade’ and ‘Emerald’ product families. This now allows customers to build their products based on a system solution, which is an important advantage for automotive applications. We are very confident that both companies will benefit from this cooperation with a strengthened position in the market.”

Christopher Smith, vice president marketing, Green Hills Software, commented, “Driver assistance and information systems constitute the most visible area of advance for consumers. Fujitsu has created a family of devices that push the bar higher and, together with Green Hills Software’s INTEGRITY RTOS and BSPs, will enhance the driving experience further.”

The Green Hills Software board support packages for Fujitsu’s Emerald and Jade graphics processors were developed at Green Hills Software’s European Technical Center in the Netherlands. They are available now.