Digi Int'l partners with Timesys to provide embedded Linux solutions for products designed with Digi's ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 SOM

The new design from Digi is based on the powerful Freescale™ i.MX51 processor which offers a high-performance ARM® Cortex-A8® core. The combination of the powerful SoC processor and Digi included peripherals, including pre-certified 802.11abgn WiFi support, makes the ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 a very attractive Linux solution for markets such as medical, consumer electronics and networking, where LinuxLink has already been adopted.

The Cortex-A8 has been rapidly gaining popularity in various embedded designs where Linux is the operating system of choice, said Maciej Halasz, Director of Product Management at Timesys. We are very pleased to team up with Digi International to provide our joint customers with the ability to create high-quality Linux solutions using the latest Digi ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 JumpStart Kit. Customers selecting Digi’s SOM and creating their custom hardware designs can leverage the ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 LinuxLink subscription to quickly adapt Linux and design/develop their product-specific middleware and value-add applications. LinuxLink for the ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 is already being used by a number of early customers developing commercial products, including Triteq.

LinuxLink customers can start with the recent Linux kernel which supports many of the device drivers present on the Digi ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 reference design, including Ethernet, LCD, Touchscreen, VGA, USB and more. The complete list of drivers, Linux packages/middleware and other utilities can be found by visiting the Timesys Digi ConnectCore Wi-i.MX51 Development Center, located at https://linuxlink.timesys.com/dev_center/wi-imx51.

With a LinuxLink subscription, our customers can quickly develop products, benefiting from the latest open source code and access to a knowledgeable and responsive support team, said Steve Ericson, Vice President of Product Management at Digi International. We have partnered with Timesys to provide our customers with access to such open source frameworks as rich user interfaces, media playback, networking utilities and more. LinuxLink provides rich Linux component selection for all markets that we target, including medical, consumer electronics and smart networking devices.

When compared to rolling your own Linux, LinuxLink offers many benefits, with the first and foremost being support, as well as the use of award-winning online and desktop-hosted build tools (called Factory), access to hundreds of packages and verified middleware, and access to various utilities that support Linux system and application development.

Timesys Factory automated build tools enable highly customized Linux designs on custom hardware by allowing developers to integrate third-party packages, custom applications and proprietary software.

Application developers benefit from LinuxLink development tools which include the Eclipse-based TimeStorm IDE and commonly used debugging tools — including the integration of a number of JTAG debuggers commonly used. The application development tools are integrated with the Factory assembled development environment. This integration makes it easy to use new APIs and ensures that development and runtime environments are in sync. When needed, LinuxLink customers have immediate access to a vast suite of documentation and tutorials as well as support from Timesys’ expert engineers.

In addition to the LinuxLink subscription, Timesys also offers professional services to customers requiring access to highly experienced Linux system developers to work on specific projects in partnership with their in-house engineers.