Prototype kit enables hardware & software analysis & debug

Without the need for probes and complex board setup, virtual prototyping allows developers to run software on a large number of configurable virtual prototypes to explore various configuration alternatives and software execution threads. Virtual prototyping with the Vista products, rather than executing software on physical boards, introduces timing and profiling technologies with deeper, non-intrusive visibility and control of the system. This results in deterministic execution and unlimited non-intrusive system-level profiling, enabling efficient hardware and software analysis. In addition, integrated debugging with a combined software and hardware view provides more complete system information to developers.

Virtual prototyping is suitable for software developers who need to integrate systems and functionalities into a single device, optimise software performance and conduct software validation and regression testing. To maximise simulation speed and debug efficiency, virtual prototypes can also integrate seamlessly with RTL verification flows and emulation.

The Vista and Sourcery CodeBench Virtual Edition products, which are integrated within Mentor Graphics runtime platforms, now support Altera Arria-V, ARM Versatile Express for Cortex A-9, Freescale Semiconductor’s i.MX 6 and Xilinx Zynq.

“Virtual prototyping is an important methodology for validating our software ahead of hardware availability and for tuning it for best performance. It accelerates the development cycle across our software and hardware teams and allows for higher productivity and greater quality code once the hardware ships,” said Amanda McGregor, Global i.MX 6 series Product Manager, Freescale. “The deep ‘white-box’ visibility and control is an important mechanism to uncover complex hardware/software interaction, inject faults, analyse data transfers, and identify bandwidth and resource utilisation issues that would have been hard or too late to find on the physical hardware.”

“Our Vista and CodeBench Virtual Edition products can execute software on a full range of platforms for system-wide performance visibility at the early stages of product development,” commented Guy Moshe, General Manager, Design Creation Business Unit, Embedded Systems Division, Mentor Graphics. “Combining these products with Mentor Embedded VPKs for industry-leading hardware platforms can result in overall design performance improvements and accelerated product delivery schedules.”