AltiVec Software Libraries Now Available for Freescale QorIQ T4240 Processor

The AltiVec engine is a distinguishing feature of Freescale’s QorIQ T series processors, offering 172 GFLOPS of vector processing – more than seven times the performance of Freescale’s previous AltiVec-enabled device. AltiVec technology addresses high-bandwidth data processing and algorithmic-intensive computations for applications such as networking, medical and industrial imaging, printing and aerospace and defense. With the engine’s single instruction, multiple data signal processing, customers can improve the performance of their new or pre-existing AltiVec code, while building smarter and more capable autonomous equipment.

The Mentor Embedded Performance Library for Freescale's AltiVec technology is available now for download from Mentor Graphics in binary form at no cost. Easier to use than ever, this rich software helps increase developer productivity and speed product development for 32-bit and 64-bit applications.

“These new software libraries help enable AltiVec technology better than ever before, allowing our customers to fully leverage the ultra-high performance of AltiVec vector processing technology from Freescale,” said Raja Tabet, vice president of software and systems for Freescale’s Digital Networking business. “There is an exceptionally large code base written for Freescale’s AltiVec engine, and now customers can significantly enhance the performance of that code using the state-of-the-art QorIQ T4240 processor with Mentor Graphics’ software.”

Mentor Graphics’ low-level High Performance Computing library of advanced math and signal processing functions provides a robust embedded software foundation for fast, reliable development of end-user software. The library of functions includes more than 250 math and signal processing functions such as Fast Fourier Transforms, convolutions, correlations, FIR filters, IIR filters, element-wise vector functions and linear algebra functions.

“Freescale’s newest QorIQ AltiVec processing engine offers the opportunity for software developers to achieve outstanding performance,” said Mark Mitchell, general manager for open-source solutions, Mentor Graphics. “Unlocking that performance requires sophisticated software that makes use of the SIMD instruction set. Mentor Graphics hand-crafted routines for hundreds of common use cases to make it easier for Freescale’s customers to build compelling new T4240-based products with truly exceptional embedded performance.”