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What is the Zbrain ?
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ZBrain are CPU Modules based on Blackfin Processors by Analog Devices. The processors, additional peripherals, programmable logic and several memory banks are integrated on a half credit card format. Most processor signals are directly accessible by two connectors. ZBrain fully supports graphical system design with LabVIEW Embedded.
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Which processor is ZBrain supporting and why ?
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Blackfin Processors by Analog Devices. This growing family offers an interesting mix of microcontroller type functions and digital signal processing (DSP) power . The Blackfins scalable power management scheme is based on several sleep-modes and scalable core clock and/or voltage. A wide range of high-speed on-chip peripherals and a versatile off-chip interface make the Blackfin the perfect processor for cutting edge applications. The Blackfin is a 16/32Bit RISC fixed point Processor.
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What processor power management features are available ?
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- Scalable Processor core clock: 50...500MHz
- Scalable Processor core voltage: 0.7...1.3V
- Several Processor sleep modes
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How about multi core computing ?
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Multicore is a promising approch especially for LabVIEW Embedded projects to decouple low-speed but complex application functionality from high-speed data-acquisition, communication and digital signal processing. Two Blackfin CPU's, interconnected with high-speed bidirectional serial links, offer a first approach for multicore computing. Alternatively, a parallel operating programmable logic device such as a CPLD or FPGA for high-speed data preprocessing can be linked to the blackfin processor. A most effective approach is the dual-core Blackfin processor (BF561) which again can be interlinked with another dual-core using a built-in high-speed parallel port which results in a quad-core solution.
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How can I scale the CPU performance in my application ?
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For best performance, core clock and voltage are scaled to 100%. Regarding programming, “C” or even the assembly language could be embedded (C-Node) in time critical LabVIEW sections. In Algorithms, fixed-point arithmetic beats floating point math by factors of 10. Multi-core computing again scales the CPU-performance nearly by the factor of cores being used.
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Can I re-use ZBrain in several Baseboards ?
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Yes. Before plugging the ZBrain into the new board, the internal programmable logic which adapts some I/O to certain targets, must be re-programmed. This can be done by the customer using the low-cost CPLD & flash programming utility Zflashlink.
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Can I plug ZBrains from a standard baseboard into my custom hardware ?
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Yes. Before plugging the ZBrain into the custom hardware, the internal programmable logic which adapts some I/O to certain targets, must be re-programmed . This can be done by the customer using the low-cost CPLD & flash programming utility Zflashlink.
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What product support and services can I expect around ZBrain ?
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- Blackfin Processor knowledge transfer
- Design-In support
- Hardware design checks
- Basic reference designs are supplied in the development kit
- Field-proven, known good HW/SW components are available on request
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