"MULTI provides a robust, intuitive software development environment that enables users of Atmel’s AT91 ARM Thumb microcontroller to hit the ground running with new projects," said Jacko Wilbrink, marketing manager for Atmel. "MULTI's optimizing compilers and CodeBalance profiler, which take full advantage of the ARM7TDMI's Thumb extensions, should prove especially attractive to users with tight memory constraints."

The AT91EB01 is based on Atmel's M40400 microcontroller, a highly integrated 16/32-bit microcontroller that combines an ARM7TDMI RISC core with a powerful set of general purpose peripherals and debug interfaces. The AT91EB01 provides four Mbits of SRAM, one Mbit of flash memory, two serial ports (one for host debugger communications), Angel debug monitor firmware, and a JTAG ICE debug port. The AT91EB01 also provides monitor points for all M40400 signals.

The MULTI environment provides a uniform set of capabilities for ARM software development that span Windows 95, Windows NT, and Unix host platforms. MULTI automates all aspects of M40400 software development, including editing, debugging, execution profiling, program building, run-time error checking, and source code control. MULTI also features an instruction set simulator (SimARM) that allows programmers to develop and test M40400 code on a host PC or workstation without the need for the AT91EB01 target hardware.

Green Hills’ scaleable C/C++/EC++ compiler takes full advantage of the M40400's 16-bit Thumb extensions, which enable designers to achieve significant reductions in code size without compromising performance. Code compiled using the ARM's 32-bit instructions runs the fastest. Code compiled using the 16-bit Thumb extensions provides the greatest density. To help M40400 programmers maximize performance and efficiency and make size/speed tradeoffs, MULTI provides an optimizing profiler known as CodeBalance. CodeBalance lets users see the code size and run time for each function as compiled using 16- or 32-bit instructions. Then, based on user-supplied size and speed constraints, CodeBalance automatically produces the optimum combination of 16- and 32-bit code to achieve the desired result.

"The net result," remarked Green Hills vice president of marketing John Carbone, "is code that executes as fast as code run by a pure 32-bit processor, while occupying a fraction of the space." "In the benchmarks we've done," added Carbone, "applications compiled using a mixture of 32-bit and 16-bit instructions typically realize a 65% reduction in code size relative to straight 32-bit implementations with little degradation in execution speed. This reduction in code size can result in significant memory savings, which is critical to designers working on embedded projects with tight cost constraints."

Code that has been compiled for the M40400 microcontroller can run in a bare bones mode, or under a variety of real-time operating systems. The host-based MULTI debugger uses the Angel protocol to communicate with the AT91EB01 target system.

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Founded in 1984, Atmel Corporation is headquartered in San Jose, California with principal manufacturing facilities in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Nantes and Rousset, France and Heilbronn, Germany.

Atmel designs, develops, manufactures and markets on a worldwide basis semiconductors, including nonvolatile and embedded memory, logic, analog, microcontroller products and system-level integration (SLI) solutions using advanced CMOS, BiCMOS, BiPolar and SiGe process technologies.

Atmel product and financial information can be retrieved from its Fax-on-Demand service. In North America call 1-(800) 292-8635. Internationally from a fax phone, dial 1-(408) 441-0732. Requests may be sent via e-mail to literature@atmel.com or by visiting Atmel's website at www.atmel.com.