I think I may have at least an initial solution. Cortex-Ax processors are the "application processors" that are used in tablets, etc. I went to the ARM site for Coretex-A development boards - http://www.arm.com/support/university/development-platforms/cortex-a8-development-platforms.php
The first one they mention is the BeagleBone. It uses an AM3359 - http://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/am3359.pdf - which has a General Purpose Memory Controller:
– General-Purpose Memory Controller (GPMC)
• Flexible 8-Bit and 16-Bit Asynchronous Module
Memory Interface with up to Seven Chip – Controls the Entry and Exit of Stand-By and
• Uses BCH Code to Support 4-, 8-, or 16-Bit – Responsible for Sleep Sequencing, Power
• Uses Hamming Code to Support 1-Bit ECC
The BeagleBone exposes this GPMC interface - here is an example - http://engineersofthecorn.blogspot.ca/2012/06/faux-gpmc-interfacing-with-beaglebone.html
So you could EITHER create a "bit-banged" S-100 interface OR use this GPMC interface.
http://www.adafruit.com/datasheets/BBB_SRM.pdf
http://www.adafruit.com/products/1876
Andrew
On Tuesday, August 26, 2014 10:37:52 AM UTC-7, monahanz wrote:
Greg, thank you for the tips. Your experience is most helpful. While I will keep looking I would really value any further suggestions you may gather over the weekend.
Sound like the ARM9 is the way for us to go. The two things that are putting me off on the Toradex units, first they are overseas (but apparently have a distribution center in Seattle) possibly getting units could be difficult, also looking at the specks of the support board -- it appears quite complex. One basic question, how different are the various differently named ARM9's for example they say there's is a "NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core Cortex-A9". Is that one more complex to program than others or are they all the same,
In the ideal world I would like a mini-board with the following parameters:-
Easy connector attachment to an S100 board which acts as a support board for the 'chip'
Clear documentation of I/O lines
At least 30 or so GPIO lines we could use to control the S100 bus when the ARM CPU is in master mode.
A windows based IDE interface to program the CPU and download software.
The capability of running a Linux system on the "chip".
The unit is available in single unit quantities.
I never thought of the Auto industry, good idea, thanks
Please see if you can slice time to take a look see at candidates this weekend.
Thanks
John
-----Original Message-----
From: n8ve...@googlegroups.com [mailto:n8vem...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of G. Beat
Sent: Monday, August 25, 2014 11:32 PM
To: n8ve...@googlegroups.com
Subject: RE: [N8VEM-S100:5041] ARM CPU on the S100Bus-II
If an ARM processor is desired, then you start with ARM's roadmap.
For example, here is the ARM7 web page.
Two notable observations:
First, main headline on page is about migration, and second is advice to not use for new designs.
http://www.arm.com/products/processors/classic/arm7/index.php
So, we scratch ARM7, since N8VEM users would desire a longer processor life (supported Linux version, etc.) and not immediate extinction.
That leaves the ARM9 and the ARM11.
The ARM11 is popular with mobile phones, a range of SoCs and various OEM products.
The ARM9 has been most successful, so far, and has replaced the ARM7 for entry designs.
The "who" takes a bit longer to sort out, and involves more than hardware mfg.
You may laugh, but one "bell-weather" that I routinely check is the automotive industry, especially last 20 years.
The reason is longevity of support for successful implementations.
Freescale is the old Motorola Texas/Arizona processor/IC/transistor division, and the Motorola auto fabrication/car module engineering & assembly was bought by another company.
Freescale has an ARM9 series, but I have not looked at it.
I do note that Ubuntu (Linux) dropped support at 10.10 for Freescale i.MX (ARM9).
That is the wildcard ... OS support and the software development community support (earlier comments along same line).
Labor Day weekend may permit more time for research.
greg
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