ARM Cortex M3 - Actel SmartFusion

The ARM Cortex M3 - Actel SmartFusion is a perfect blend of analog I/O, ARM Cortex M3 and an FPGA.  This combination, along with the low power of the SmartFusion make it ideal for a broad set of applications.  It is fully supported with the ultra tiny embedded Linux and POSIX compatible Unison Operating System. SmartFusion has the full set of features of Unison V4 and V5 off the shelf.

The Unison V4 release on ARM Cortex M3-Actel SmartFusion is now in an open source distribution mode for SmartFusion. It offers the following features:

  • full POSIX class 1 and class 2 compatibility
  • Linux compatibility (v 2.6)
  • basic kernel with mutexes, semaphores, pthreads, message queues, interrupt handling, memory management, timers, clock features and more
  • complete I/O model for both file I/O and socket I/O
  • multi-media file system
  • microkernel architecture
  • TCP/IP stack with DHCP client *
  • serial I/O
  • buffered I/O using the stdio library
  • good documentation
  • FREE of GPL contaimination
  • extensive testing with industry standardized test suites
  • FREE development 
  • FREE deployment 
  • Community support
  • Optional OS RTOS Object Viewer for SoftScope

View the Unison 4 datasheet here.

The Unison V5 offering on ARM Cortex M3-Actel SmartFusion is available only in a commercial license. In addition to V4, it offers the following features, off the shelf, configured for SmartFusion:

  • Advanced kernel features like barriers, conditional variables, utilization measurement and more.
  • Advanced components
    • FAT File System
    • NAND/NOR File System
    • Telnet
    • Posh – POSIX shell
    • tftpd
    • thttpd
    • NAT & PAT
    • SLIP and PPP
    • DHCPServer
    • Power On Self Test (POST)
  • Consulting
  • Support by the hour
  • FREE Trial license
  • Exceptional Documentation
  • Training courses
  • FREE source code
  • OS Object Viewer for use with SoftScope

View the Actel SmartFusion Unison 5.1 datasheet here.

View the Actel Unison 4 and Unison 5 comparison here.

In the past, embedded operating systems have been priced to sell in OECD markets. The Unison SmartFusion offering has world pricing. It is a cost effective approach in the lowest cost venues in the world as well as the most expensive venues. This opens the door for users in OECD countries to get a superior offering for a fraction of the traditional prices for substitute products and allows developers in other countries to use the very best and most reliabile software offerings at prices they can afford and that make sense given their economics.

Additional components for version 5 of Unison are planned. These components are expected to provide the following features: wireless connectivity,  motor control, CAN, USB, Diagnostics and motion control. Unison is a fully POSIX and Linux compliant OS with the ability to easily port applications from Linux and other POSIX environments to it. It has all the necessary features to provide support for the following applications:

  • Advanced connectivity and networking
  • Wireless sensor networks
  • Appliances
  • Home automation
  • Clean tech and Smart Grid components
  • Automobile and vehicle automation
  • and much more

Try the ARM Cortex M3- Actel SmartFusion Unison version today!

 *  TCP/IP for Unison V4 is available for non commercial use FREE and with a commercial license which must be purchased.