DIMS Foundry - Very Small Platform // Standard

		Introduction The picotux 100 is the world's smallest Linux computer, only slightly larger (35mm×19mm×19mm) than an RJ45 connector.
On the picotux website, the following description of this diminutive Linux platform can be found: -"The picotux 100 is the world's smallest Linux computer, only slightly larger (35mm×19mm×19mm) than an RJ45 connector. Inside, there is an ARM7 CPU at 55 MHz running uClinux kernel 2.4.27 and Busybox 1.0. Two communication interfaces are provided, 10/100 Mbit half/full duplex Ethernet and a serial port with up to 230.400 baud. Five additional lines can be used for either general input/output or serial handshaking."
		For a reasonably low price for hardware - and with a free set of tools and a free, open source operating system - you can start to develop networked applications with this devices. It is an interesting demonstration of how versatile the embedded linux platform realy is, and a good example of the growing number of embedded systems, exploiting the possibilities of embedded linux.
The hardware platform Below the humble surface of the picotux 100, you'll find the following specifications: Processor: 32-bit ARM 7 Netsilicon NS7520 Processor Clock: 55 MHz Flash Memory: 2 MB RAM: 8 MB SDRAM Ethernet: 10/100 Mbit, HD and FD, auto sensing Serial: Up to 230.400 bps GPIO Pins: 5, can be used as Handshake LED for Ethernet: 2; green (programmable) and yellow (Carrier) The NS7520 CPU is an ARM7TDMI 32-bit RISC processor core. It is a chip without a MMU. It runs directly on the physical addresses, and there is no swap options. The NS7520 includes a 10/100Base-T Ethernet MAC and two independent serial ports - of which at least one is accessible on the picotux development board.520 includes a 10/100Base-T Ethernet MAC and two independent serial ports - of which at least one is accessible on the picotux development board. The software platform Operating System: uClinux 2.4.27 Big Endian (native) Shell: Busybox 1.0 and others File Systems: CRAMFS, JFFS2, NFS Applications: Webserver, Telnet Size of the Linux Systems in Flash: 720 KB and more Protected Bootloader for Update over Network: 64 KB Code Development System: GNU Tool chain Compiler: GCC 3.4.4 for C/C++ and Fortran Binutils: 2.15 Library: uClibc 0.9.26 From the uClinux website (www.uclinux.com) the following describtion of uClinux can be found: -"The Linux/Microcontroller project is a port of Linux to systems without a Memory Management Unit (MMU). Pronounced "you-see-linux", the name uClinux comes from combining the greek letter "mu" and the english capital "C". "Mu" stands for "micro", and the "C" is for "controller". uClinux first ported to the Motorola MC68328: DragonBall Integrated Microprocessor. [..] The original uClinux was a derivative of Linux 2.0 kernel intended for microcontrollers without Memory Management Units (MMUs). However, the Linux/Microcontroller Project has grown both in brand recognition and coverage of processor architectures. Today's uClinux as an operating system includes Linux kernel releases for 2.0 2.4 and 2.6 as well as a collection of user applications, libraries and tool chains. " Links to software If we are allowed, we will link to software supplied by Kleinhenz here. uClinux website: www.uclinux.com. How to get started If you want to get started with the picotux, you must contact Kleinhenz Elektronik GmbH in germany. On the picotux website, you can order different starter-kits. Find a starter-kit that suits your geographic area (power adapter wise) and memory needs (RAM wise). On the accompanying CDRom, the following files will be available: Picotux Programmers Manual (pt100Prog.pdf) Picotux 100 Hardware Manual (pt100Hw.pdf) Reference Manual for NS7520 (NS7520_Hardware_Reference.pdf) Colinux package (coLinux-0.6.2.exe) Busybox Reference (busybox.html) TFTP32 tool for DHCP and Download (Tftp32.zip) Tool chain for picotux(binary) (picotux-toolchain.tar.bz2) Toll chain and Kernel source (picotux-sourcen.tar.bz2) The Image for CoLinux (picotux.zip) Three images for being downloaded to the picotux: - System-small.elf - System-netboot.elf - System-xmastree.elf To make a local development station with a Linux PC "wired" to a picotux - you need to go through the following steps on your development machine: disable firewall - or allow dhcp, tftp enable dhcp enable tftp enable nfs Demo application Here the famous "Blinking leds" demo application is described. How to contribute or learn more Here, information about how to contribute will be available. Go to DIMS Foundry frontpage.