The MERLIN eCos Development Kit is a new development kit for the 25-MHz, 386EX-based MERLIN. It is fully supported with the eCos embedded operating system. eCos is an open source, royalty-free, real-time operating system built with a TCP/IP stack and a selection of network applications such as an HTTP server, FTP client, TFTP client/server, and an SNMP agent. The highly configurable nature of eCos allows the operating system to be customized to precise application requirements, delivering the best possible runtime performance with absolutely no associated runtime or development tool costs. The eCos-based application uses RedBoot to load and run the image from embedded flash memory as well as provide a reliable download mechanism using one of the serial ports (X or Y modem protocol) or the Ethernet channel (using TFTP). For unattended or automated startup, boot scripts can be stored in flash memory to allow a new eCos image to be remotely loaded from a TFTP server.

The MERLIN SBC is a low-cost, small-footprint SBC that features the Intel 25-MHz 386EX CPU, along with three serial ports (two RS-232 and one RS-422/485), 10baseT Ethernet, 2-MB DRAM, 1-MB flash memory, 512-KB battery-backed SRAM, a real-time clock, and an on-board 8- to 18-VDC (or 10 to16 VAC) power supply. The board also includes an I/O expansion port for driving custom I/O, an on-board 48-bit unique ID device, and a battery.

The complete development kit includes the MERLIN SBC, power supply, Ethernet and serial cables, the Quickstart manual, and a comprehensive CD loaded with all the application development tools (GCC compiler and GDB debugger) for both Windows- and Linux-based host systems. The MERLIN eCos Development Kit costs $312.

Arcom
(888) 941-2224
www.arcom.com