Download Beyond Handsets: Android Platform Picking up

Beyond Handsets: Android Platform Picking up Major Chip and Tools Supporters
by Tom Williams, Editor-in-Chief
The Android platform, originally developed by Google and the Open Handset alliance, is coming
out of the handset and is poised to turn up in a wide range of devices aimed at the digital home
and beyond. While Android is an open-source product, major companies are now releasing their
own proven source code and offering development tools.
Mentor Graphics has unveiled its Android and Linux strategy, including the acquisition of
Embedded Alley, a specialist in Android and Linux development systems. By combining
Embedded Alley’s Android and Linux products and services with the Mentor Graphics Nucleus
real-time operating system (RTOS), tools and middleware, Mentor can now provide device
manufacturers with the software they need to build their products.
MIPS Technologies has also recently announced that it has met a key milestone in driving the
Android platform beyond mobile handsets. Two months after announcing its port of the Android
platform to the MIPS architecture, the company is making the source code publicly available.
MIPS Technologies also initiated an Early Access Program for a small group of key customers
who will have access to specific hardware and code optimizations before they are publicly
available. These customers will work closely with MIPS’ engineering team, providing critical
feedback and market expertise. MIPS Technologies plans to announce initial Early Access
customers shortly.
“We are seeing an enormous amount of customer interest in Android on the MIPS architecture,”
said Art Swift, vice president of marketing, MIPS Technologies. “Android presents a compelling
value proposition in bringing Internet connectivity and a broad range of applications to MIPSbased digital home devices. We are working closely with customers and partners to ensure that
critical technologies are available for developers to take advantage of Android for consumer
electronics.”
“Mentor’s strategy acknowledges two strong trends we see in embedded device development
today,” stated Glenn Perry, Mentor Graphics Embedded Systems Division general manager.
“One is a huge demand for Google’s Android platform in new, complex devices beyond the
mobile phones for which Android was originally developed. The other is the growing use on
multicore processors of multiple operating systems, usually Linux and an RTOS like Nucleus.”
MIPS and its partners last week outlined their progress in taking Android beyond mobile
handsets during forums in Taiwan and Japan. At the Japan forum—sponsored by the OESF—
MIPS Technologies’ long-time partner D2 Technologies demonstrated its mCUE converged
communications client for Android-based devices. The demonstration showed how embedded
software products such as mCUE can enable VoIP, video chat and other IP communications in
Android-based embedded equipment and consumer electronics devices. The MIPS ecosystem
around Android, including tools from partners like Viosoft Corporation and Mentor Graphics
Corporation, enables OEMs to quickly optimize Android for their specific platforms and debug
their solutions across the entire software stack.
Mentor’s Android, Linux and Nucleus ecosystem for Android- and Linux-based devices is
supported by leading semiconductor partners, including ARM, Freescale, Marvell, MIPS, RMI
and Texas Instruments. Mentor has also announced support for the ARM Mali graphics
processing unit family, Freescale Power Architecture processors and Marvell Sheeva MV78200
Dual-core Embedded Processors. Embedded Alley was the first to market commercial Android
tools and services in May 2009, for the RMI Au1250 SoC and the MIPS architecture.