Iar Systems supports ARM Cortex-M0+ and Freescale’s Kinetis L series

UPPSALA, SWEDEN: IAR Systems announced that its highly-optimizing C/C++ compiler and debugger tool suite IAR Embedded Workbench now supports the new ARM Cortex-M0+ core and Freescale Semiconductors’ recently announced Kinetis L series.

The ARM Cortex-M0+ processor combines energy-efficiency with high performance. It is suitable for use in applications for intelligent sensing and control in home appliances, medical monitoring equipment, smart meters, lighting and motor control systems.

Flash memory size is a key factor in determining system cost and power consumption, and the need for the smallest possible code size is evident. Thanks to its advanced optimization intelligence, the IAR C/C++ compiler produces extremely compact code. For ARM Cortex-M0 microcontrollers, the code generated is overall 30 percent smaller in standard benchmarks than for open-source alternatives.

“Freescale’s Kinetis L family is the first in the industry to offer products integrating the new ARM Cortex-M0+ core to ease migration from 8-bit to entry-level 32-bit solutions,” said Jeff Bock, director of Marketing for Freescale’s Industrial and Multi-Market Microcontrollers.

“The new ARM Cortex-M0+ core maintains compatibility with all other Cortex-M-class processors, allowing designers to reuse their existing compilers and debug tools. IAR Embedded Workbench will help our customers leverage the full benefits of the Kinetis L Series to create smarter, smaller, more energy-efficient embedded applications by generating the smallest possible, highly optimized code.”

In addition to providing advanced and highly efficient optimization features, IAR Embedded Workbench for ARM is easy to use, highly integrated with hardware, RTOS products, and middleware, and offers the world’s broadest support for ARM MCUs, currently more than 2000 devices.

IAR Embedded Workbench for ARM is available in several versions, including a product package that is designed specifically for ARM Cortex-M core families.