PortAsm/56600 for Star*Core

PortAsm/56600 for Star*Core is a tool which translates programs written in DSP56600-family assembly language into efficient, optimized, and maintainable Star*Core assembly language, to run native on Star*Core DSP processors. It provides a fast, easy and reliable way to port DSP56600 assembler to the Star*Core architecture, avoiding the need for a lengthy and difficult re-write, which can introduce new bugs into a mature body of source code. It can be used either for applications written wholly in assembler, or for translating the assembler portions of applications written partly in assembler and partly in a high-level language such as C.

PortAsm analyzes the original source code, and separates the semantic meaning of DSP56600 instructions or sequences of instructions from irrelevant side effects such as condition code updates which are not needed. After expanding macros and tokenizing the source file, PortAsm/56600:

• Examines the DSP56600 instructions in detail, analyzing content and program flow.
• Maps DSP56600 registers on to Star*Core registers, optimizing over blocks of code.
• Replaces sequences of DSP56600 instructions with efficient Star*Core equivalents.
• Reproduces only the required behaviour of the DSP56600 code, eliminating irrelevant side-effects as much as possible.
• Adapts the code to fit into the target runtime environment.
• Generates interface glue for calls to and from native high-level code.
• Outputs a translated Star*Core assembler source file, optionally retaining comments.
• Optionally outputs additional debugging directives.

Features

• Powerful, easy-to-use source-code analyzer and optimizing code generator.
• Produces easy-to-read Star*Core assembler source code that uses the original symbolic labels and variable names.
• Retains the original DSP56600 code in the output file as comments, making the translation process transparent and aiding debugging (the original comments may also be retained).
• Users can include hand-written Star*Core assembler in the original DSP56600 source, which with conditional assembly directives makes it easy to maintain a single source base for both DSP56600 and Star*Core targets.
• Powerful code generation optimizations can be selectively enabled/disabled.
• Automatic generation of interface glue for calling out to or being called from native C code. Includes support for both Gnu and Tasking DSP56600 calling conventions.
• Integrates into the standard build process for easy code maintenance after the initial port.
• Supports source-level debugging, using the original DSP56600 code as source, making debugging very simple even for users who have limited Star*Core knowledge.

And, best of all, thanks to a special agreement between MicroAPL and Freescale Semiconductor (now NXP), PortAsm/56600 for Star*Core is available free of charge! Please contact us for details.