Ubuntu 20.04 System Released for TI AM6254, Rich Software Ecosystem Facilitates Rapid Application Development

Introduction

With the advancement of embedded systems, more and more developers are seeking mature and user-friendly software ecosystems to accelerate product development. The TI AM6254 processor, a high-performance, low-power SoC, offers excellent computational capabilities and a rich set of peripheral interfaces. Now, we have released the Ubuntu 20.04 operating system for the AM6254, bringing robust Linux ecosystem support and making application development more convenient.

1. Advantages of the Ubuntu System

Ubuntu, as a globally widely-used Linux distribution, is an ideal choice for developers due to its stability, strong software support, and vibrant community ecosystem. Running Ubuntu on the AM6254 platform offers the following advantages:

●Powerful Software Ecosystem: Supports a wide range of software packages, development tools, and libraries, suitable for various application scenarios.

●Efficient Development Environment: Built-in development tools such as GCC, Python, and Docker, facilitating application building and debugging.

●Long-Term Support (LTS) Version: Stable, secure, and backed by long-term community maintenance, ensuring continuous application availability.

●Excellent Hardware Compatibility: Full support for various peripherals of the AM6254, such as GPIO, I2C, SPI, UART, and CAN, making it suitable for industrial automation, edge computing, IoT, and more.

Figure 1: Ubuntu 22.04

2. Ubuntu 22.04 Version for AM6254

We provide an optimized Ubuntu version for the TI AM6254 processor, specifically designed for embedded applications, with the following features:

●Lightweight system image, optimized for storage usage and boot speed.

●Pre-installed TI official SDK and related drivers, ensuring full hardware functionality support.

●Support for Wayland and Weston display servers, enhancing GUI performance.

●Optional Docker and AI/ML acceleration libraries, suitable for edge computing and AI applications.

3. TI AM62x Heterogeneous Multi-Core Platform

The TI Sitara AM62x series features single/dual/quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 + single-core ARM Cortex-M4F multi-core processors. The ARM Cortex-A53 (64-bit) main processing unit runs at up to 1.4GHz, while the ARM Cortex-M4F real-time processing unit runs at up to 400MHz. Weixinke's industrial evaluation board (WTB-AM62XXS) based on AM62x offers rich interface resources, supporting 2 Ethernet ports (both with TSN support), 2 CAN-FD ports, multiple UART ports, multiple DI/DO ports, GPMC, USB, MIPI, LVDS LCD, HDMI, and more, meeting customer project evaluation needs!

4. Typical Application Areas for AM62x

The Ubuntu system based on AM6254 is suitable for various industries and application scenarios, including but not limited to those shown in the figure below.

Figure 2: AM62x Application Scenarios

5. Ubuntu System Boot Demonstration

Ubuntu: Ubuntu 22.04

Linux Processor SDK: ti-processor-sdk-linux-am62xx-evm-09.02.07

U-Boot: U-Boot-2023.04

Kernel: Linux-6.1.80

This article demonstrates using the Weixinke WTC-AM62XXS core board (based on TI AM62x) hardware platform. To simplify the description, only part of the content is excerpted.

Connect the evaluation board's debug serial port to the PC using a Type-C cable, open the SecureCRT serial terminal, select the corresponding COM port, and establish a serial connection. Power on the evaluation board, and the system will automatically log in as the root user. The serial terminal will print startup information similar to the following.

Figure 3: Ubuntu Serial Terminal

Figure 4: Ubuntu Desktop

Conclusion

The release of the Ubuntu system for TI AM6254 provides developers with a stable and efficient development environment, making application development faster and more convenient. With Ubuntu's rich software ecosystem and strong hardware support, users can more easily build various embedded and industrial applications.