NXP Announces MCUXpresso Software and Tools, Unifies Development Support for its Microcontroller Powerhouse Portfolio

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 24, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ARM TECH CONFERENCE 2016 -- NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NASDAQ:NXPI) today announced MCUXpresso software and tools, a new common toolkit for Kinetis and LPC microcontrollers (MCUs) designed to significantly reduce development effort, time, and cost by providing embedded designers with high-quality tools that work seamlessly together and in conjunction with the best tools from the ARM® Cortex®-M ecosystem.

The planned release of MCUXpresso software and tools unifies thousands of Kinetis and LPC microcontrollers under a set of compatible tools that include: an open-source software development kit (SDK) with drivers, stacks, middleware and application examples; an easy-to-use integrated development environment (IDE) for editing, compiling and debugging; and a suite of system configuration tools for power optimization, pin multiplexing, system clocking, and more.

“We continue to listen and address the needs of the developer community. By unifying the development experience across our MCUs, we’re making Kinetis and LPC MCUs a true powerhouse portfolio for complete solutions,” said Geoff Lees, senior vice president and general manager of the microcontroller business line at NXP. “With MCUXpresso software and tools, customers can experience shorter design times and reduced development investment with greater flexibility to move across NXP’s comprehensive offering of ARM Cortex-M based controllers, without ever changing their toolset.”

MCUXpresso IDE

The MCUXpresso IDE merges the best of the popular LPCXpresso and Kinetis Design Studio IDEs into one easy-to-use integrated development environment for Kinetis and LPC MCUs. The MCUXpresso IDE offers basic editing, compiling and debugging features with the addition of MCU-specific debugging views, code trace and profiling, multicore debugging, and more. Full-featured, free and low-cost professional editions will be available with debug connections to support Freedom, Tower, LPCXpresso boards and custom hardware platforms.

Expected availability is planned for March 2017. Learn more at: www.nxp.com/mcuxpresso/ide

MCUXpresso SDK

The MCUXpresso SDK is a pre-integrated and thoroughly tested collection of open-source software components for Kinetis and LPC devices with a growing set of sensor, NFC and connectivity stacks and drivers. Delivered as a package of user-selected components, developers can download an SDK built upon their MCU and evaluation board selection, software components, and preferred IDE. The MCUXpresso SDK, formerly known as the “Kinetis SDK”,  is MISRA-compliant, utilizes static analysis tools, and includes system startup, peripheral drivers,  wireless and wired connectivity stacks, middleware, real-time operating systems (RTOS), getting started guides, API documentation, driver and middleware usage examples and demo applications.

The MCUXpresso SDK comes with built-in support for the MCUXpresso IDE as well as other leading toolchains in the ARM ecosystem including IAR Embedded Workbench, ARM® Keil® MDK™, Atollic® TrueSTUDIO®, SOMNIUM® DRT, and more.

Available now. Learn more at: www.nxp.com/mcuxpresso

MCUXpresso config tools

The MCUXpresso config tools bring together a suite of system configuration tools, including an SDK builder, pins tool, clocks tool, and power estimator, with more tools planned for release in 2017. The MCUXpresso config tools help guide users from first evaluation to production software development.

Available in online and desktop editions, the MCUXpresso config tools include:

• An SDK Builder enabling custom-built SDKs for specific MCUs or evaluation boards. It also helps direct users to other development resources for the selected targets.
• A graphical pins tool to assist with routing of internal signals to external pins.  Pins tool offers real-time feedback to help optimize MCU pin utilization and avoid I/O conflicts resulting in ANSI-C source that drops into the MCUXpresso SDK environment.
• A clocks tool with a graphical representation of the MCU clock tree system and interactive user controls as well as assistance with system fine-tuning.
• A power estimation tool to allow quick application modeling and assessment of power consumption under user-defined operating parameters.

Planned availability in November 2016. Learn more at www.nxp.com/mcuxpresso/config

NXP Powerhouse Portfolio of MCUs

NXP’s powerhouse portfolio of Kinetis and LPC MCUs represent the broadest selections of ARM®-based solutions for the general market, all while delivering efficient application performance and a better developer experience. This portfolio is built on a common foundation of core technologies that address various market use cases for an optimized design; enhanced connectivity and control features, intelligent peripherals for added functionality and a myriad of package options.

Learn More: www.nxp.com/mcuxpresso

About NXP
NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NASDAQ:NXPI) enables secure connections and infrastructure for a smarter world, advancing solutions that make lives easier, better and safer. As the world leader in secure connectivity solutions for embedded applications, NXP is driving innovation in the secure connected vehicle, end-to-end security & privacy and smart connected solutions markets. Built on more than 60 years of combined experience and expertise, the company has 44,000 employees in more than 35 countries and posted revenue of $6.1 billion in 2015. Find out more at www.nxp.com.

NXP, NXP logo, Kinetis and TOWER are trademarks of NXP B.V. All other product or service names are the property of their respective owners. ARM and Cortex are registered trademarks of ARM Limited (or its subsidiaries) in the EU and/or elsewhere. All rights reserved. © 2016 NXP B.V.

For more information, please contact:AmericasTate TranTel: +1 408-802-0602Email: tate.tran@nxp.comEuropeMartijn van der LindenTel: +31 6 10914896Email: martijn.van.der.linden@nxp.comGreater China / AsiaEsther ChangTel: +886 2 8170 9990Email: esther.chang@nxp.com

NXP Semiconductors Netherlands B.V.