ADSPkärnor

ADSPkärnor are a family of digital signal processing cores developed by Analog Devices (ADI). They are used in embedded systems to perform real-time DSP tasks such as audio processing, telecommunications, motor control, and imaging. The term encompasses several major lineages, including SHARC (32‑bit floating- and fixed-point cores), TigerSHARC (high-performance variants), SHARC+ improvements, and Blackfin (a 16/32‑bit hybrid designed for low power and tight integration).

Architectural characteristics: SHARC families typically employ a Harvard-style architecture with separate instruction and data pathways, multiple MAC units, and a pipelined, VLIW-like instruction model to exploit instruction-level parallelism. They emphasize floating-point performance and large-kernel DSP routines. Blackfin cores mix 16- and 32-bit data paths, integrate peripherals and memory controllers on-chip, and target lower cost and power budgets while maintaining DSP throughput.

Development: ADI provides software tools such as VisualDSP++ (historical) and CrossCore Embedded Studio for compiling code, debugging, and profiling; along with optimized libraries for audio and communications; evaluation boards and reference designs.

Applications: ADSPkärnor are used in audio codecs, equalizers, reconfigurable filters, echo cancellation, telecommunications, motor control, and imaging tasks such as sonar and radar processing.

Lifecycle and market: The SHARC family remains widely used in professional audio, automotive, and telecom equipment; Blackfin found demand in consumer electronics and embedded devices but has seen reduced focus in newer designs. ADI continues to offer SHARC-based devices and toolchains with ongoing support, while legacy Blackfin devices remain in service. CrossCore Embedded Studio provides a unified development environment for these cores.