Embedded Linux as a Platform for Dynamically Self-Reconfiguring Systems-On-Chip

Abstract

We have previously argued the benefits of embedded Linux as an operating system platform for reconfigurable system-on-chip design. In this paper we describe our approach to building tools for the implementation of dynamically and self-reconfigurable systems, and show that embedded Linux is a natural and powerful platform on which to build these tools. We present examples and demonstrations that show how complex operations such as obtaining partial bit streams from remote servers and initiating reconfiguration are achieved with a single line of Linux shell script.