The AM335x microprocessors, based on the ARM Cortex-A8 processor, are enhanced with image, graphics processing, peripherals and industrial interface options such as EtherCAT and PROFIBUS. The devices support high-level operating systems (HLOS). Processor SDK Linux® and TI-RTOS are available free of charge from TI.

The AM335x microprocessor contains the subsystems shown in the Functional Block Diagram and a brief description of each follows:

The contains the subsystems shown in the Functional Block Diagram and a brief description of each follows:

The microprocessor unit (MPU) subsystem is based on the ARM Cortex-A8 processor and the PowerVR SGX™ Graphics Accelerator subsystem provides 3D graphics acceleration to support display and gaming effects.

The PRU-ICSS is separate from the ARM core, allowing independent operation and clocking for greater efficiency and flexibility. The PRU-ICSS enables additional peripheral interfaces and real-time protocols such as EtherCAT, PROFINET, EtherNet/IP, PROFIBUS, Ethernet Powerlink, Sercos, and others. Additionally, the programmable nature of the PRU-ICSS, along with its access to pins, events and all system-on-chip (SoC) resources, provides flexibility in implementing fast, real-time responses, specialized data handling operations, custom peripheral interfaces, and in offloading tasks from the other processor cores of SoC.