Echelon Mini FX - Manual (Page 34)

Mini FX User's Guide 21
Figure 1.6 Functional Profile
When a functional block is created from a functional profile, the application designer can
determine which of the optional configuration properties and network variables to
implement. With some functional profiles, you can control certain aspects of the
implementation such as the network variable type, or the size of a configuration property
array.
Hardware Templates
A hardware template is a file with a .NbHwt extension that defines the hardware
configuration for a device. It specifies hardware attributes that include the transceiver
type, Neuron Chip or Smart Transceiver model, clock speed, system image, and memory
configuration. Several hardware templates are included with the Mini kit. You can use
these or create your own. Third-party development platform suppliers may also include
hardware templates for their platforms.
Neuron C
Neuron C is a programming language, based on ANSI C, used to develop applications for
devices that use a Neuron Chip or Smart Transceiver as the application processor.
Neuron C includes extensions for network communication, device configuration,
hardware I/O, interrupt handling, and event-driven scheduling.
Device Templates
A device template defines a device type. The Mini kit generates a NodeBuilder device
template (.NbDt extension) that specifies the information required for the NodeBuilder
tool to build the application for a device. It contains a list of the application Neuron C
source files, device-related preferences, and the hardware template name. The
NodeBuilder device template is automatically generated, managed, and removed by the
Mini FX application, unless a matching NodeBuilder device template already exists (for
example, an existing NodeBuilder project includes the device template). In this case,