Best Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) in South America

VxWorks®, a leading real-time operating platform in the industry, provides all the performance, reliability, safety and security capabilities you need for the most critical infrastructure's embedded computing systems. VxWorks is a preemptive, deterministic RTOS that prioritizes real-time embedded applications. It has low latency and minimaljitter. VxWorks has many security features that address the evolving security threats connected devices face at every stage, from boot-up to operation to data transfer to powered off. VxWorks has been certified to IEC 61508, ISO 26262, and DO-178C safety standards. VxWorks is built on an extensible, future-proof architecture that allows you to quickly respond to changing market demands, customer needs, technological advancements, and preserves your investment.

Developed in collaboration with top chip manufacturers over a span of 15 years, FreeRTOS is now downloaded approximately every 170 seconds and stands as a top-tier real-time operating system (RTOS) tailored for microcontrollers and small microprocessors. Available at no cost under the MIT open source license, FreeRTOS encompasses a kernel along with an expanding collection of IoT libraries that cater to various industries. Prioritizing reliability and user-friendliness, FreeRTOS is renowned for its proven durability, minimal footprint, and extensive device compatibility, making it the go-to standard for microcontroller and small microprocessor applications among leading global enterprises. With a wealth of pre-configured demos and IoT reference integrations readily available, users can easily set up their projects without any hassle. This streamlined process allows for rapid downloading, compiling, and quicker market entry. Furthermore, the ecosystem of partners offers a diverse range of options, including both community-driven contributions and professional support, ensuring that users have access to the resources they need for success. As technology continues to evolve, FreeRTOS remains committed to adapting and enhancing its offerings to meet the ever-changing demands of the industry.

Arm Mbed OS is an open-source operating system tailored for IoT applications, providing all the essential tools for creating IoT devices. This robust OS is equipped to support smart and connected products built on Arm Cortex-M architecture, offering features such as machine learning, secure connectivity stacks, an RTOS kernel, and drivers for various sensors and I/O devices. Specifically designed for the Internet of Things, Arm Mbed OS integrates capabilities in connectivity, machine learning, networking, and security, complemented by a wealth of software libraries, development boards, tutorials, and practical examples. It fosters collaboration across a vast ecosystem, supporting over 70 partners in silicon, modules, cloud services, and OEMs, thereby enhancing choices for developers. By leveraging the Mbed OS API, developers can maintain clean, portable, and straightforward application code while benefiting from advanced security, communication, and machine learning functionalities. This cohesive solution ultimately streamlines the development process, significantly lowering costs, minimizing time investment, and reducing associated risks. Furthermore, Mbed OS empowers innovation, enabling developers to rapidly prototype and deploy IoT solutions with confidence.

RT-Thread, short for Real Time-Thread, is an embedded real-time multi-threaded operating system. It has been designed to support multi-tasking, allowing multiple tasks to run simultaneously. Although a processor core can only run one task at a time, RT-Thread executes every task quickly and switches between them rapidly according to priority, creating the illusion of simultaneous task execution. RT-Thread is mainly written in the C programming language, making it easy to understand and port. It applies object-oriented programming methods to real-time system design, resulting in elegant, structured, modular, and highly customizable code. The system comes in a few varieties. The NANO version is a minimal kernel that requires only 3KB of flash and 1.2KB of RAM. For resource-rich IoT devices, RT-Thread can use an online software package management tool, together with system configuration tools, to achieve an intuitive and rapid modular design.

LynxOS has been utilized in countless embedded devices, demonstrating dependable performance for over three decades in various safety and security-sensitive markets. This operating system offers a proven method for running applications within a Unix-like environment, where a unified kernel manages all resources and application services, making it particularly effective for hardware designs that were developed before the advent of virtualization. We aim to ensure our customers purchase only what is necessary for their specific needs. While real-time operating systems (RTOS) can deliver significant advantages, they are not essential for every embedded system configuration. For a more extensive overview of our resources related to RTOS, we invite you to explore our Embedded Systems Learning Center, which provides valuable information to assist you in making informed software purchasing choices as you design or enhance your system and evaluate potential real-time platform vendors. Moreover, this center is a great resource to help you understand the trade-offs and benefits associated with various embedded system approaches.

Tizen is a versatile and open-source operating system designed from its inception to meet the diverse requirements of all participants in the mobile and connected device landscape, which encompasses manufacturers, mobile network operators, app developers, and independent software vendors (ISVs). This platform is utilized commercially across various devices, including smart TVs, smartphones, wearable technology like the Gear S and Gear Fit, as well as smart home gadgets. Despite its broad applications, there has been a notable lack of focus on entry-level and budget-friendly IoT devices, such as home appliances that lack displays and wearable bands featuring minimal LCD screens. The aim of TizenRT is to broaden the reach of the Tizen platform to include these types of low-end devices, thereby enhancing its versatility and accommodating a wider array of connected technologies. By doing so, TizenRT hopes to foster innovation and accessibility in the IoT market, ensuring that even the simplest devices can benefit from advanced connectivity.

Huawei LiteOS is a software platform designed specifically for the Internet of Things (IoT), combining an operating system with middleware. With a remarkably small kernel size of less than 10 KB, it operates efficiently on minimal power, capable of lasting up to five years on a single AA battery. Its quick startup time and secure connectivity features further enhance its usability. These attributes position Huawei LiteOS as an effective one-stop solution for developers, facilitating easier entry into the market and expediting product launch timelines. The platform offers a cohesive open-source API applicable across various IoT sectors, including smart homes, wearables, the Internet of Vehicles, and smart manufacturing. By fostering an open IoT ecosystem, Huawei LiteOS empowers partners to innovate swiftly and propel the development of IoT solutions forward. Its versatility and reliability make it an essential tool in the rapidly evolving landscape of IoT technology.

OpenWrt is an adaptable GNU/Linux distribution designed specifically for embedded devices, especially wireless routers. In contrast to many other router distributions, OpenWrt is engineered from the ground up to function as a comprehensive and easily customizable operating system for embedded systems. This design philosophy ensures that users can access all essential features without unnecessary bloat, thanks to its reliance on a modern Linux kernel. Rather than offering a single, unchangeable firmware, OpenWrt features a fully writable filesystem accompanied by optional package management. This versatility liberates users from the limitations imposed by manufacturers regarding application choices and configurations, allowing for tailored modifications to meet any specific application needs. Furthermore, for developers, OpenWrt serves as a robust framework that enables the creation of applications without the necessity of building an entire firmware image or distribution around them, thus simplifying the development process. Ultimately, this makes OpenWrt an appealing choice for both end-users and developers alike.

FreeRTOS is a real-time operating system that is open source and tailored for microcontrollers, simplifying the programming, deployment, security, connectivity, and management of small, low-power edge devices. Available at no cost under the MIT open source license, FreeRTOS features a kernel alongside an expanding array of software libraries that cater to various industries and applications. This system allows seamless and secure integration of compact, low-energy devices with AWS Cloud services, such as AWS IoT Core, as well as with more robust edge devices running AWS IoT Greengrass. Designed with a focus on both reliability and user-friendliness, FreeRTOS provides the assurance of long-term support releases, making it an attractive choice for developers. Microcontrollers, which are characterized by their simple and resource-limited processors, can be found in a diverse range of products, from home appliances and sensors to fitness trackers, industrial automation systems, and vehicles. As the demand for efficient and manageable IoT solutions grows, FreeRTOS remains a crucial tool for developers working in this expanding field.

Nucleus® RTOS empowers system developers to meet the intricate demands of modern embedded designs. By combining a robust kernel with essential tooling features, Nucleus is perfectly suited for applications that prioritize scalability, connectivity, security, power efficiency, and reliable deterministic performance. This real-time operating system is not only proven and dependable but also fully optimized for various applications. It has demonstrated success in demanding sectors that require stringent safety and security standards, including industrial systems, medical devices, airborne systems, and automotive applications. Nucleus features a stable deterministic kernel designed to occupy minimal memory, complemented by a lightweight process model that enhances memory partitioning. Additionally, it supports dynamic loading and unloading of processes, allowing for increased modularity in applications, thus providing developers with the flexibility needed for diverse project requirements. This adaptability ensures that Nucleus RTOS can effectively cater to the evolving landscape of embedded technology.

We work alongside both open-source communities and commercial entities to ensure that MIPS is well-supported across many leading Real Time Operating Systems (RTOS) as well as emerging IoT-targeted Operating Systems. Furthermore, we have created the MIPS Embedded Operating System (MEOS), which incorporates Virtualization extensions specifically designed for deeply embedded applications and the IoT sector. As MIPS’ proprietary real-time operating system, MEOS is prioritized for updates, ensuring it is the first to incorporate new cores and architectural advancements. The latest release, version 3.1, introduces a virtualization library that transforms MEOS into a hypervisor compatible with MIPS cores featuring the MIPS Virtualization module. Additionally, we are committed to fostering the development of open-source real-time and IoT operating systems by providing engineering resources and supplying necessary development hardware and tools whenever feasible. This collaborative approach not only enhances the ecosystem but also accelerates innovation in the field.

Ranging from basic embedded environmental sensors and LED wearables to advanced embedded controllers, smartwatches, and IoT wireless applications, this system incorporates configurable architecture-specific stack-overflow protection, kernel object and device driver permission tracking, and thread isolation enhanced by thread-level memory protection across x86, ARC, and ARM architectures, as well as userspace and memory domains. For systems lacking MMU/MPU and those limited by memory capacity, it enables the integration of application-specific code with a tailored kernel to form a monolithic image that can be loaded and run on the hardware of the system. In this setup, both the application and kernel code operate within a unified address space, facilitating efficient resource utilization and performance optimization. This design ensures that even resource-constrained environments can effectively leverage complex applications and functionalities.

Wind River's eLxr Pro is a robust, commercial-grade Linux solution tailored for a wide range of cloud-to-edge applications, capable of handling critical workloads such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computer vision tasks. This solution is derived from the open-source eLxr distribution and delivers adaptable, long-term support alongside continuous security monitoring and updates. It guarantees compatibility with various hardware accelerators and meets necessary industry compliance standards. Additionally, eLxr Pro enhances business operations by offering specialized consulting services and performance improvements, enabling organizations to efficiently scale their edge computing capabilities while effectively managing expenses, ensuring security, and optimizing resource use. By integrating these features, eLxr Pro positions businesses to thrive in an increasingly digital landscape.

NuttX is a real-time operating system (RTOS) that prioritizes compliance with standards and maintains a compact footprint. It is adaptable, functioning effectively across microcontroller environments ranging from 8-bit to 32-bit, with its core standards being Posix and ANSI. To enhance its functionality, NuttX integrates additional standard APIs from Unix and various popular RTOSs, including VxWorks, particularly for features not encompassed by these core standards or unsuitable for deeply embedded systems, like the fork() function. Currently, Apache NuttX is in the Incubation phase at The Apache Software Foundation (ASF), with support from the Incubator. This incubation phase is mandatory for all newly accepted projects until a thorough evaluation confirms that their infrastructure, communication, and decision-making processes have reached a level of stability comparable to that of established ASF projects. The goal is to ensure that all projects can operate effectively and contribute meaningfully to the community.