Freescale helps energize the portable device market

Freescale Semiconductor is expanding its 8-bit microcontroller (MCU) portfolio with devices ideal for personal diagnostic and portable health care products that require low-power operation and advanced display capabilities. An extension of its liquid crystal display (LCD) S08LL microcontroller (MCU) families, the advanced S08LL64 allows engineers to quickly develop dependable, flexible and low-cost medical, industrial and consumer devices.

The S08LL64 MCUs are well-suited for applications such as glucose meters and pulse oximeters due to their best-in-class standby power consumption, enabling devices to continue functioning for approximately six years using two AAA batteries. The LL64 can be powered down to 1.8V and still operate at 20MHz, offering high performance even at low voltage levels for battery-operated applications. The LL64 devices enable smaller PCB designs with higher segment count – offering up to 288 segments on an 80-pin package – which also makes them a good fit for portable consumer and metering applications.

Freescale’s broad portfolio of software-configurable LCD devices offers pin-compatibility options and shared peripherals to enhance design flexibility. With the addition of the LL64 devices, the S08LL family provides flash memory options from 8K to 64K. The LL64 MCUs are pin-compatible with the LL16 family and share peripherals with RS08 and S08 families, enabling a seamless transition from one device to the next.

“The growing number of portable applications with LCD displays is driving the need for longer battery life and more memory options,” said Aiden Mitchell, director of industrial and multi-market microcontrollers at Freescale. “Freescale’s LL64 MCU family meets this need and widens the range of cost-effective, ultra-low-power solutions within Freescale’s extensive LCD MCU portfolio, giving customers tremendous freedom of choice in addressing their application needs.”

The S08LL family eliminates the need for separate display driver ICs for standard 3V and 5V LCD glass applications. On-chip LCD drivers support up to eight backplanes, enabling developers to drive more segments with fewer pins, reducing system cost and design complexity. The S08LL family supports an LCD blink mode that operates without waking up the controller core, which helps reduce overall power consumption.