MCUs offer a smarter user experience in next-gen designs

22nd October 2014

Siobhan O'Gorman

0 0

Signalling an expansion of the ARM Cortex-M0+-based LPC800 series, the LPC82x family of MCUs has been released by NXP Semiconductors. Allowing embedded developers to meet the growing requirements for a smarter user experience in their next-gen product designs, the MCUs feature double the memory, a 1.2Ms/s ADC, DMA and triple the serial connectivity.

Enabling the handling of a wide range of functions with exceptional power efficiency, the LPC82x family is equipped with versatile connectivity. Used as sensor gateways, the MCUs efficiently connect to and concentrate data from multiple analogue and/or digital sensors. For local area or cloud connectivity via myriad wireless protocols such as NFC, Bluetooth Smart (BTLE), ZigBee or WiFi, the devices provide a space and power-efficient solution. The MCUs offer efficient sensor interface and data aggregation for capacitive or mechanical touch, swipe, and gesture front ends for HMI applications. The devices also offer a space efficient solution for motor control applications such as fan control.

The LPC82x MCUs are suitable for connected thermostats, environment monitoring devices, home and building automation products, lighting controls, server and rack monitors and wearable health/fitness devices.

Providing an extensive collection of tools, drivers and middleware, the LPC82x family is fully supported by the LPC NXP LPCXpresso developers’ ecosystem. The ecosystem also offers users access to forums and blogs used by a community of embedded developers. A full featured C/C++ IDE that is free to LPC82x developers, low-cost target boards with on-board debug probes and access to LPCOpen for firmware, drivers and middleware are also included. The ecosystem, which can be used with a wide range of third-party RTOSs, middleware solutions and third-party ARM development tools including Keil and IAR, incorporates device drivers, stacks and graphics libraries that enable rapid code development.

"Combining sensor-derived features such as location, environment or user condition, with smart connectivity – whether local or cloud – unleashes designers to reimagine how users interact with their products,” said Ross Bannatyne, General Manager, Mass Market Microcontroller product line, NXP Semiconductors. "The LPC82x microcontroller family gives embedded developers an incredibly power and space efficient solution for innovating new generations of smarter, connected products in an unlimited range of applications and industries."

The LPC82x MCUs are sold in 3,000 quantities and priced from $58.