Atmel Launches Industry's First Single-package Microcontroller with LF-RFID Reader

The ATA5505 makes building a complete reader an easy process requiring just a few external components and an antenna coil. Using the new device eliminates the need for expensive discrete components such as crystals, which are currently required with competitors' 2-chip RFID solutions.



Since the ATA5505 is the industry's only MCU that features full LF RFID reader functionality within a single package, the required printed circuit board (PCB) footprint is smaller than with competing solutions where the MCU and RFID reader are located in two different packages. In addition to entire readers, customers can also develop and manufacture very small, low-cost reference PCBs for various reader types.



The Atmel AVR MCU provides 512Byte SRAM, 512Byte EEPROM, 16 general-purpose I/O lines, 32 general-purpose working registers, one 8-bit timer/counter with compare modes, one 8-bit high-speed timer/counter, a universal serial interface (USI), a LIN controller, internal and external interrupts, a 11-channel 10-bit A/D converter, programmable watchdog timer with internal oscillator and three software-selectable power-saving modes. By executing powerful instructions in a single clock cycle, the device achieves throughputs approaching 1MIPS per MHz, balancing power consumption and processing speed.