Product category:
Programmable Logic Devices
News Release from: Anadigm | Subject: AN221E02
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 05 September 2003
Programmable analogue chip beats $5
barrier
A new programmable array lowers the entry price for programmable analogue chips below $5, combining dynamic reconfiguration with a resource structure optimised for cost-sensitive applications.
Anadigm has dropped the entry price for programmable analogue chips below $5 with a new field programmable analogue array (FPAA) that combines dynamic reconfiguration capabilities with a resource structure optimised for cost-sensitive applications Priced at $4.95 in 1000-piece quantities, the new AN221E02 makes programmable analogue an affordable option for simple analogue filtering, sensor conditioning and basic PID control applications
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 4 Jan 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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Using half the configurable analogue block (CAB) resources of previous Anadigmvortex FPAAs, the AN221E02 serves in a wide range of industrial, audio, automotive, medical, communications, automatic test equipment, and instrumentation systems, replacing discretes or ASICs with a programmable, pretested, single-chip device.
Statically and dynamically reconfigurable, the AN221E02 allows on-the-fly, real-time control of analogue functions by the microprocessor in an embedded system.
Using dynamic reconfiguration, designers can manipulate the loop response of their design, change filter characteristics in response to shifting environmental conditions, or adjust coefficients without interrupting the operation of the FPAA.
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Software supprts reconfigurable analogue arrays
A breakthrough analogue EDA tool enables the design and implementation of dynamically reconfigurable analogue circuits within a matter of minutes.
"As the new entry-level product for our second-generation Anadigmvortex family, the AN221E02 gives designers a compelling opportunity to use programmable analogue as a price-competitive alternative to discretes and ASICs, even for simple analogue circuit implementations", said Brian Hodges, Vice President of Worldwide Marketing at Anadigm.
The AN221E02 features two configurable I/O cells that can serve as inputs or outputs, plus two dedicated output cells.
Its fully differential architecture provides a signal-to-noise range of 80dB for broadband and 100dB for narrowband (audio) applications.
Typical bandwidth ranges from DC to 2MHz depending on function.
Designers will program the AN221E02 using AnadigmDesigner2, an EDA tool that constructs complex analogue circuits for applications such as signal conditioning, closed loop control, and data acquisition using configurable analogue modules (CAMs) as building blocks.
Adjustments to the circuit can be made graphically, or in C-code, which AnadigmDesigner2 generates automatically.
With an easy-to-use drag-and-drop interface, the design process can be measured in minutes, allowing complete analogue systems to be built rapidly, simulated immediately, and then downloaded to the FPAA chip for testing, validation, and a direct move to manufacturing.
A free trial version of AnadigmDesigner provides users full access to all the software's features, including the ability to construct circuits that can be reconfigured on the fly by a system microprocessor.
"Analogue functions and analogue design are two of the key areas for future device development, as well as a technology that has been ignored, for the most part, until recent years", said Jerry Worchel, Senior Analyst at In-Stat/MDR.
"In light of current economic conditions, coupled with increasing demand for improved and more flexible analogue design capability, as well as reconfigurability, designers should not pass up the opportunity for a free trial - it may prove more valuable than one would think.
One can consider the Anadigm approach as the analogue world's equivalent to the digital world's FPGA".
A multimedia demonstration of AnadigmDesignerR2 v2.3 can be viewed at the Anadigm website, where a free trial copy of AnadigmDesigner2 v2.3 is available for download.
A complete evaluation kit with a development board, entry-level software, and updated documentation is now available at a promotional price of $199.
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