Product category:
Microprocessors, Microcontrollers and DSPs
News Release from: Atmel Corporation | Subject: ATmega16U4 and ATmega32U4
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 10 March 2008
Microcontrollers optimise USB charging
Gaming peripherals such as joysticks require a number of analogue to digital conversion channels and several PWM channels to drive force-feedback motors.
Atmel has released AVR microcontrollers that combine USB controller and analogue features The ATmega16U4 and ATmega32U4 reduce system cost in battery-powered devices such as gaming accessories
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 18 Nov 2005 at 8.00am (UK)
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Battery powered devices can take advantage of being connected to a USB port to recharge.
However, modern batteries require sophisticated algorithms to accelerate and optimise charging, while USB brings further constraints on the battery charging since it is limited both in the voltage and the maximum current it can provide.
The new AVR devices allow optimised battery charging combined with USB functions.
The analogue to digital convertor can be used to sense motion or pressure in the end application and the high-speed PWM is suitable for low cost motor control.
Gaming peripherals, such as sophisticated joysticks also require a number of analogue to digital conversion channels and several PWM channels to drive force-feedback motors.
The new devices have a 10bit ADC with 12 channels, a built-in temperature sensor allowing compensating thermal effects on analogue performance, a programmable gain of x1, x10, x40 and x200, giving more flexibility to measure differential voltages for current monitoring.
A high-speed timer with three PWM channels with complementary outputs and programmable dead times allows 8bit resolution PWM with a frequency of 500kHz, and up to 11bit resolution PWM with a frequency over 60kHz.
A hardware flow control on the USART eases the connection to other devices when bridging with USB at high baud rates.
Digital inputs with TTL thresholds ease interface with 3V devices in mixed 5/3V applications.
An on-chip 3.3V regulator can deliver up to 50mA and supply external devices in USB-powered applications.
Jitter and accuracy of the on-chip 8MHz calibrated RC oscillator can support serial communication without crystal.
All devices include a hardware multiplier, one USART, one SPI, one TWI, two 8bit and two 16bit timers with PWM and 26 programmable I/Os.
The ATmega16U4 features 16Kbyte of in-system programmable (ISP) Flash, 1Kbyte of RAM and 512byte of EEPROM.
Th eATmega32U4 features 32Kbyte of ISP Flash, 2.5Kbyte of RAM and 1Kbyte of EEPROM.
They are available in 44-pin packages.
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