PSoC controller has designs on LonWorks

Edited by the Electronicstalk editorial team Nov 13, 2002

A new reference design uses Cypress Semiconductor PSoC technology to simplify development of LonWorks nodes for building automation, industrial control, transportation and utility applications.

A new reference design uses Cypress Semiconductor PSoC technology to simplify development of LonWorks nodes for building automation, industrial control, transportation and utility applications.

The CY5301 Pioneer Node reference design also incorporates the company's CY7C53120E4 Neuron chip, an intelligent control communications processor for LonWorks control networks.

The Pioneer Node reference design includes I/O companion chips that the developer can custom program through a simple Neuron application-programming interface.

The CY5301 offers a lower system cost solution by eliminating discrete components typically implemented on the Neuron chip for analogue/digital functionality and expanded I/O capabilities.

The reference design includes a control-loop feature that enables the node to retain its last setting if it becomes disconnected from the network.

"The Pioneer Node reference design simplifies the process of developing complex actuators and sensors", said Carl Brasek, Product Marketing Manager for Cypress's Control Communications Business Unit.

"It offers a two-chip embedded solution that provides designers increased I/O capabilities - beyond the 34 I/O modes offered by the Neuron chip - along with analogue and digital capabilities required for complex control required for building and industrial automation systems".

Neuron chips provide the logic for LonWorks networks, an open, interoperable control-networking standard widely used in building automation, industrial control, transportation, and utility automation controllers.

Each Neuron device contains three 8bit CPUs, onboard memory, 11 general-purpose I/O pins, and a complete, interoperable implementation of the ANSI/EIA 709.1-A-1999 control network protocol.

The CY7C53120E4 Neuron chip operates at 40MHz, twice the speed of existing standard controllers.

This device meets the requirements of time-critical applications, such as embedded Internet systems that remotely monitor and control electrical devices through online connections.

The CY7C53120E4 controller integrates 4Kbyte of onboard EEPROM, enabling designers to cost-effectively implement it in large, complex systems.

The first family of PSoC microcontrollers integrates an 8bit CPU, 8 to 16Kbyte of Flash memory, SRAM and programmable arrays of analogue and digital system functions (known as PSoC blocks) in low-cost, small-footprint packages.

By selecting a PSoC microcontroller with the desired combination of memory, PSoC blocks and pins, designers have a device they can configure to any application.

PSoC reduces costs by eliminating external chips and simplifying system design.

Cypress will sample the Pioneer Node reference design (CY5301) in early Q1 2003 with production quantities available in late Q1 2003 and pricing starting at $495.

(This was Electronicstalk's Top Story on 12 November 2002).