Flash MCU cuts out external memory

Toshiba reckons its latest high-speed low-voltage 8bit MCU has enough onboard Flash memory to eliminate external memory in battery-powered applications such as personal audio equipment.

Toshiba reckons its latest high-speed low-voltage 8bit MCU has enough onboard Flash memory to eliminate external memory requirements in portable, battery-powered applications such as personal audio equipment.

By offering 512byte of built-in NAND-type Flash, the new TMP86FM48U/F microcontroller allows designers to minimise component count and simplify board layout.

In addition, the availability of onboard Flash memory provides the flexibility for post-production software programming that can be used to address low-volume, custom requirements.

Toshiba's TMP86FM48U/F is based on the company's proprietary, high-performance 8bit TLCS-870/C CPU core.

This core features 731 basic instructions and provides operation at speeds of up to 16MHz and voltages down to 1.8V.

The device features 32Kbyte of Flash, of which 512byte is available for data storage.

As a result, the microcontroller is ideal for applications such as battery-powered, portable audio equipment, where the onboard memory can be used to store volume and other status information at power shutdown.

In addition to the onboard Flash, the TMP86FM48U/F also offers 2Kbyte of RAM storage.

Designed to address the widest possible variety of applications, the TMP86FM48U/F incorporates a number of onboard peripherals.

These include a dual-channel 8bit timer/counter, a dual-channel 16bit timer/counter, and a programmable watchdog timer.

An LED driver and a 16-channel ADC are also available.

Serial connectivity comprises a single-channel UART, a dual-channel high-speed serial interface, and a single-channel I2C interface.

As well as a built-in stop mode, the TMP86FM48U/F offers eight further power modes comprising slow 1 and slow 2, idle 0, 1 and 2, and sleep 0, 1 and 2.

Slow modes minimise power consumption through the use of a low-frequency clock operating at 32.768kHz.

Idle and sleep modes shut down the CPU and operate the peripherals using either the high-or low-frequency clock depending on the mode chosen.

The device can operate at dual clock frequencies of 8MHz/32.768kHz with a supply voltage of 1.8 to 3.6V.

Frequencies increase to 16MHz/32.768kHz for supply voltages between 2.7 and 3.6V.

Toshiba can supply the TMP86FM48U/F in either a P-LQFP64 package (TMP86FM48U) or a P-QFP64 package (TMP86FM48F).

Samples of the new microcontroller will be available in March 2003, with volume production scheduled for May 2003.

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