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Freescale microcontrollers target smart meters
R Colin Johnson
10/9/2012 9:13 AM EDT
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Freescale Semiconductor Inc. has unveiled a line of microcontrollers that harness the ultra-low-power 32-bit ARM Cortex-M0+ processor for smart meter applications.
Freescale (Austin, Texas) said the Kinetis M series was specifically designed for low cost, one- and two-phase smart electrical meters. The Kinetis KW01 includes support for sub-GHz wirelessly networking for smart energy designs.
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The Kinetis M series includes devices ranging from single-chip solutions for inexpensive smart meters to multichip designs for applications like high-precision metrology.
Along with smart metering, the Kinetis M series also addressed recently introduced applications processing and wireless connectivity solutions, said Reza Kazerounian, general manager of Freescale’s Automotive, Industrial & Multimarket Solutions Group.
The M series also includes precision analog front-ends that enable power calculations with 0.1 percent accuracy, including four 24-bit Sigma-Delta A/D converters as well as a memory protection unit to prevent hacks, external tamper detection and an on-chip cryptography algorithm.
The M series operates at 120 microAmp/MHz in run mode while the KW01 is said to reduce run-time current to 40 microAmp/MHz.
Related stories:
Freescale, Inside Secure team on smart-meter reference design
Freescale grapples with auto safety mandates
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