Product Review
Atmel showcases killer MCU for PRIME smart metering apps
Clive Maxfield10/9/2012 11:10 AM EDT
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The folks at Atmel – a leader in microcontroller and touch technology solutions – are showcasing the world's first single-chip power line communications (PLC)-based solution using an ARM Cortex-M4 processor-based microcontroller (MCU) targeting the rapidly growing PRIME smart metering market at the Metering Billing/CRM Europe Show in Amsterdam.
Atmel's SAM4SP32A is a new compact, highly integrated solution that combines a Cortex-M4 processor-based MCU, 2MB of dual-bank Flash, 160KB SRAM and a high-performance PLC transceiver in a single-chip SoC that lowers overall system costs.
The SAM4SP32A SoC is fully compliant with the latest PRIME (Power Line Intelligent Metering Evolution) PLC specification.
In order to support the complex protocol required by smart meters to make firmware upgrades of the application and the protocol stack independently in the field, the new SoC integrates Atmel's PLC technology with a high-performance Cortex-M4 MCU with 2MB of program memory on a dual-bank configuration. The new solution also leverages the powerful peripherals of the Cortex-M4 MCU, including serial peripheral interface (SPI), TWI and USARTS, to support the various communication interfaces required by smart metering applications.
Atmel's SAM4SP32A SoC offers a high level of integration and power efficiency, along with extraordinary sensitivity of up to 34.8dBuV and a dynamic range of up to 73.18 dB. The new SoC includes an integrated low-power amplifier that consumes 40 percent less power than other solutions on the market today.
Opitimizing the design process
To optimize the process of designing PLC-based smart metering solutions, the SAM4SP32A will be supported by Atmel Studio 6, the latest version of the company's popular integrated development environment (IDE) that now supports both Atmel 32-bit ARM Cortex-M series processor-based and Atmel 8/32-bit AVR based microcontrollers (MCUs). For the first time, the extensive AVR customer base of more than 100,000 engineers and the designers of ARM Cortex-M series processor-based applications have all of the tools required to develop and debug Atmel MCU applications in a single, seamless environment. Atmel Studio 6 is available free of charge.
To further accelerate the design process, Atmel's SAM4SP32A SoC will also be available with a SAM4SP32AAEK-99 evaluation kit that includes two boards, a complete set of software libraries, application examples, a PHY tester, PRIME Network Manager and PC USI test. The evaluation kits will be available in Q1FY13.
Availability
The Atmel SAM4SP32A SoC is sampling to lead customers now, with production quantities available in Q1FY2013. The SoC is available in a 128-lead LQFP package in a 14mm X 14mm dimension, with a 0.4mm pitch.
Webinar
A webinar entitled "Reducing Costs in Future-Proof PRIME Smart Meters with New Atmel SAM4SP32A SoC" will debut on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 @ 8:00 am PT. Webinar viewers can learn the main features of Atmel's SAM4SP32A device and how it can reduce the overall system costs of a metering product. Click Here to register for this webinar.
If you found this article to be interest, visit Microcontroller / MCU Designline where – in addition to my Max's Cool Beans blogs on all sorts of "stuff" – you will find the latest and greatest design, technology, product, and news articles with regard to all aspects of designing and using microcontrollers.
Also, you can obtain a highlights update delivered directly to your inbox by signing up for my weekly newsletter – just Click Here to request this newsletter using the Manage Newsletters tab (if you aren't already a member you'll be asked to register, but it's free and painless so don't let that stop you [grin]).
Last but certainly not least, make sure you check out all of the discussions and other information resources at All Programmable Planet. For example, in addition to blogs by yours truly, microcontroller expert Duane Benson is learning how to use FPGAs to augment (sometimes replace) the MCUs in his robot (and other) projects.
Atmel's SAM4SP32A is a new compact, highly integrated solution that combines a Cortex-M4 processor-based MCU, 2MB of dual-bank Flash, 160KB SRAM and a high-performance PLC transceiver in a single-chip SoC that lowers overall system costs.
The SAM4SP32A SoC is fully compliant with the latest PRIME (Power Line Intelligent Metering Evolution) PLC specification.
In order to support the complex protocol required by smart meters to make firmware upgrades of the application and the protocol stack independently in the field, the new SoC integrates Atmel's PLC technology with a high-performance Cortex-M4 MCU with 2MB of program memory on a dual-bank configuration. The new solution also leverages the powerful peripherals of the Cortex-M4 MCU, including serial peripheral interface (SPI), TWI and USARTS, to support the various communication interfaces required by smart metering applications.
Atmel's SAM4SP32A SoC offers a high level of integration and power efficiency, along with extraordinary sensitivity of up to 34.8dBuV and a dynamic range of up to 73.18 dB. The new SoC includes an integrated low-power amplifier that consumes 40 percent less power than other solutions on the market today.
Opitimizing the design process
To optimize the process of designing PLC-based smart metering solutions, the SAM4SP32A will be supported by Atmel Studio 6, the latest version of the company's popular integrated development environment (IDE) that now supports both Atmel 32-bit ARM Cortex-M series processor-based and Atmel 8/32-bit AVR based microcontrollers (MCUs). For the first time, the extensive AVR customer base of more than 100,000 engineers and the designers of ARM Cortex-M series processor-based applications have all of the tools required to develop and debug Atmel MCU applications in a single, seamless environment. Atmel Studio 6 is available free of charge.
To further accelerate the design process, Atmel's SAM4SP32A SoC will also be available with a SAM4SP32AAEK-99 evaluation kit that includes two boards, a complete set of software libraries, application examples, a PHY tester, PRIME Network Manager and PC USI test. The evaluation kits will be available in Q1FY13.
Availability
The Atmel SAM4SP32A SoC is sampling to lead customers now, with production quantities available in Q1FY2013. The SoC is available in a 128-lead LQFP package in a 14mm X 14mm dimension, with a 0.4mm pitch.
Webinar
A webinar entitled "Reducing Costs in Future-Proof PRIME Smart Meters with New Atmel SAM4SP32A SoC" will debut on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 @ 8:00 am PT. Webinar viewers can learn the main features of Atmel's SAM4SP32A device and how it can reduce the overall system costs of a metering product. Click Here to register for this webinar.
If you found this article to be interest, visit Microcontroller / MCU Designline where – in addition to my Max's Cool Beans blogs on all sorts of "stuff" – you will find the latest and greatest design, technology, product, and news articles with regard to all aspects of designing and using microcontrollers.
Also, you can obtain a highlights update delivered directly to your inbox by signing up for my weekly newsletter – just Click Here to request this newsletter using the Manage Newsletters tab (if you aren't already a member you'll be asked to register, but it's free and painless so don't let that stop you [grin]).
Last but certainly not least, make sure you check out all of the discussions and other information resources at All Programmable Planet. For example, in addition to blogs by yours truly, microcontroller expert Duane Benson is learning how to use FPGAs to augment (sometimes replace) the MCUs in his robot (and other) projects.
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