Silicon Labs Announces Automotive Communications Controller

The C8051F50x family provides the highest functional density for automotive applications by integrating a 50 MIPS core, up to 64 kB of high-endurance Flash, four kB of RAM, 32-message buffer CAN 2.0B hardware controller and a hardware LIN 2.0 controller in a 5 x 5 mm2 package, providing customers with the memory and computational resources for real-time applications requiring CAN and LIN software stacks. The 50-MHz instruction clock provides up to five times better 8-bit CPU throughput than the competition, offering 16-bit class performance at a lower system cost. The internal precision oscillator provides an accuracy of ±0.5 percent across the entire temperature (-40 to +125 ºC) and voltage (1.8 to 5.25 V) range, insuring the four-corner operation that Silicon Labs’ customers have come to expect.

By integrating world-class analog on-chip, Silicon Labs provides a number of advantages. The integrated 12-bit, 200 ksps, 32-channel analog to digital converter (ADC) has the highest signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) than any other integrated MCU device in this space, offering higher precision and accuracy when simultaneous analog and digital processing is required. Analog performance is further enhanced through the inclusion of a precision voltage reference, typically not found on integrated solutions. The programmable comparator can be dynamically re-mapped to different I/O pins during run-time providing a simple but powerful solution for motor commutation. Additionally, the integrated temperature sensor provides an internal mechanism for diagnostics and system calibration.

“Increasing reliance on electronics to develop more efficient, safer and more full-featured automobiles is driving demand for cost-effective, high-performance, mixed-signal solutions,” said Derrell Coker, vice president and general manager. “With the addition of this new family of automotive 8-bit MCUs, we’re able to provide customers with a portfolio that further simplifies in-car communication networks while enabling new features.”

Silicon Labs delivers industry-leading, low cost tools to help speed design and accelerate market entry. A complete, low-cost professional development kit is available for all family members and includes everything required to immediately begin system design including IDE, target board, cables and power supply. An inexpensive ToolStick daughter card, base adapter and programming card are also available. Please visit www.silabs.com/mcu for more information.

Silicon Labs is an ISO/TS-16949 registered company, and all of the company’s automotive products are AEC-Q100 qualified.