Date: 06/03/2009
Rugged 20 MIPS 8-bit microcontroller for wide range of applications
The new 8-bit microcontroller ICs launched by ST Microelectronics is touted as rugged and reliable class MCUs. The STM8S105 and STM8S207 mainly for industrial and consumer applications are priced competitively in the range of $1 and below.
The key highlights of these MCUs are pin compatibility, and high-performance 20 MIPS 8-bit architecture.
The other key features are,
1. Operated from a DC voltage of 2.95-5.5V
2. Manufactured in 130nm process to provide true EEPROM data-write with 300,000-cycle durability.
3. 10-bit ADC with up to 16 channels
4. 16-bit control timers for operations such as motor control, capture/compare, and PWM
5. Communication interfaces include CAN2.0B interface, two U(S)ARTs, an I2C and SPI ports
6. Two on-chip RC oscillators, operating at 16MHz and 128kHz, are accurate to within 1% and 5%, respectively to save an external clock source.
7. On-chip Power-On-Reset and BOR (Brown-out Reset) functions eliminate external reset circuitry
8. Single-wire debug-and-programming interface
9. IEC61967-compliant EMI emission, IEC-1000 high immunity to susceptibility and high current injection immunity, which saves external protection components normally required to meet EMC regulations
10. The applications developed on STM8S can be easily migrated into the STM32 domain for higher performance.
With touch sense interface common in many of the today's applications, The STM8S family has complete support for touch interface comprising of capacitive buttons, sliders and rotary switches with minimal external components. ST provides open software libraries for capacitive sensing functions.
Few examples of applications include home appliances, HVAC systems, industrial automation, power tools, personal-care equipment, and systems for power control and management.
Developers are provided with starter kit, emulator, evaluation board, and debugger for quicker development of applications. Additional development support includes a dedicated firmware library compliant to Class B, according to the IEC60335 functional safety standard.
Among the devices introduced, developers can choose the STM8S105 Access Line with 16MHz CPU frequency and up to 32 Kbyte Flash, or the STM8S207 Performance Line operating at 24MHz and up to 128 Kbyte Flash. Package options span 32-pin LQFP32 to 80-pin LQFP80. The price for the 32 Kbyte STM8S105K6T6C in a LQFP32 package is $0.89 for quantities of 10,000 units.