Date: 05/05/2009

New 3.3V RS-485 and RS-422 serial transceivers support 32Mbps speeds

Exar has launched a new family of high-speed 3.3V RS-485/RS-422 transceivers -- the SP3495E, SP3496E, and the SP3497E. These pin compatible ICs support present 20Mbps applications and extend to 32Mbps levels for applications such as industrial automation, security networks, process control, plant environmental control, remote sensing and e-metering.

"These new devices offer robust ESD protection, advanced fail-safe feature, and hot swap glitch protection - critical features for precision control of motor positioning in factory automation systems with high speed communication," said Levent Ozcolak, vice president, Interface Product Line.

These transceivers are designed for balanced data transmission and comply with both RS-485 and RS-422 EIA Standards. Each device contains one differential driver and one differential receiver. The family offers choices of half-duplex, full duplex or full duplex with enable/shutdown. Separate enable pins control the driver and receiver independently or may be externally connected together as a direction control. Operates from a single 3.3V power supply and loads the data bus at half of standard RS-485 unit-load. This allows up to 64 devices to be connected simultaneously on a bus without using repeaters. Protection features include short circuit protection and thermal shutdown and ESD protection (inputs) up to ±15kV. This feature forces the driver output into high impedance state if the absolute value of the output current exceeds 250mA or if junction temperature exceeds 165°C.
The fail-safe feature ensures a logic-high receiver output if the receiver's differential inputs are shorted, open-circuit, or if a termination resistor shunts them.

"Taking advantage of standard pin outs, low power consumption, and advanced features, customers can easily migrate to high speed applications with significantly reduced time-to-market," said Hensen Wong, technical marketing manager, Interface Product Line.

Operating Temp Range: -40°C to +85°C
Package: 14-pin SOIC
Price: SP349xE: Each US$1.25 for 1K pieces