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16-bit MCUs with DSP features match motor control

Infineon is reinforcing its offering of 16-bit microcontrollers for industrial applications with the recent launch of the XE166 family 16-bit real-time signal controllers, which feature fast interruptresponse time and context switching, specifically targeting industrial-drive applications. The chips can each control up to four individual motors simultaneously. As might be expected from the numbering, the parts use the 166 architecture—in this case the C166S V2 core—with extra functionality for DSP operations. Requirements in this sector include, Infineon says, a good peripheral set, very fast interrupt handling, and ease of use. The core has DSP extensions but is not a multicore part like the company’s Tricore 32-bit chip. However, it shares peripherals with Tricore and with the company’s 8-bit parts. Designers are comfortable with compatibility across a family being implemented at the highlevel- language level for general programming, Infineon acknowledges, but the fact that hardware dependencies at peripheral level are identical in all three families helps easing the migration of legacy algorithms and applications across different platforms. To support the needs of motor control, the PWM generators and ADC are tightly coupled, supporting algorithms that minimise the loading on the CPU. Infineon supports the ease-of-use assertion with a development system that includes a CAN-bus-based motion-control demonstration board—with a motor (249€). The control IP employs field-oriented control for quiet and efficient motor operation. Operating at 80 MHz and one cycle per instruction (80 MIPS)—twice the performance of its XC166 predecessor— and with a maximum of 768 kbytes of flash, the controllers can re-use software developed for existing C166 and XC166 chips. The XE166 family integrates an embedded voltage regulator, various clock sources, brown-out detection and watchdog. The peripheral set includes up to four capture-compare units to drive a motor via sinusoidal or space-vector-modulation algorithms. The XE166 products include two synchronisable ADCs with 24 channels, 10-bit resolution and a conversion time of less than 1.2 µsec, and can handle up to five CAN nodes and up to 128 message objects simultaneously. Infineon added error-correction (single-bit recovery/ double-bit detection) for noisy environments; the company is preparing support for certification of applications on the controllers to SIL3 level. There will be 28 parts in the range, with embeddedflash- memory sizes of 192, 384, 576 and 768 kbytes, and an operating frequency of 66 or 80 MHz. A flexible I/O voltage feature allows different output lines to be in different voltage domains, supporting up to 5V levels for accurate analogue voltage measurements. An example part, the XE164G-24F66L with a 66-MHz frequency, 192 kbytes of embedded flash memory, up to 24 kbytes of RAM, and an industrial-temperature range of -40 to +85°C costs approximately 4.90€ (20,000). Pin-out orientation is preserved across 64-, 100- and 144-pin packages, so that you can easily lay out subset/ superset PCB pad arrangements that will take different family members without alteration. As well as motor drives, Infineon anticipates applications in renewable energy—wind generators, for example, where the control algorithms are similar. Altium, in cooperation with Infineon, is offering a one year licence-free Tasking XE166 Compiler Tool Chain, a move through which Infineon intends to ease the migration path for new designers using the architecture.

Infineon Technologies, www.infineon.com.