Renesas Electronics Corporation, a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, has expanded its 32-bit microcontroller (MCU) offering with a new RX device for high-end industrial sensor systems. The latest addition, the RX23E-B, is a 32-bit device from its popular RX Family featuring a high-precision analog front end (AFE), specifically designed for systems that demand fast and accurate analog signal measurements.
The new MCU integrates a 24-bit Delta-Sigma A/D converter capable of achieving a conversion speed of up to 125 kSPS (125,000 samples/second) — eight times faster than the existing RX23E-A. It can process accurate A/D conversion while reducing RMS noise to 1/3 (0.18µVrms @1kSPS) when compared to the RX23E-A. The RX23E-B facilitates faster and more precise measurements of critical parameters such as strain, temperature, pressure, flow rate, current and voltage, making it ideal for high-end sensor devices, measuring instruments, and test equipment. In particular, the RX23E-B offers sufficient performance to drive force sensors used in industrial robots, which often demand measurements as fast as 10 µsec (100,000 samples/second). The MCU also reduces overall system size and the component count by incorporating the AFE and the MCU on a single chip.
“With the addition of the RX23E-B which comes with an AFE sensor interface, we can now serve a broad range of sensing applications from mid- to high-end systems,” said Sakae Ito, Vice President of the IoT Platform Business Division at Renesas. “We will continue to extend our product options to meet the growing needs of battery-powered and wireless sensors that demand low power consumption.”
“At Meiko Electronics, we have been developing evaluation boards and providing design support to our customers since the RX23E-A product was introduced,” said Takatsugu Nemoto, President at Meiko Electronics. “Now, with the introduction of the RX23E-B with a high-speed delta-sigma A/D converter, we anticipate many customers will be able to experience the benefits of its enhanced conversion performance, compact board design and reduced component count.”
Similar to the RX23E-A, the RX23E-B incorporates a 32-MHz RXv2-based CPU with digital signal processing (DSP) instructions and a floating point unit (FPU), and combines the AFE into a single chip using the same fabrication process. It offers new peripheral functions such as a 16-bit D/A converter, which enables measurement adjustments, self-diagnosis, and analog signal output. The device’s +/-10V analog input enables +/-10V measurement with a 5V power supply without requiring external components or additional power supply. An LCD controller with a maximum of 40 SEG x 4 COM and a real-time clock (RTC) function are also included.
In large-scale instruments that need to control and take measurements of multiple targets such as robot arms, gas and liquid analyzers, there has been a significant demand for distributed processing architecture. In distributed processing design, instead of relying on a dedicated MCU to manage all functions, each function can operate as a separate module, responsible for tasks such as motor control, sensor measurement and temperature control. This modular approach allows for independent development, offers greater design flexibility and simplifies maintenance.
SOURCE: Businesswire