Silicon Labs mixed-signal MCUs simplify full-speed USB connectivity

AUSTIN, USA: Silicon Laboratories Inc., a leader in high-performance, analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs, has introduced two USB microcontroller (MCU) families that provide the industry’s fastest, easiest and most economical path to USB connectivity.

Expanding on Silicon Labs’ popular USB MCU portfolio, the new C8051F38x and C8051T62x/32x USB MCU families are ideal for a wide range of applications such as home automation systems, thermostats, USB dongles, smart card readers, GPS localizers, touch panels, sensor data loggers, portable medical devices, weigh scales, USB speakers, serial communication bridges, games and electronic toys.

With more than two billion USB devices sold each year, the demand for easy-to-deploy USB solutions continues to rise. Adding this universal but complex interface to space-constrained, cost-sensitive embedded products can be challenging for developers lacking USB software expertise. A leading supplier of USB MCUs and smart interface ICs, Silicon Labs developed the new USB MCU families to simplify the addition of USB connectivity to embedded designs.

The families, which include 22 products with flash and one-time-programmable (OTP) options, feature a full-speed USB 2.0 interface engine, outstanding processing performance and USB throughput, best-in-class precision analog functionality, and an innovative clock recovery capability to enable crystal-less USB operation for reduced component count and BOM cost.

The C8051F38x MCU family’s enhanced analog/mixed-signal capabilities enable developers to implement high-performance USB connectivity without the extra cost of using a high-end MCU. The flash-based F38x devices are pin- and code-compatible with Silicon Labs’ existing C8051F34x USB MCUs for easy migration while offering an additional I2C interface, a higher performance analog-to-digital converter (ADC), lower power consumption and additional timers.

The C8051T62x/32x OTP MCUs are ideal for cost-sensitive USB applications without sacrificing performance and features. The scalable T62x/32x family enables developers to select the most convenient set of digital and analog peripherals optimized for their application needs and cost targets. The OTP-based USB MCUs provide many of the same peripherals and similar functionality available from Silicon Labs’ flash-based devices but at a reduced cost.

The F38x and T62x/32x families include USB MCUs featuring a high-performance ADC that enables high precision measurements, eliminating the cost of using external ADCs. The on-chip ADC and high-speed comparators perform up to five times faster than competitive offerings, easing development of analog-intensive applications such as sensor data loggers, weigh scales, gaming controls and blood pressure monitors.

“We continue to see strong demand for our USB solutions because we enable easy, cost-effective USB connectivity better than any other MCU supplier,” said Mark Thompson, vice president of Silicon Labs’ Embedded Mixed-Signal products. “The combination of our high-performance processing cores, crystal-less operation and precision analog functionality simplifies embedded designs and reduces component count and BOM cost without sacrificing performance.”