Renesas Electronics announces RL78 MCUs with enhanced real-time control capabilities

SANTA CLARA, USA: Renesas Electronics, a premier provider of advanced semiconductor solutions, announced the expansion of the RL78 microcontroller (MCU) family with the introduction of the RL78/G14 Group.

The new 16-bit MCUs combine advanced on-chip peripheral functions of Renesas’ R8C MCU family with the industry-leading power-efficient technology of the RL78 Family to deliver excellent processing performance. The new RL78/G14 Group of MCUs is ideal for a number of applications including household appliances, healthcare devices, office equipment, industrial automation systems, motor control, security systems and mobile devices.

Renesas Electronics has equipped the RL78 Family of integrated MCUs with the superior DNA of the 78K and R8C MCU families that contributes to lower overall system power consumption and reduced development costs. The new RL78/G14 MCUs deliver a further boost in performance and power efficiency while incorporating advanced on-chip peripheral functions from the R8C Family, thereby meeting the needs of customers wishing to utilize existing software resources originally developed for the R8C Family.

“In addition to the low-power process technology, the new RL78/G14 devices incorporate a number of versatile peripherals to enable innovative low-cost embedded designs,” said Ritesh Tyagi, Director of Microcontroller Product Marketing, Consumer & Industrial Business Unit, Renesas Electronics America.

“A clear example of such features is the advanced 64MHz-capable 16-bit timer units designed for precise control of low-end motor systems. These timer peripherals combined with 5-V support, advanced hardware-based safety features such as RAM Parity check and CRC, make the RL78/G14 devices ideal for higher-efficiency household appliances. Furthermore, to minimize development time, Renesas designed these devices to maintain compatibility with its existing R8C and 78K MCUs, thereby maximizing re-use of legacy code.”

Key features of the RL78/G14 MCUs
Advanced timer modules: The new MCUs incorporate advanced timer modules—Timer RD, Timer RG, and Timer RJ—which are compatible with timers in the R8C MCU family. Timer RD comprises two 16-bit timers capable of operating at 64 megahertz (MHz) and a pulse wave modulation (PWM) function able to output (six) three-phase waveforms with the amplitude specified by the user. Timer RG is a 16-bit timer module than can automatically measure the counts of a two-phase encoder in phase counting mode. Timer RJ is a 16-bit timer module than can measure the pulse width or cycle of pulse output or external pulse input.

Data transfer controller and event link controller: The RL78/G14 MCU devices integrate a data transfer controller (DTC) and event link controller (ELC), which have a proven track record with the R8C Family by reducing the CPU load and lowering current consumption. The DTC enables memory-to-memory data transfers without using the CPU. Compared to the DMA function of the RL78/G13 device, the DTC supports a larger number of transfer channels and activation sources, and it also enables data transfers from the flash memory. The event link controller (ELC) allows direct connection between peripherals bypassing the CPU, and interrupt controller to provide faster and more deterministic real-time control. It is also possible to use the ELC to start peripheral functions when the CPU is stopped, thereby reducing current consumption.

8-bit DAC and comparator: The new MCU products with 96 kilobytes (KB) or more of flash memory feature two channels of 8-bit D/A converter (DAC), analog comparators with window function previously available on the R8C Family of MCUs. The DAC can be utilized to implement audio playback, or to generate high-resolution voltage signals, with minimal external components reducing system cost.

Additional CPU instructions and enhanced on-chip debugging functions: The new MCUs add multiply, divide, and multiply and accumulate instructions to the instruction set of the RL78/G13 CPU core, eliminating the need to handle overflow interrupts when performing arithmetic operations. In addition, the on-chip debugging functions of the new microcontrollers with 96 KB or more of flash memory now support trace data for up to 256 branches, enabling more efficient system development and evaluation.

Extensive product lineup: The new MCUs are available in flash ROM capacities ranging from 16 KB to 256 KB, RAM capacities from 2.5 KB to 24 KB, and a total of 17 package configurations, including Quad Flat Package (QFP), compact Quad Flat Non-Leaded (QFN) package, and Land Grid Array (LGA) package, with pin counts from 30 to 100 pins. This extensive product lineup enables customers to select the memory capacity and package type that best matches their system requirements and contributes to optimized board size, more compact systems, and reduced costs. Renesas also plans to enhance the new RL78/G14 Group with devices with up to 512 KB of flash ROM, 128 pins and 105°C operation for systems including cooking appliances.

Development tools for the RL78/G14 Group include the IAR Embedded Workbench, Renesas’ E1 integrated on-chip debugging emulator, and IECUBE full-function in-circuit emulator. There are also plans to release a Flash Programmer and Renesas Starter Kit (RSK) supporting these new MCUs.

Samples of Renesas' new RL78/G14 MCUs are available now. The sample price for the new products differs depending on the memory capacity, package type, and pin count. For example, samples of the R5F104ACASP with 32 KB of on-chip flash memory, 4 KB of on-chip RAM, and a 30-pin Shrink Small Outline Package (SSOP, 7.62 mm) are priced at US$0.88 per 10,000 units. Mass production is scheduled to start in December 2011 and is expected to reach 10,000,000 units per month in December 2012 for the entire group of devices. (Pricing and availability are subject to change without notice.)