Semtech expands ultra-low power, resistive touchscreen controller platform with 5-wire, SPI interface device

CAMARILLO, USA: Semtech Corp., a leading supplier of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors, has announced the SX8652, an ultra-low power 4- or 5-wire resistive touchscreen controller with an SPI interface.

The SX8652 is one of a new generation of touchscreen controllers that are optimized for low-power consumption (23µA), small size (1.46mm x 1.96mm chip-scale package), and high electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection (±15kV).

These features make the SX8652 the most application-specific resistive touchscreen controller on the market for applications including PDAs, digital still cameras, point-of-sales terminals, printers and other portable touchscreen monitor devices.

The SX8652 supports the 5MHz SPI serial interface protocol and has an operating voltage range of 1.65V to 3.7V. It features a highly accurate 12-bit analog-to-digital converter for coordinates and touch pressure measurement and can achieve an equivalent throughput output rate of 74 kSPS.

With current consumption as low as 23µA at 8 kSPS and the ability to enter low-power states automatically between conversions, this controller is an ideal choice for portable and battery-powered 4- or 5-wire resistive touchscreen devices. The SX8652 is a complete touchscreen solution incorporating a dedicated hardware / RESET pin, a built-in preprocessing algorithm for data averaging to significantly reduce bus loading and the overall system power budget, and an on-chip programmable settling time feature which can be used to optimize the throughput rates for a wide array of touch panel designs.

“The SX8652 addresses the field returns issue prevalent in touchscreen applications due to destructive ESD events. Each analog input was specifically designed to enable robust ESD protection up to ±15kV in both human body model (HBM) and IEC 61000-4-2 standards, eliminating the need for external ESD protection while minimizing cost and board space,” said Sam Massih, Product Line Manager, Consumer Analog Products for Semtech.

“This, coupled with the extremely low operating current and tiny footprint makes Semtech’s SX8652 the premier solution for today’s 4- and 5-wire resistive touchscreen applications.”

The SX8652 is available in 1.5mm x 2.0mm 12-WLCSP and 4mm x 3mm 14-DFN space-saving packages and is guaranteed to operate over the extended (-40°C to +85°C) temperature range. The new device joins Semtech’s recently introduced SX8650 4-wire, I2C resistive touchscreen controller.