Low power microcontroller for consumer designs

Renesas Electronics has launched two microcontroller families with a focus on low power operation for consumer designs.

The 64MHz RX261 and RX260 microcontroller (MCU) groups have a power efficiency of 69μA/MHz during active operation and 1μA in standby mode. They also enable designers to easily implement water-resistant capacitive touch sensors and deliver robust security for home appliances, building and factory automation, and many others including smart locks, e-bikes and mobile thermal printers.

The RX261/RX260 Group MCUs are based on the proprietary Renesas RXv3 CPU core to provide performance of 355CoreMark at 64MHz. This is 2.5 times higher than competing 64MHz class MCUs with 25 percent lower active current and 87 percent lower standby current.

This minimizes current consumption during intermittent operation to help meet strict energy regulations for home appliances and extend the operating time of battery-powered applications.

These are an upgrade path for the existing RX130 and RX230 microcontrollers and the RX140 that provided a performance boost.

Versions of the microcontrollers have the Renesas third-generation capacitive touch IP (CTSU2SL) delivers high noise immunity and water resistance, allowing touch sensors in kitchen appliances and outdoor equipment such as smart locks. An automatic judgement function reduces current consumption during intermittent operation by enabling touch detections even in standby state. The QE for Capacitive Touch tuning tool, design guides, and sample programs ease the implementation of touch sensors in multiple applications.

The microcontroller families also include Secure IP (RSIP-E11A) and flash protection functions to protect applications from unauthorized use such as data falsification and eavesdropping by attackers. Sample programs help users to implement secure boot and secure firmware update functions quickly and easily.

The RX261 Group MCUs include a Full Speed USB function controller with a high-speed on-chip oscillator (HOCO) that eliminates the need for external crystals to generate an accurate USB clock. A CAN FD module is also included to enable fast and reliable communication. 8KB of data flash eliminates the need for an external EEPROM.

“The RX260/261 provide an upgrade path with an advanced RX CPU core and enhanced performance and peripherals based on customer requests,” said Daryl Khoo, Vice President of Embedded Processing 1st Business Division at Renesas. “We have built a great relationship with RX customers around the world based on Renesas MCU core technology and years of innovation, including patented technology. The RX MCUs have established a unique place in the industry, and Renesas will continue to develop RX products as long as our customers want them.”

Reference designs using the RX261/RX260 microcontroller families include a Robust Operational Touch Panel with CAN FD and the Portable Thermal Printer.  

The RX261/RX260 Group MCUs and multiple evaluation kits are available now from Renesas and authorized distributors.