Page 40 - EngineerIT November 2022

NEW PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Smart metering platform available on 32-bit MCU

product family equipped with an MPL460 PLC modem

he design complexity of smart meters continues to evolve Kourosh Boutorabi, director of Microchip’s Smart Energy
as different communications solutions are integrated into business unit. “This second generation of our highly successful
Tthe framework and as regulatory compliance requirements metering products, demonstrates our commitment to offering a
are mandated. To meet the growing demand for a feature- broad portfolio of SoCs that enable a flexible and secure smart
rich yet simple design solution for developing smart meters, metering platform, with options to select from best-in-class
Microchip Technology announces the PIC32CXMT family of 32-bit metrology to leading-edge connectivity.”
microprocessors with a new MPL460 Power Line Communication The platform provides several transceiver solutions including
(PLC) modem. The new suite of MCU devices is a next-generation a radio/PHY, a PLC/PHY or the option to select a PLC+RF
smart metering platform targeting industrial IoT, commercial and hybrid solution. There is also an option for a metrology and
industrial metering applications. The platform boasts increased communications software suite that is compliant with the
performance with up to 200 MHz operation and broad scalability American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and International
with up to 560 KB of memory (SRAM). Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) metering standards up to class
To provide developers with optimal flexibility to scale their 0.2 percent accuracy. It also supports standards for wired and
products, the PIC32CXMT family is offered in three variants based wireless communications, such as G3-PLC and PRIME.
on a single Arm® Cortex®-M4F core, a dual Arm Cortex-M4 core As smart metering devices are connected, the need for
and a system-on-chip (SoC) device. The MPL460 PLC modem security is critical in any design. The PIC32CXMT MCUs offer
integrates the line driver for signal amplification, which reduces standard and proprietary on-chip hardware security features to
the bill of materials and maintains a top-performing signal injection ensure optimal performance and memory utilisation.
efficiency above 40% due to its class-D topology. The PLC modem The PIC32CXMT family and MPL460 modem are supported
helps to increase efficiency and reliability based on power delivered by Microchip’s MPLAB® Harmony v3 embedded software
to the load and power taken from the supply, resulting in an overall framework. Other resources include IAR Systems, Arm, Keil
reduction in consumption from the source during transmission. Development Environment, G3-PLC and PRIME software.
“The new PIC32CXMT MCUs, combined with an MPL460 PLC
modem, deliver an unmatched level of scalability and performance For more information email Andrew Athanasiou at
to support the architecture of a wide range of meters,” said aathanasiou@arrow.altech.co.za.

EngineerIT | November 2022 | 40