Page 43 - EngineerIT November 2022

NEW PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

New Arm-based PIC microcontrollers create an

easier way to add Bluetooth low energy connectivity

ireless connectivity has become a mandatory interfaces to touch, CAN, sensor, display and other peripherals.
feature for many products but often increases The family’s 1 MB of Flash memory supports large application
Wthe cost and complexity of system design, since codes, multiprotocol wireless stacks and OTA updates. AEC-Q100
it generally must be added as part of the larger application. Grade 1 (125 °C) qualified packages further simplify wireless
Microchip Technology is introducing its first Arm Cortex®- connectivity integration where highly robust solutions are
M4F-based PIC microcontroller (MCU) family that solves this required.
wireless connectivity design challenge, by integrating Bluetooth The PIC32CX-BZ2 MCU family simplifies development through
low energy functionality directly into one of a system’s most Microchip’s MPLAB® Harmony 32-bit embedded-software
basic components, supported by one of the industry’s most development framework. MPLAB code configurator integration
comprehensive developer ecosystems. enables developers to quickly begin prototyping with the
“Our PIC32CX-BZ2 MCU family removes barriers that have PIC32CX-BZ2 family using drag-and-drop auto code generation.
made it difficult to bring wireless applications to market, from Numerous application code examples are hosted on GitHub and
availability problems and complexity challenges to regulatory linked through MPLAB code configurator and MPLAB Discover. RF
certification hurdles and long-term support concerns,” said design with PIC32CX-BZ2 SoCs is simplified with the ecosystem’s
Steve Caldwell, vice president of Microchip’s wireless solutions chip-down reference design packages and wireless design check
business unit. “Our family tightly integrates wireless connectivity services. Customers with little to no RF expertise can benefit
with an MCU that is built on our decades of specialised from Microchip’s WBZ451 modules that are pre-certified to
experience and backed by a vertical manufacturing approach multiple regulations around the world and feature an optimised
that encompasses ICs, Microchip’s highly integrated software on-board RF design.
stacks, in-house module manufacturing and a customer-driven In addition to the MPLAB Code Configurator, the MPLAB
obsolescence practice.” Harmony v3 framework includes numerous other tools and
Microchip’s PIC32CX-BZ2 family includes system-on-chip an ecosystem of debuggers, programmers, virtual sniffer and
(SoC) devices as well as global regulatory-certified, RF-ready compilers. Other support includes GitHub demo applications
modules. In addition to Bluetooth low energy functionality, the and documentation, wireless design check services, and building
family includes Zigbee® stacks and over the Air (OTA) update blocks that walk developers through all the steps involved
capabilities. Hardware features include a 12-bit analogue to in the application development process. The PIC32CX-BZ2
digital converter (ADC), multiple timer/counters for control (TCC) family is supported by the PIC32CX-BZ2 and WBZ451 Curiosity
channels, an on-board encryption engine, and a broad set of Development Board (Part number: EV96B94A).

EngineerIT | November 2022 | 43