Microchip Launches the Dual-Core Lockstep AVR SD Family, for Functionally Safe Devices
New low-cost microcontrollers target medical, automotive, and industrial systems requiring ASIL C and SIL 2 compliance.
Microchip has announced the launch of a new family of low-cost microcontrollers designed for applications where functional safety is imperative: the Automotive Safety Integrity Level C (ASIL C) and Safety Integrity Level 2 (SIL 2) ready AVR SD range.
"When designing safety-critical applications, engineers have typically been limited to using expensive and complicated devices. By integrating specific safety features directly into an entry-level MCU and providing a supporting software framework, we are helping our customers meet stringent safety standards with greater efficiency," claims Microchip's Greg Robinson, corporate vice president of the company's microcontroller business unit. "With the AVR SD family, designers can significantly reduce development time and minimize system and certification costs."
The new dual-core chips are based around the company's AVR core architecture running at up to 20MHz and with either 4kB or 8kB of static RAM (SRAM) and a choice of 32kB or 64kB of program flash — with both memories benefiting from error correcting code (ECC) support. The idea behind having two cores is that they can be run in lockstep, running the code on both simultaneously and comparing the results to detect any errors. For internal fault detection, Microchip claims the parts can hit a fault detection time interval (FDTI) as low as one millisecond.
The company is positioning the part as ideal for industrial, medical, and automotive applications where functional safety is required — complying in its design with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26262 and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61508 standards and promising that the parts meet the requirements of Automotive Safety Integrity Level C (ASIL C) and Safety Integrity Level 2 (SIL 2), and suggesting that they can also be used as a coprocessor in more complex systems to help reach the higher-level ASIL D and SIL 3 requirements.
The AVR SD family is now available, with pricing starting at $0.93 per unit in 5,000-unit tray quantities; a Curiosity Nano board hosting an AVR32SD32, with 4kB of SRAM and 32kB of flash, is available at $14.99 in single-unit quantities. More information is available on Microchip's product page.