New 5V Kinetis E series microcontrollers designed for high performance in harsh electromagnetic environments; supported by the Freescale Freedom development platform and a broad enablement ecosystem for rapid development
Freescale Semiconductor offering the industry’s first 5V 32-bit MCUs built on the ARM Cortex-M0+ processor. The new Kinetis E series MCUs feature electromagnetic noise immunity for systems that traditionally use 8- and 16-bit MCUs, such as white goods and industrial applications, while providing high efficiency and optimal code density.
The new Kinetis E series products are ideal for applications such as dishwashers, refrigerators, home and building control systems, motor control fans, industrial converters and other equipment commonly operating in high-noise environments. Leveraging the devices’ robust design and 32-bit processing capabilities, systems designers can use a single device instead of the multiple MCUs previously required. In addition, large-pitch packaging options and high electrostatic discharge protection performance can enable single-layer board designs and reduce the need for additional circuit protection components, leading to lower system cost.
“Historically, 32-bit MCUs have been associated with lower voltage operation and considered unreliable in electromagnetically harsh environments such as factories or even many households,” said Brandon Tolany, vice president of marketing and business development for Freescale’s MCU business. “Kinetis E series MCUs break new ground by combining low cost and high performance with advanced electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection features designed to support compliance with industrial-grade reliability and temperature requirements.”
Freescale offers both hardware features (built into Kinetis E series MCUs) and pre-certified, fault-tolerant software routines engineered to help customers meet the IEC 60730 Class B safety standard for household appliances, which is mandatory in European markets.
Kinetis KE02 MCU features
- EMC and ESD protection features for robust noise immunity and compliance with industrial-grade reliability and temperature requirements
- Exceptional electrical fast transient/electrostatic discharge (EFT/ESD) performance
- Flash, RAM, register, watchdog and clock tests
- 2.7V to 5.5V and across -40 degrees C to +105 degrees C ambient temperature range
- ARM Cortex-M0+ core running up to 20 MHz
- Single-cycle 32-bit x 32-bit multiplier
- Single-cycle I/O access port
- Up to 64 KB flash memory
- 256 B EEPROM
- Up to 4 KB RAM
“It’s impressive to see a 32-bit MCU family at these price points for this type of environment,” said Tony Massimini, chief of technology at Semico Research. “The Kinetis E series MCUs allow customers to step up performance and leverage more advanced development tools and the extensive ecosystem surrounding the ARM Cortex M0+ core. As we see the market shifting to 32-bit solutions, the robustness of these 5V MCUs should even make it possible for systems challenged by signal-to-noise concerns to make the switch.”
Design freedom with world-class software support
Kinetis E series MCUs feature world-class development support, including the FRDM-KE02Z Freescale Freedom development platform, Processor Expert software, as well as a software development kit providing easy access to sample software libraries. The low-cost Freescale Freedom development platform makes it easy for customers to rapidly evaluate and prototype with Freescale MCUs. Kinetis E series MCUs also benefit from broad ARM ecosystem support including off-the-shelf software, tools and training, as well as partner-developed solutions, such as IAR Embedded Workbench and the Keil MDK-ARM Microcontroller Development Kit.
