Epson to Launch Ultra-Low Power 4-Bit Microcontrollers

Seiko Epson Corporation announced that it has developed a new series of ultra-low current, 4-bit microcontrollers. The microcontrollers in the new S1C63000 series run on as little as 1.1V in operating mode and only 0.1 μA in sleep mode. Volume production is slated to begin in April 2010, with plans calling for two-million units, total, per month.

The new microcontrollers are designed for use in mobile devices, which demand long battery life. The products in the S1C63000 series employ Epson’s original low-power analog IP and low-leak process technology, allowing the microcontrollers to operate on a 1.5V button cell (e.g. a silver-oxide battery or alkaline button cell), both because current consumption is curbed during sleep mode and also because the chips can operate on just 1.1V. Even when the CPU is running at high speed (4 MHz), the microcontroller consumes just 220 μA of current. This is approximately 75% less than Epson’s previous comparable products*1, enabling the new microcontrollers to dramatically prolong the battery life of the equipment in which they are used.

In addition to low-voltage operation and low current consumption, the products in the S1C63000 series boast powerful on-chip peripheral circuits, including the constant voltage circuits and liquid crystal driver circuits for which Epson microcontrollers are known, as well as resistance-to-frequency type A/D converters (R/F converters), which enable accurate temperature and humidity measurements, and supply voltage detection circuits that offer far greater accuracy than in the predecessor series*1.

Flash-based microcontrollers for programming the products in this series will also be available, significantly simplifying the software development process.

Epson is committed to further advancing its unique technologies and developing products suited to applications that require low power consumption, such as battery-operated mobile devices.

Product features

1. Low-current operation that dramatically extends battery life

* Sleep: 0.1 μA (typical)

* Halt (32.768 kHz, LCD off): 0.5 μA (typical)

* Halt (32.768 kHz, LCD on): 0.9 μA (typical)*2

* Operating (32.768 kHz): 2.3 μA (typical)

* Operating (4 MHz): 220 μA (typical)

2. Low voltage operation and power management circuit

* 1.1V—1.7V / 1.8V—5.5V operation guaranteed*3

* LCD constant voltage circuit

This circuit ensures stable, high-quality display regardless of the charge left in the battery. Voltage for driving the liquid crystals is generated internally, and an external regulator is not needed

3. Peripheral circuits ideally suited to mobile devices

* Code ROM with a capacity ranging from 4,096 words to 16,384 words

* On-chip LCD driver with up to 56 segments x 8 commons

* A segment allocation function allows designers to match the address and bits of display memory to any segment terminal

* Selectable GPIO port and segment pin functions*3

* Software-based display contrast adjustment function

Can be used for voltage matching with a liquid crystal panel or to add a function for adjusting contrast to the product

* Resistance-to-frequency type A/D converter (R/F converter) for temperature and humidity measurements

* Supply voltage detection circuit accurate to ±3% (max.)

Helps enable efficient use of batteries and prolongs battery life by improving voltage detection accuracy

* Timer circuits