Bridging 8- through 32-bit applications

In an effort to cover the processing needs across high-end, 8-bit and low-end, 32-bit applications using the same core, code, and package configuration, Mitsubishi is adding two processor families, the M16C/10 and M32C/83, to its standard 16-bit platform. The company based both families on its 16-bit M16C core. They integrate 16 to 512 kbytes of flash memory; 1, 2, or 31 kbytes of RAM; a 10-bit ADC; and an 8-bit DAC. The M32C/83 operates at 30 MHz and features two independent circuits for each of the ADC and the DAC, 12 timer/counter channels, 28 PWM channels, and a controller-area-network function.

The 16-bit platform maintains a broad range of processors that offer consistency in instruction set, peripheral functions, and configuration, such as pin assignments and flash-memory sizes, to support code and design reusability for successive design cycles. The M16C/10 targets those 8-bit applications that can benefit from 16-bit performance today and benefit from a consistent processor platform that scales up to low-end 32-bit performance with significant reuse. The M16C/10 in 32- and 48-pin LQFPs and 42-pin SSOPs is available for sampling now, and volume production is scheduled for the first quarter of 2002 at $3.75 (10,000). The M32C/83 in 100- and 144-pin QFPs is available for sampling in the first quarter of 2002, and volume production is scheduled for the following quarter at $16.75 (10,000).

Mitsubishi Electric and Electronics USA, 1-949-589-1725, www.mitsubishichips.com.