1997-05-29 , S/IC-711-451

SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 29, 1997 -- Philips Semiconductors, the world's leading supplier of the industry-standard 80C51 microcontroller, today announced a full line of high RAM/ROM MCUs with the launch of its new RX+ controller family. The new 8XC51RA+/RB+/RC+/RD+ family of microcontrollers, a superset of the 8XC52/54/58, 8XC51RA/RB/RC, and 8XC51FA/FB/FC families, provides more memory than existing devices. Users now have the FLEXibility to choose devices with up to 64K MASK ROM/OTP and 1K RAM along with wider frequency range and lower supply voltages. These larger memory sized devices expand the use of the 80C51 in more feature intensive applications written in higher-level languages such as C.

"Increasingly, designers of embedded systems are choosing to program in the C language", said David Fair, marketing manager of Philips Semiconductors' Microcontroller group. "The 80C51, like other 8-bit architectures, pre-dates C. With this release, we are enabling the 80C51 to handle C and other high-level languages effectively with larger data and program memory spaces. The RX+ family supports this requirement by doubling the data RAM of the standard 80C51 family. We've even extended the family to a version with 1K of data RAM and 64K of program ROM, all in the industry standard pinouts". The "+" in the new line refers to the inclusion of the popular Programmable Counter Arrays (PCA) and watchdog timers in the Philips RX+ family. Today's announcement introduces the immediate availability of OTP, masked ROM, and ROMless versions. By the end of the year, the RX+ will be available in In-System Programmable (ISP) versions as well.

The RX+ series operates 2.7V to 5.5V at speeds up to 33MHz. In addition, there is a hardware watchdog timer that enhances fault tolerance and reliability.

The RX+'s programmable counter array provides five 16-bit capture and compare modules. These modules can be configured for Capture Mode, Timer Mode, High Speed Output Mode and 8-bit Pulse Width Modulator Mode. The RA+ is available at $2.95 USD for OEM quantities of 25K pcs.

FLEXible Flash Technology
Philips also is expanding its Flash microcontroller line with the development of the RX+ Flash Family. The RX+ Flash MCUs offer in-system, multiple-time programming through a UART or I/O port. Customers will be able to recode the microcontroller along the manufacturing line and even at the customer site without removing the microcontroller from the PC board. The customers' ability to reprogram in real-time will reduce costs associated with time-to-market delays and enable field upgrades.

Philips Semiconductors is the world's leading supplier of the most popular 8-bit architecture, the 80C51, offering more than 100 derivatives. In-Stat, an independent semiconductor research firm, reported Philips' 80C51 sales of US $558 million in 1996, a 20.5% increase from 1995, and a 44.5% share of the 80C51 8-bit microcontroller market. Philips has recently extended this successful architecture into 16-bit performance with its XA. Now customers can preserve their software, development tools and technology investment in the 80C51 while capitalizing on the 16-bit performance requirements in a market expected to double in the next two years.

Philips Semiconductors, Inc., a subsidiary of Philips Electronics North America and an affiliate of Philips Electronics NV, headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, is the ninth largest semiconductor supplier in the world. Philips Semiconductors innovations in digital audio, video, and mobile technology position the company as a leader in the consumer, multimedia, and wireless communications markets. Sales offices are located in all major markets around the world and are supported by regional customer application labs. Additional information about Philips Semiconductors and its Microcontroller products can be obtained by accessing the home page at http://www.semiconductors.philips.com.