1999-09-21 , S/IC-2084/27
Product News From Philips Semiconductors

Rx2 family offers twice the speed of an 80C51 and maximum flexibility with In-System and In-Application programming

Philips Semiconductors today announced a new Flash microcontroller family, the P89C51Rx2, broadening its current Flash 80C51-based microcontroller offering. The new family of devices features a 2X-speed mode, where the clock is divided by 6, instead of the standard 12, thus minimizing Electro-Magnetic Interference (EMI) and reducing power consumption. In addition to In-System Programming (ISP), the devices also enable In-Application Programming™ (IAP), a capability that allows designers to change the code within the application while it is running. The flexibility of Flash IAP, ISP and improved Electro-Magnetic Compatibility (EMC) make these devices an ideal solution for a wide range of applications, especially those where time-to-market is critical.

"Philips Semiconductors' IAP capability is a significant advancement in the 8-bit microcontroller market," said Geoff Lees, director of marketing for Philips Semiconductors' Microcontroller Business Line. "While the capabilities of ISP have changed how customers design, manufacture and service their products, IAP offers an even higher level of flexibility."

Philips Semiconductors' P89C51Rx2 family of microcontrollers, ranging from 16K bytes to 64K bytes of Flash program memory, features parallel programming and on-chip, 5-volt ISP and IAP. ISP allows the program code to be changed without removing the microcontroller from the application, IAP provides further flexibility by allowing the program memory to be altered while the microcontroller is running the application. Both the ISP and IAP programming interfaces communicate through the Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART), enabling customers to design applications that can be upgraded transparently and remotely over a serial link.

The devices, by default, run at 6 clocks per machine cycle, achieving two times the conventional 80C51 throughput at the same clock frequency. At 20 MHz, the P89C51Rx2 devices provide a throughput identical to a conventional 80C51 running at 40MHz, therefore minimizing the EMI and lowering power consumption. If desired, the device can be configured to run the application at the standard 80C51 rate of 12 clocks per machine cycle. This mode of operation is structured through a configuration bit that can be set by using a standard parallel programmer. The device also includes a Programmable Counter Array (PCA) that provides five 16-bit capture, compare and Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) modules.

The P89C51Rx2 family is supported by industry-standard 80C51 development tools. In addition, in-system serial programmers are available from Equinox Technologies. Development boards are available from PHYTEC and Philips Semiconductors.

Philips Semiconductors is the world's leading supplier of the most popular 8-bit architecture, the 80C51, offering more than 100 derivatives. Philips Semiconductors has extended this successful architecture into its low-power, small footprint, low-system cost 80C51 family, the 51LPC and its high-performance16-bit XA family. Now customers can preserve their software, development tools and technology investment in the 80C51 while capitalizing on low-power, small footprint and 16-bit performance applications. Dataquest's "1998 Microcontroller Market Share and Unit Shipments" July 1999 report stated, "Philips Semiconductors' 80C51 sales of US$ 445 million in 1998, a 38 percent share of the total 80C51 microcontroller market."¹.

Philips Semiconductors, a division of Royal Philips Electronics, headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, is the eighth largest semiconductor supplier based on Dataquest's 1998 report². 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 systems labs. Additional information on Philips Semiconductors can be obtained by accessing its home page at http://cdrom.semiconductors.com/

1. Based on Vendor Revenue by Architecture of Microcontroller Market Share and Unit Shipments.

2. Based on Vendor Revenue from Shipments of Total Semiconductors Worldwide according to Dataquest's 1998 Worldwide Semiconductor Market Share report published in May, 1999.