I²C Buffers Meet CompactPCI, AdvancedTCA Challenges

With the PCA951x family of Philips Semiconductors hot-swappable I²C bus buffers, designers can implement larger I²C systems to handle the maintenance and control functions required in CompactPCI (PICMG2.9) and AdvancedTCA (PICMG3.X) architectures.

The five devices in the PCA951x family can also be used in normal I²C bus or SMBus applications to expand the number of devices that can connect to the I²C bus. When used on the CompactPCI cards, the PCA951x buffers permit the insertion and removal of the boards in an active I²C system without corrupting the data on the I²C bus. The circuits include precharge and idle detect capabilities that help minimize any glitches the card might cause when removed or inserted.

In lots of 10,000 units, the PCA951x devices cost $1.60 apiece.