Chipset Simplifies Contactless Smartcard Reader Design

Suitable for contactless smartcard applications such as access control, ticketing systems, E-purse and ID cards, the ST16-19RFRDCS910 chipset comprises an analog front-end, a coder/decoder/frame formatter, and an optional ST92163 high performance 8/16-bit microcontroller. The chipset is compatible with both the ST16 and ST19 families of smartcard microcontrollers. The analog front-end contains the RF circuitry required to communicate between the card and the reader and the device is compatible with the ISO 14443-2 type B standard, which uses a 13.56 MHz carrier wave. Data transfer rates of up to 424 kb/s are supported in either direction. The FPGA-based frame processor chip provides ASK coding, BPSK decoding, and frame formatting functions with programmable data rates between the card and the reader of 106, 212 and 424 kb/s. In addition, the device provides an eight-bit parallel interface for the ST92163 MCU and a programmable serial communications interface with speeds from 4.8 Mb/s to 115 kb/s. Price starts at $48.50 each/1,000.