Flash MCU Handles CAN Automation Applications

Controller Area Network (CAN) applications in building automation, medical, marine network and print media are the domain of the AT90CAN128 8-bit AVR flash microcontroller with extended CAN capabilities. The controller accommodates 15 independent message objects, programmable on the fly. With a 16 MIPS RISC engine, 128 KB flash program memory, 4 KB RAM and 4 KB on-chip EEPROM, the device is suitable for demanding industrial control applications. A large portion of the chip’s processing speed and memory remains available for the application while a higher level protocol stack (CANopen, DeviceNet or J1939) runs on the chip. An interrupt accelerator engine informs the CPU of critical messages without running a software scan routine, minimizing overhead impact on real-time critical events. In-application programming capability via CAN UART or SPI bus allows remote programming and field upgrades. Packaging is a 64-lead TQFP64 or a 64-lead QFN64. Price is $7.50 each/10,000. ATMEL CORP., San Jose, CA. (408) 441-0311.