Wireless MCUs add Bluetooth 5.0 long-range capabilities
Article By : Susan Nordyk
A trio of wireless MCUs from NXP add Bluetooth 5.0 long-range capabilities and robust serial communications.
A trio of wireless MCUs from NXP, the KW39, KW38, and KW37, add Bluetooth 5.0 long-range capabilities and robust serial communications. The 32-bit MCUs allow Bluetooth LE devices to communicate at distances of more than a mile in a wide variety of automotive and industrial applications.
Integrating a generic FSK radio, the devices achieve receive sensitivity of -105 dBm with an LE-coded 125-kbps data rate to permit connections in harsh environments and at extended distances. The radio supports up to 8 simultaneous secure connections in any master/slave combination, allowing multiple authorized users to communicate with the device. A data stream buffer enables the capture of radio parameters without stalling the processor or DMA operations.
Communication interfaces include two SPI modules, two I2C modules, and a low-power UART with LIN support. In addition, the KW38 microcontroller employs a FlexCAN module for integration into an industrial CAN or automotive in-vehicle network. Its CAN FD data transmission increases bandwidth and lowers latency. All of the microcontrollers feature an AES-128 hardware accelerator, true random number generator, and LE secure connections.
The KW39, KW38, and KW37 MCUs are housed in 7×7-mm 48HVQFN packages and furnish up to 512 kbytes of flash memory with ECC and 64 kbytes of SRAM. Devices are available now from NXP and its distribution partners.
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