| Motor-control chips from Microchip feature up to 256 bytes of on-board data EEPROM and 10 Mips performance at 40 MHz. |
A new 8-bit Flash microcontroller family from Microchip Technology, Chandler, Ariz. (www.microchip.com), features built-in motor-control peripherals saving designers precious board space. Three new modules address motion and power-control applications. Power-control modules feature a three-phase PWM structure and the motion-feedback module includes a quadrature encoder interface. The third module has a 200-k sample/sec analog-to-digital converter which can synchronize with the PWM. Together, these modules eliminate need for external motor-control components such as converters and resonators, lowering cost and saving board space.
Other features include up to eight PWM channels with 14-bit resolution, center alignment, programmable dead-time, and two external fault-protection inputs. An internal RC oscillator has eight selectable frequencies from 31.25 kHz to 8 MHz. It also includes four general-purpose timers, a clock monitor for fail-safe operation, and an enhanced USART supporting RS485, RS232, and LIN.
The PIC18F4331/4431 devices come in 40-pin DIP, 44-pin TQFP and QFN packages. The PIC18F2331/2431 comes in 28-pin SDIP, SOIC, and QFN packages.