NEC Electronics America Announces New Single-Chip USB 2.0 Host and Peripheral Controller

NEC Electronics America Announces New Single-Chip USB 2.0 Host and Peripheral Controller

Single-Chip Controller Facilitates Development of Versatile Electronic Equipment

SANTA CLARA, Calif, June 26, 2008 – NEC Electronics America, Inc. today announced to the Americas market an integrated USB 2.0 host and peripheral controller (part number µPD720150) designed to enable high-speed digital data sharing among various electronic products, such as digital cameras and printers. On a single chip, the µPD720150 integrates communications functions that formerly required separate USB host and peripheral controller chips, thereby helping to reduce device count and conserve board space. A member of NEC Electronics’ ECOUSB series of USB devices, which are manufactured with eco-friendly materials that serve to minimize environmental impacts, the µPD720150 chip further helps to minimize environmental impacts by employing advanced power management techniques that can reduce power consumption in end products.

The new controller executes high-speed data transfers at rates up to 480 megabits per second (Mbps) and also supports rapid software development by providing basic USB functions that have been implemented in hardware, in addition to a general-purpose CPU bus interface that enables connection to a variety of embedded CPUs.

“There is a rapidly emerging need in the marketplace to have USB 2.0 integrated circuits (ICs) operating as either host or peripheral controllers in embedded system applications. Printers, music players, handheld computers, set-top boxes, and numerous other devices now have this need,” said Katsuhiko Nakazawa, general manager, digital consumer and connectivity strategic business unit, NEC Electronics America. “To address this emerging requirement, NEC Electronics developed the µPD720150 chip, which offers both host and peripheral controller functions in a single IC and also provides a simple, low-cost, 16-bit bus interface to the embedded CPUs typically used in these systems.”

Principal features of NEC Electronics’ µPD720150 host and peripheral controller include:

1. Integrated host and peripheral control functions

Register settings enable four different configurations for the two USB ports: one host, two hosts, one peripheral, or one host and one peripheral. The chip supports simultaneous host and peripheral control, and designers can increase the number of ports by connecting an external hub, available separately from NEC Electronics America.

2. Hardware implementation of basic USB operations

The µPD720150 controller features on-chip hardware to handle basic USB operations, including many operations that formerly had to be handled in software. For example, audio and video data transfers can be scheduled automatically. By taking advantage of these on-chip functions, therefore, designers can easily provide USB features without having to develop more software.

3. General-purpose CPU bus interface

A 16-bit CPU interface with selectable timing modes allows direct connections to embedded system CPUs and eliminates the need for a separate device to control timing, which also reduces device count and conserves board space.

4. Low power consumption

Technology developed for NEC Electronics’ ECOUSB™ series of low-power USB products reduces power consumption in standby mode by completely stopping the clock when USB functions are not in use, and then activating the clock in response to an external signal event. In addition, an integrated regulator reduces the internal voltage from 3.3 volts (V) to 1.5V to lower operating power consumption without requiring additional devices.

Leadership in USB 2.0

NEC Electronics is a leading supplier of USB solutions for customers worldwide and was the industry’s first company to introduce a USB 2.0 host controller and hub controller. With a USB 2.0 product line-up that includes ASSPs and ASICs, the company has shipped more than 150 million units worldwide and continues to be a leader in the development of interface technology.

More information about NEC Electronics’ µPD720150 host and peripheral controller can be found at http://www.am.necel.com/µPD720150_specsheet.

Availability

NEC Electronics’ µPD720150 host and peripheral controller is available now in sample quantities. Expected volume production of 500,000 units per month will commence in August 2008. (Availability is subject to change without notice.)