Microchip Announces ZigBee Platform With 2.4 GHz IEEE 802.15.4 Transceiver
Chandler, AZ -- Microchip Technology Inc. announced three new offerings for IEEE 802.15.4 wireless networking. Microchip's first RF transceiver, the MRF24J40, is a 2.4 GHz IEEE 802.15.4 transceiver targeted for the ZigBee protocol-and proprietary wireless protocols-in RF applications requiring low power and RF performance. The ZENA wireless network analyzer tool further enables development of ZigBee protocol systems using Microchip's semiconductors. Finally, the MiWi protocol is a free, small-footprint protocol developed by Microchip for customers who do not need ZigBee protocol interoperability but want to use IEEE 802.15.4 transceivers in low-cost peer-to-peer, star and mesh networks. With the MRF24J40 transceiver, Microchip offers a complete ZigBee protocol platform through the addition of a highly integrated RF transceiver. Microchip's radio also offers low power consumption and performance that exceeds IEEE 802.15.4 specifications, with full Media Access Controller (MAC) support and an Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) hardware encryption engine.
"Microchip's MRF24J40 IEEE 802.15.4 transceiver can be combined with roughly 200 8-bit and 16-bit PIC microcontrollers, and dsPIC DSCs, to provide the most cost-optimized wireless networking solutions," said Ganesh Moorthy, Microchip's executive vice president. "In combination with our free ZigBee protocol stack, Microchip now offers a complete solution for one of the fastest growing technology market segments."
"The MiWi protocol addresses the market need for a protocol that is simpler and lower cost to implement than the ZigBee protocol. Microchip recognized this need and developed the MiWi protocol for smaller networks that can be implemented on lower-cost PIC microcontrollers," Moorthy added.
Regardless of which protocol a design engineer selects, Microchip's complete solution enables them to evaluate and begin developing wirelessly networked IEEE 802.15.4 applications, including: building/home automation (security, lighting, HVAC, access); industrial (monitors, sensors, automation, control, lighting); personal healthcare (diagnostic tools, monitors); and consumer electronics (RF wireless remotes for TV/VCR/DVD/CD, toys, personal-computer peripherals).
Microchip's new ZENA wireless network analyzer tool (part # DM183023) uses a simple graphical interface to configure the free Microchip ZigBee and MiWi protocol stacks. This enables customers to reduce the code size of the stacks by removing optional features; cuts development time by simplifying the interactions with the stacks; and allows customization of the stack to fit a particular need. Consisting of both hardware and software, the ZENA wireless network analyzer is an IEEE 802.15.4 protocol analyzer that is capable of decoding ZigBee and MiWi protocol packets-from the lowest layers to the top of the stack (including the security modules). The network-configuration display window allows users to see the traffic in real time, as it travels from one node to another. A session can also be saved to a file, to allow further analysis of all the network traffic.
This augments Microchip's existing IEEE 802.15.4 development tools, including the PICDEM Z 2.4 GHz Demonstration Kit (part # DM163027-4), which is an evaluation and development platform for IEEE 802.15.4 application designers. The kit includes all of the hardware, software source code and printed circuit board (PCB) layout files needed to rapidly prototype wireless products. This development platform is based on Microchip's PIC18 microcontroller family, which supports IEEE 802.15.4 applications and offers a wide selection of products with 32 Kbytes to 128 Kbytes of Flash program memory in 28- to 100-pin packages.
SOURCE: Microchip Technology Inc.