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From hard disk drives to air conditioning applications, designers
worldwide readily understand the benefits of higher-performance
microcontrollers with integrated digital signal processing (DSP). To
meet the demand, Intel is extending the popular MCS® 96 product family
with a powerful new generation of 16-bit microcontroller architecture. With its new 80296SA microcontroller, Intel provides design engineers with the highest performance 16-bit microcontroller with integrated DSP capability currently available. The 80296SA delivers faster processing, and addresses much more memory for high-level language storage, than other integrated microcontroller/DSP solutions currently available.
More Speed and Memory Headroom
At the heart of the 80296SA microcontroller is a new 16-bit
architecture based on a 4-stage pipeline instruction unit that radically
boosts performance. At a clock rate of 50 MHz, the 80296SA
microcontroller can execute an instruction in 40 nanoseconds, making it
five-times faster that the widely used 20 MHz Intel 8xC196KC
microcontroller.
New feature-rich applications demand a microcontroller that can compile complex code and high-level languages. The 80296SA microcontroller includes six megabytes of linear memory address space, six-times more memory headroom compared to 8xC196NU/NP microcontrollers. The new 80296SA also features 2 kilobytes of high-speed code/data RAM and 512 bytes of 3-ported register RAM. For more design flexibility, the microcontroller features 19 interrupt sources, including 14 sources with programmable priorities. It is also a low-noise solution, with a 1X, 2X and 4X PLL clock multiplier to reduce radio frequency interference.
Do the Math, Fast
With the 80296SA, faster microcontroller performance is just the
beginning. There is a growing demand for integrated microcontroller/DSP
functionality, especially in servo-control applications in PC-related
products. DSP involves high-speed repetitive math functions. To
accelerate performance, the 80296SA includes a 40-bit
multiply/accumulator, 32-bit barrel shifter and an improved instruction
set (with 17 new and enhanced instructions). The 80296SA can perform a
MAC (multiply and accumulate) instruction in 80 nanoseconds, for
performance equal to 12.5 MIPS.
Save Money, Board Space... and More
The 80296SA microcontroller is a single-chip microcontroller/DSP
solution that can help designers control product costs, save precious
board space and support product quality and manufacturability. For quick
time-to-market designs, the 80296SA offers full MCS 96 instruction set
compatibility and is also binary code-compatible with Intel's popular
8xC196NU/NP microcontrollers. The new 80296SA microcontroller is
available in 100-lead QFP packaging and is pin-compatible with Intel
8xC196NU/NP microcontrollers.
Target Applications
Ideal design applications include products requiring control-oriented
digital signal processing, including:
The New MCS® 296 Roadmap from Intel
The Intel 80296SA microcontroller is the first of a series of new
products featuring Intel's high-performance MCS 296 architecture. The
new product roadmap supports Intel's commitment to meet the growing
worldwide demand for faster and more flexible control and signal
processing solutions, while providing product developers with a logical
and cost-effective upgrade path to the future.
Samples, Tools and Literature Available Now
The 80296SA microcontroller samples are available now and can be
ordered by part name: S80296SA50 (50 MHz version) and S80296SA40
(40 MHz version). Suggested pricing is: S80296SA50 - $14 at 10KU
quantity; S80296SA40 - $13.50 at 10KU quantity. Production units will be
available beginning September 16, 1996.
A variety of third-party development tools are also available now, including in-circuit emulators, compiler/assemblers and software disassemblers. Additional product information is available at intel.com/design/MCS96.