New MCUs increase system throughput while lowering power consumption in embedded applications

Microchip has expansioned its AVR MCU portfolio with the addition of three new devices to the tinyAVR MCU family. The new ATtiny1617 series of MCUs expands the range of AVR devices that feature CIPs, which help to increase system throughput while lowering overall power consumption. The new devices extend the memory offering for these next-generation tinyAVR MCUs with new 16KB Flash options, while remaining pin- and code-compatible with the recently released series devices. Furthermore, all members of the family are supported by Atmel START, an online tool for intuitive graphical configuration of embedded software projects. The new MCUs offer 16KB Flash, 256B EEPROM, and 2KB RAM in 14, 20 and 24-pin packages. The devices contain key features of other MCUs including the Event System Controller, which allows peripherals to communicate without using the CPU and enables designers to customise the configuration of the MCU for their specific application. The on-chip PTC simplifies the development of capacitive touch systems. Other integrated features include: a 20MHz internal oscillator, high-speed serial communication with USART, SPI, and I2C, configurable custom logic blocks, a 10bit ADC with internal voltage references, operating voltages ranging from 1.8V to 5.5V, and picoPower technology for sleep currents as low as 100nA. The new devices are fully supported by the Atmel Studio 7 IDE, the STK600 platform and Atmel START, a free online tool to configure peripherals and software for easy development.