Ultra-low latency MCU supports the use of GaN and SiC technologies

The Texas Instruments TMS320F28P55x (F28P55x) is a member of the C2000 real-time MCU family of scalable, ultra-low latency devices developed for efficiency in power electronics, including but not limited to high power density, high switching frequencies, and supporting the use of GaN and SiC technologies.

The real-time control subsystem is based on the company's 32-bit C28x DSP core, which provides 150MHz of signal-processing performance for floating- or fixed-point code running from either on-chip flash or SRAM. The C28x CPU is further boosted by the FPU, TMU, and VCRC (Cyclical Redundancy Check) extended instruction sets, speeding up common algorithms key to real-time control systems.

The CLA permits significant offloading of common tasks from the main C28x CPU. The CLA is an independent 32-bit floating-point math accelerator that executes in parallel with the CPU. Also, the CLA has its own dedicated memory resources and can directly access the key peripherals required in a typical control system. Support of a subset of ANSI C is standard, as are key features like hardware breakpoints and task-switching.

The NPU can support machine-learning inferencing using pre-trained models. Capable of 600–1200MOPS with model support for ARC fault detection or Motor Fault detection, the NPU provides up to 10x NN inferencing cycle improvement versus a SW-only-based implementation. Load and train models with the company's Model Composer GUI or the Tiny ML Modelmaker for an advanced set of capabilities. These tools generate source code for the C28x, no manual coding is required. For customers who rely on their own AI training framework, the company's Neural Network Compiler can help port your AI model to be compatible with many C28x-based MCUs. Those interested in reference solutions can request access to its Arc Fault Detection Project or the Motor Bearing Fault Detection Project.

The F28P55x supports up to 1088KB of flash memory divided into four 256KB banks plus one 64KB bank, which allows programming one bank and execution in another bank in parallel. Up to 133KB of on-chip SRAM is also available to supplement the flash memory.

The Live Firmware Update hardware enhancements on F28P55x permit fast context switching from the old firmware to the new firmware to minimise application downtime when updating the device firmware.

High-performance analog blocks are integrated on the F28P55x real-time MCU and are closely coupled with the processing and PWM units to provide optimal real-time signal chain performance. Twenty-four PWM channels, all supporting frequency-independent resolution modes, allow control of various power stages from a three-phase inverter to power factor correction and advanced multilevel power topologies.

Including the Configurable Logic Block (CLB) permits the user to add custom logic and potentially integrate FPGA-like functions into the C2000 real-time MCU.

Interfacing is supported through various industry-standard communication ports (such as SPI, SCI, I2C, PMBus, LIN, and CAN FD) and offers multiple pin-muxing options for optimal signal placement.