Motorola increases performance of 32-bit microcontrollers; 25 MHz 68331 and 68332 now available.

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 19, 1996--Motorola's (NYSE:MOT) Advanced Microcontroller Division today announced increased performance of its 32-bit microcontroller family with the addition of 25 MHz versions of the 68332 and 68331 to its product portfolio.

The 68332 was the industry's first 32-bit microcontroller and is the flagship of Motorola's 68300 family of microcontrollers.

The 25.17 MHz operating speed now allows a minimum bus cycle of 80nS (nanoseconds) for faster instruction execution. It also allows a 160nS resolution for the on-chip timers (Time Processor Unit on the 68332 and General Purpose Timer on the 68331) for more efficient control of time-critical applications.

The improved timer resolution is important in applications such as motor control. Faster instruction times allow the flexibility to add more code to improve system performance or enhance features. The 68331 and 68332 are used in a broad variety of applications such as digital cellular phones, set-top boxes, optical disk drives, printers and automotive engine control.

Both the 68331 and 68332 utilize Motorola's modular design methodology, which allows rapid development of new derivatives tailored for specific applications or customers by making use of existing peripheral modules from the 16-bit 68HC16 and 32-bit 68300 families. These on-chip peripherals interface through a common Intermodule Bus (IMB).

The CPU32 central processing unit is based on Motorola's 68020 microprocessor, with improved exception handling for control applications, high-level language support and fully static operation. Power consumption can be minimized using the CPU32's low-power stop command, which stops the system clock.

The 25 MHz 68331 is available now in a 132-lead plastic quad flat pack (PQFP) package for US $16.10 and in a 144-lead thin quad flat pack (TQFP) package for US $12.85 (Motorola list prices) in quantities of 10,000 pieces. The 25MHz 68332 is available now for US $19.30 in a 132-lead PQFP package and US $16.10 in a 144-lead TQFP package (Motorola list prices) in quantities of 10,000 pieces.

Motorola offers several development tools, including its Modular Evaluation Board (MEVB), a convenient platform to create, develop and debug application code for Motorola's 16-bit 68HC16 and 32-bit 68300 microcontrollers. Additionally, Motorola's MMDS1632 Modular Development System offers a complete hardware and software development system for its 68HC16 and 68300 families.

The MMDS1632 provides real-time in-circuit emulation for embedded applications. The MCUinit(tm) software development tool simplifies and speeds the creation of initialization code for Motorola's 68HC16 and 68300 microcontrollers. The RTEK(tm) kernel, a robust, full-featured real-time operating system available from Motorola, also supports the 68300 family as do many independent development tool suppliers.

The Advanced Microcontroller Division is a business unit within Motorola's Microcontroller Technologies Group (Austin, Texas). Motorola's 68HC11 microcontroller family is an industry-standard, high-performance 8-bit architecture. The new 68HC12 is a low-power 16-bit microcontroller family that is completely source-code compatible with the 68HC11 architecture.

Motorola's high-performance 16-bit 68HC16 family with integrated DSP capabilities shares the same modular design methodology as Motorola's 32-bit 68300. The PowerPC(tm) MPC500 family completes the product line, providing a smooth migration path up to RISC performance. Motorola has over 250 different 8-, 16- and 32-bit microcontrollers in their portfolio.

Motorola is the worldwide leader in microcontroller sales with approximately 18 percent of the 1995 microcontroller market, according to an In-Stat report. With 1995 worldwide sales of $8.5 billion, Motorola's Semiconductor Products Sector is committed to enabling its customers' success by providing systems solutions, processes and services to anticipate and respond to changing technologies and market dynamics.

As the largest U.S.-based, broad-line semiconductor supplier, Motorola's Semiconductor Products Sector delivers global resources, product design and development expertise and the highest-quality technology solutions to its customers. Motorola semiconductors power automobiles, communications, computing systems and millions of other consumer products. -0-

Note to Editors: PowerPC is a trademark of IBM Corp. and is used by Motorola under license from IBM Corp. MCUinit, RTEK, and Background Debug are a trademark of Motorola, Inc.

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