DSCs and MCUs Bring 70 MIPS Performance and Cap Touch to Cost-Sensitive Designs

Microchip Technology, a leading provider of microcontroller, analog and Flash-IP solutions, today announced the expansion of its enhanced core 16-bit dsPIC33 and PIC24 “E” Digital Signal Controller (DSC) and microcontroller (MCU) families [1] to include on-chip op amps and Microchip’s Charge Time Measurement Unit peripheral (CTMU), enabling advanced features in user-interface, intelligent-sensing, general-purpose and motor-control [2] applications at a low cost.  The new devices are pin compatible with existing 16-bit [1] dsPIC33 and PIC24 products for easy migration, and are available in multiple package options, including the new, ultra small 5 mm x 5 mm 36-pin VTLA package.

With 70 MIPS of DSP performance and a 6-channel Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) peripheral, the dsPIC33 and PIC24 “E” devices provide advanced motor control and high-speed application execution.  This results in more efficient, smaller and lower-cost designs, as a single DSC or MCU can be used to control the entire system.  The on-chip op amps can be used in a variety of sensing applications where signal conditioning is needed, and reduce the need for external components, helping to reduce overall design cost and size. The CTMU peripheral, used in mTouch™ [3] capacitive touch-sensing, simplifies the addition of innovative and reliable user interfaces, including keypads, buttons and sliders. 

“Our new dsPIC33 and PIC24 ‘E’ devices provide high performance and innovative features at a lower cost than previously possible,” said Sumit Mitra, vice president of Microchip’s High-Performance Microcontroller Division.  “These new dsPIC33 and PIC24 “E” devices are among the most capable and cost-effective controllers on the market.”