Microchip is offering high-performance Wi-Fi microcontrollers (MCUs), network and link controllers and plug-and-play modules designed to simplify development and speed time to market.
With Industry 4.0, the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI), digitised manufacturing and the growth in the IoT, the demand for wireless connectivity in both commercial and industrial applications is growing rapidly and requires reliable connectivity that can withstand extreme environments that are exposed to high temperatures, background noise and obstructions.
Microchip’s Wi-Fi solutions have been designed to support various application needs and developer skill levels and the selection ranges from modules that are regulatory certified in several countries that require no Radio Frequency (RF) expertise and little programming to Systems-on-Chip (SoCs) with industrial-level features.
Microchip’s Wi-Fi portfolio includes:
Wi-Fi MCUs: all-in-one solution designed to combine the functionality of an MCU with reliable wireless connectivity
Link Controllers: an SDIO interface enables the addition of Wi-Fi to Linux MPUs
Network Controllers: an SPI interface allows the addition of wireless connectivity to an MCU
Plug-and-Play Modules: simplify wireless-to-cloud connectivity by sending simple text commands from an MCU over a UART interface
Commenting on the new range of devices Rishi Vasuki, vice president of Microchip’s wireless solutions business unit, said, “Microchip’s experience allows us to provide developers with wireless solutions designed to support advanced applications such as precision sensing and motor control operating under harsh conditions.”
The latest PIC32MZ-W1 Wi-Fi MCUs build on Microchip’s 32-bit MCU line and feature advanced analogue peripherals - including CAN, Ethernet, capacitive touch and ADC - to offer greater levels of versatility. Additionally, these devices feature, according to Microchip, some of the highest General-Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) capabilities currently available on the market.
Also included in the lineup are next-generation WINCS02 network controllers and WILCS02 link controllers. Updates to the WINC and WILC solutions include improved radio performance and enhanced security features, and these modules are pin-to-pin compatible with previous generations to ease migration from legacy devices.
To simplify Wi-Fi to cloud connectivity, Microchip has also expanded its plug-and-play product line with new RNWF02 modules. These modules connect MCUs to a cloud platform using simple ASCII commands sent over a UART interface.
Secure connections, which are critical for Wi-Fi applications that send or receive data from the cloud, can be challenging to implement depending on the developer’s skill level. To ease this process, Microchip has integrated its Trust Platform into many of its Wi-Fi products.
Trust&GO module variants are pre-provisioned for secure authentication with popular cloud services, including AWS and Azure, to streamline the process of network authentication.
