Austriamicrosystems AS3668 smart LED driver IC

A smart LED driver IC, the AS3668, has been launched by austriamicrosystems. The device controls up to four LEDs to produce indicator lighting effects in mobile phones and tablets without requiring the intervention of the baseband processor.

It can also be used in other consumer electronic devices such as 3G and LTE modems, USB memory sticks, game controllers and headsets, in which indicator lighting can enhance the user interface, offering high-value light effects and low power consumption at the same time.

The device can provide light patterns - for instance, to indicate to the phone or tablet user a missed call, unread text message or that an incoming call is waiting.

The device is a charge pump-based programmable LED driver IC. It provides accurate current sources of up to 25 mA for each LED, enabling the generation of a choice of light colours when used with an RGB/W (red, green, blue and white) cluster of LEDs.

The device draws 0.2 µA in stand-by mode. A programmable VBAT monitor offers fail-safe operation in all system environments and an automatic start-up pattern can be enabled to indicate to the user that the mobile device is connected to a charger.

The IC provides a choice of light patterns, rise and fall timing, pause, pulse-skip, colour variations and audio synchronisation.