Freescale Semiconductor peripheral modules for the Tower System

Freescale Semiconductor has announced two interchangeable peripheral modules and 8- and 32-bit microcontroller modules for the Tower System.

The peripheral modules offer developers 802.11b Wi-Fi and rapid prototyping functionality. The newest modules support MCF5225X 32-bit ColdFire MCU and MC9S08LL64 8-bit MCU.

The Tower System provides an embedded design environment that allows developers to mix and match MCU and peripheral boards to create reconfigurable development platforms that suit their design needs.

Interchangeable modules promote re-use of hardware across multiple architectures. The modular design scales down overall tool costs, while providing an inexpensive entry point.

The system now supports two microcontroller modules - the TWR-MCF5225X and the TWR-S08LL64, featuring the ColdFire V2 MCF5225X MCU and the 8-bit MC9S08LL64 MCU. These can be combined with various peripheral modules to form a development tool or used as stand-alone debug tools.

The TWR-MCF5225X offers flexible industrial connectivity with on-chip USB, ethernet, controller area network and encryption, along with the MQX real-time operating system and associated tools and software stacks.

The 8-bit MC9S08LL64 MCU includes an on-chip LCD driver that supports up to eight backplanes, enabling developers to drive more segments with fewer pins, reducing system cost and design complexity.

The S08LL family supports an LCD blink mode that operates without waking up the controller core, which helps reduce overall power consumption.

The modules complement the already released TWR-MCF51CN ethernet MCU module.

The prototyping module (TWR-PROTO) allows designers to add custom circuitry and build custom prototype boards with application-specific features. The module is suitable for hardware development and testing during system design.

The peripheral module complements the previously announced serial module (TWR-SER), supporting ethernet, USB, RS232, RS485 and CAN, and elevator modules (TWR-ELEV) that connect the MCU and peripheral boards.

Tower modules are currently available for MCF51CN, MCF5225X and MC9S08LL64 MCUs.