NXP Pioneers Simultaneous Multi-Channel Data Reception in Automotive Transceivers

Eindhoven, Netherlands and Hamburg, Germany - Building on its industry-leading position in automotive electronics and its commitment to connecting the car, NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NASDAQ: NXPI) today introduced the NCK2983, a low power multi-channel two-way UHF transceiver with an embedded microcontroller system that can uniquely receive up to three channels in parallel rather than sequentially. The device is suitable for use in both key fob and body control module-type applications, including Keyless Entry, Remote Start, Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) and Wireless Diagnostics (WD).

Existing multi-channel transceivers are only able to poll for signals sequentially, one channel after another, in order to check every possible frequency that an application may be transmitting on. By enabling reception across three channels simultaneously, the NCK2983 device shortens the period it needs to be ‘awake’ when polling, significantly reducing overall power consumption while increasing system robustness.

The NCK2983 is able to receive multiple channels in parallel because it uses a pioneering Wideband Digital IF approach. Similar in concept to a Software Defined Radio, the high-performance, low-noise front end presents the down-mixed RF signal to a high-speed Sigma-Delta ADC, serving as input to up to three discrete receive channels in the DSP unit. Each channel can be configured independently, mixing down the signal to baseband according to the specific channel frequency, and applying relevant channel filter, demodulation and clock recovery settings.

The NCK2983 features a Fractional–N based frequency synthesizer that enables the device to operate in any of the common ISM bands and supports carrier frequency hopping at each of the three baseband channels. The NCK2983 also includes an embedded microcontroller system with 32 kB EROM (FLASH) allowing complete applications to be implemented as single-chip solutions. The transceiver supports special power modes for battery-powered key and car operation such as sleep mode and low power polling mode.

With this feature set, the NCK2983 combines outstanding RF performance with highly sophisticated baseband signal processing - making the chip an ideal solution for two-way multi-channel applications in the automotive market.

“The NCK2983 is the first chip of a new product family for sub-GHz RF communication systems,” said Dr. Volker Graeger, vice president Car Access and Immobilizers, NXP Semiconductors. “Our customers and OEMs acknowledge that we provide new ways of reducing power consumption while improving performance. By combining multi-channel and simultaneous RF reception with customer programmable smart polling in a single package, NXP has made another breakthrough in automotive electronics. Next we intend to significantly increase the system operating range by launching a dedicated long-range version of the chip.”
Features

* Single IC for 315, 434, 447, 868, 915 & 950 MHz bands for worldwide usage
* Simultaneous reception of up to 3 channels in parallel (within 1.8 MHz IF)
* 13 Channel filter bandwidth options (10 - 600 kHz)
* Operation up to 200 kchips/s (FSK/ASK)
* -123 dBm FSK/ASK sensitivity with high dynamic RSSI measurement
* Receiver path with 2 multiplexed antenna inputs enables dual band antenna matching
* Integrated RX/TX switch (SP2T) for flexible application matching
* Power management modes for polling and wake up triggered applications
* PA with digital controlled power ramping and +12 dBm output power
* 16-bit RISC μController with 4 kB RAM and 32 kB EROM (FLASH)
* Rx and Tx data buffer in RAM via independent DMA channels
* Coprocessor for bit manipulation and code redundancy cycle calculation (CRC)
* Clock driver output for micro controller crystal sharing
* Controlled via SPI, UART, LIN compatible UART
* 10 bit ADC sensor interface with up to 100 kSPS sampling rate
* Internal temperature sensor and support of high accuracy external temperature sensor for ARIB
* IREC, evaluation and configuration kit available to simplify custom firmware development
* HVQFN48 package with wettable flanks
* Wide Supply Range from 2.1 V to 5.5 V

Links

* Product information on NCK2983: http://www.nxp.com/pip/NCK2983AHN
* Connected mobility with NXP: http://www.nxp.com/connected-mobility/
* VIDEO: Connecting the in-car experience: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLcnhGb1aHI

About NXP Semiconductors
NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NASDAQ: NXPI) creates solutions that enable secure connections for a smarter world. Building on its expertise in High Performance Mixed Signal electronics, NXP is driving innovation in the automotive, identification and mobile industries, and in application areas including wireless infrastructure, lighting, healthcare, industrial, consumer tech and computing. NXP has operations in more than 25 countries, and posted revenue of $4.36 billion in 2012. Find out more at www.nxp.com.