NEC Electronics Introduces Next-Generation V850E2M Dual Core Architecture For 32-Bit V850 Microcontrollers

New V850E2M Core Enables Eco-Friendly Performance In Automotive and Industrial Automation Systems

KAWASAKI, Japan, SANTA CLARA, California, DUESSELDORF, Germany, NEC Electronics today unveiled the new V850E2M microcontroller unit (MCU) featuring dual-core for eco-friendly performance and high reliability in automotive and industrial automation systems. An extension of the company’s V850 and V850E architectures, the new 32-bit core is highly scalable to compete with 16- and 32-bit devices, and provides increased functionality while lowering energy requirements and increasing development efficiency.
The new V850E2M dual core architecture provides two 32-bit V850 CPU cores, each delivering high performance levels of 2.563 Dhrystone MIPS per MHz, while enabling low power consumption of 1.5mW per MIPS (Note 1). The V850E2M core is also available as redundant core architecture, offering high reliability and development efficiency. The redundant cores monitor each other at each instruction by executing the same program code and using the same data. Critical faults can therefore be detected at a very early stage by hardware, reducing the workload of the software designers to implement functional safety.
Since the introduction of the company’s first V850 based MCU in April 1996, NEC Electronics has been promoting the V850 family products and has extended the product portfolio to ASSPs and IP cores for ASICs. NEC Electronics has become the number one supplier of 32-bit MCUs worldwide based on revenue in 2007 and 2008 for the second consecutive year, as ranked by Gartner in its April 2009 report (Note 2).
As consumers become more eco-conscious, eco-friendliness is an area of focus especially in the industrial, consumer electronics, and automotive markets. In order to allow designers to develop more ’eco-friendly’ product, NEC Electronics launched its first lineup of low-power MCUs in October 2007. To provide manufactures with further energy saving options and added value, NEC Electronics developed the V850E2M dual core architecture.

Following are the significant features of the new V850E2M CPU core:

* (1) Employs two 32-bit CPU core
The CPU core has been designed to support a multicore architecture, which offers unified memory architecture (UMA) technology in which each CPU has access to the same memory context. This makes it possible for the V850E2M dual core to provide the high-performance levels required for demanding environments with processing performance of 2.563 Dhrystone MIPS per MHz per core while still maintaining low power consumption.
* (2) Implements redundant core architecture
The V850E2M core incorporates a complete package of safety features such as lock step implementation where two cores mirror the operations of the other and check if both come to the same conclusion. This redundant core architecture enables system designers to reduce total system cost and simplifies system development by removing redundant system requirements.
With its flexibility and eco-friendly features, NEC Electronics’ V850E2M dual core architecture will meet the demand of the system designers for developing embedded systems with higher performance and increased system reliability while maintaining low power consumption.


Availability
NEC Electronics is leveraging the scalability of the V850E2M core in its products using sub-100nm technology. The core will be also available for designs using NEC Electronics’ ASIC technology in the 3rd Quarter this year. Availability is subject to change without notice.

About NEC Electronics

NEC Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) specializes in semiconductor products encompassing advanced technology solutions for the high-end computing and broadband networking markets; system solutions for the mobile handset, PC peripheral, automotive and digital consumer markets; and multi-market solutions for a wide range of customer applications. NEC Electronics Corporation has subsidiaries worldwide including NEC Electronics America, Inc. and NEC Electronics (Europe) GmbH. More information about NEC Electronics worldwide can be found at www.necel.com.


(Note 1)
The performance per MHz and power consumption per MIPS ratios are based on the MCU Dhrystone benchmark (version 2.1).
(Note 2)
Gartner “Semiconductor Industry Worldwide Annual Market Share: Database” 2 April 2009
(Remark)
NEC Electronics a registered trademark or trademark of NEC Electronics Corporation in Japan and/or other countries. All other registered trademarks or trademarks are property of their respective owners.