NEC Electronics Introduces V850E/RS1 Microcontroller for High-End Automotive Safety Applications

New 32-Bit Microcontroller Provides Fast Processing and Dedicated On-Board Safety Features to Ensure Real-Time Performance

KAWASAKI, Japan, DUESSELDORF, Germany, and SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 15 -- NEC Electronics Corporation and its subsidiaries in Europe and the United States, NEC Electronics (Europe) GmbH and NEC Electronics America, Inc., today announced the availability of their latest 32-bit microcontroller (MCU) for the automotive market, the V850E/RS1(TM). With a high-performance 40-megahertz (MHz) V850E(TM) controller core and dedicated on-board safety features, including a 10-bit 16-channel analog/digital converter (ADC) with auto discharge and diagnostic functionality, a buffered clocked serial interface (CSI), and flash memory with hardware in-circuit error correction coding (ECC), the V850E/RS1 controller is ideally suited for real-time, safety-critical automotive applications such as restraint control modules.

"NEC Electronics is a leading provider of restraint-control microcontrollers for automotive original equipment manufacturers due to the extensive application-specific features that we integrate into our products," said Yoshiyuki Idogawa, general manager, 1st Solutions Division, NEC Electronics Corporation. "By supporting these features in hardware, not just software, NEC Electronics is providing its automotive customers with higher-performing, highly reliable products."

Automotive applications such as restraint control modules require fast processing performance to deliver the real-time response needed when deploying an airbag at the instant of impact. The V850E/RS1 controller core can operate at 40 MHz and deliver 54 million instructions per second (MIPS), providing the required real-time performance. The controller's use of flash memory with hardware ECC greatly reduces the possibility of system error. Two versions of the MCU will be available, one with 256 kilobytes (K) of flash memory and 16K of random access memory (RAM), and the second with 128K of flash memory and 10K of RAM. Additionally, the V850E/RS1 MCU's buffered CSI enhances communication with ASICs in the restraint control module to further ensure error-free operation.

For customers adhering to manufacturing quality assurance processes, versions of the V850E/RS1 controller that are PPAP, AEC-Q100 and QS-9000 certified are available.

Pricing and Availability

The V850E/RS1 microcontroller is packaged in a 100-pin low quad flat package (LQFP). Pricing for the controller with 256K flash memory and 16K RAM is expected to be US$13.00 per unit in 100,000-unit quantities. Pricing for the controller with 128K flash memory and 10K RAM is expected to be US$10.00 per unit in 100,000-unit quantities. NEC Electronics will begin taking orders for engineering samples in April. Engineering samples of the V850E/RS1 MCU are scheduled to be available in July 2004 with mass production scheduled for third quarter 2005 at a production volume of 200,000 units per month. Pricing and availability are subject to change.

About NEC Electronics Automotive Products

NEC Electronics' automotive product line offers a broad range of semiconductor components for automotive systems, such as application-specific MCUs for body control, dashboard, airbag, engine control and car audio systems. These low-power, low-electromagnetic interference (EMI), high-performance MCUs feature integrated peripherals specifically optimized for automotive applications, as well as integrated CAN- and J1850-type multiplexing buses. In addition to MCUs, NEC Electronics also offers an extensive variety of power MOSFET devices to be used in various automotive environments. NEC Electronics has worldwide resources with highly experienced staff in the United States, Japan and Europe. NEC Electronics' worldwide manufacturing facilities are QS-9000 certified to meet the high-quality standards of customers in the North American automotive industry.

About NEC Electronics

NEC Electronics Corporation specializes in semiconductor products encompassing advanced technology solutions for the high-end computing and broadband networking markets, system solutions for the mobile handsets, PC peripherals, automotive and digital consumer markets, and platform solutions for a wide range of customer applications. NEC Electronics Corporation has 24 subsidiaries worldwide including NEC Electronics America, Inc. (www.necelam.com) and NEC Electronics (Europe) GmbH (www.ee.nec.de). In addition to marketing, selling and supporting NEC Electronics products to customers in their respective regions, NEC Electronics America and NEC Electronics Europe also operate local manufacturing facilities in Roseville, California, and Ballivor, Ireland, respectively. Additionally, NEC Electronics America for North America and NEC Electronics Europe for Europe are the sales and marketing channels of NEC AM-LCD and PDP modules. For additional information about NEC Electronics worldwide, visit www.necel.com.