TI introduces multiprotocol Sitara processors for industry 4.0
Industrial-grade Sitara AM6x processors from Texas Instruments (TI) offer advanced industrial communications, enhanced security, high reliability and functional safety features.
Claimed to be the industry’s first multiprotocol Gbit time-sensitive networking (TSN)-enabled processor family, the Sitara AM6x processor family provides industrial-grade reliability, with quad and dual Arm Cortex-A53 core variants. They have been created to meet the rapidly evolving needs of industry 4.0 in factory automation, motor drives and grid infrastructure, says TI.
Supporting Gbit throughput rates for TSN standards and other industrial protocols in a specific subsystem, the Sitara AM6x processors anticipate the convergence of both Ethernet and real-time data traffic on a single network. This capability is critical for real-time communication in industry 4.0 applications and enables software-reconfigurable cyber physical systems in factories, notes TI. The Gbit industrial communications subsystem (PRU-ICSS-Gb) supports multiple industrial Ethernet protocols including TSN, EtherCAT, Ethernet/IP and ProfiNet and provides the flexibility to support the evolving needs of industrial communications.
The inclusion of an on-chip isolated dual-core microcontroller subsystem enables designers to use the AM6x processors to create more dependable and functional safety-certifiable products, while reducing overall system-level complexity for applications including PLCs and multi-axis motor drives. Comprehensive support for error correcting code (ECC) memory protection for both on-chip memory and external DDR memory and for 100,000 power on hours (PoH) at a 105 degrees C junction temperature (TJ) operation enable AM6x processors to perform in high-reliability applications. The Sitara AM6x processor family can be scaled to fit system needs, with pin-compatible processors operating in a unified software platform. The processors are supported by the processor software development kit (SDK), which allows customers to seamlessly reuse and migrate Android, Linux and TI-RTOS software across TI processor families.
The integrated processors offer enhanced on-chip security, with secure boot, secure storage and smart crypto engines. The integrated 3D graphics enable human machine interface (HMI) and industrial PC applications.
Pre-production samples of AM6548 processors are available to order The AM65x industrial development kit (IDK) (TMDX654IDKEVM) and AM65x evaluation module (EVM) (TMDX654GPEVM) are also available.
