Analog Devices sets new standard in mixed-signal control processors

NORWOOD, USA: Analog Devices Inc. launched a mixed-signal control processor that integrates the industry's only embedded dual 16-bit A/D converter with up to 14 bits of accuracy together with a 240-MHz floating-point ARM Cortex-M4 processor core.

Equipment manufacturers require highly accurate, closed-loop control in servo, motor-drive, solar photovoltaic (PV) inverter and other embedded industrial applications to improve the energy efficiency and performance of their products. The higher precision analog conversion of the ADSP-CM40x achieves these goals.

Forty percent of the world's electric power is consumed by electric motors, and demand for higher levels of factory automation is driving the need for greater industrial-motor power efficiency and performance.

"Developers of industrial drives are demanding lower power consumption, less torque ripple and more precise speed control. This together with higher precision analog conversion within the closed-loop control scheme is the key enabling technology," said Hong Wu, GM, Googol Technology, a leading maker of motor drives and motion controls for Asian markets. "The ADSP-CM40x is the best processor for offering the level of mixed-signal performance required in future industrial motor drives."

In addition, solar PV has become the largest source of new generation capacity added to the global electricity grid - with a cumulative installation base of 100 GW - and is set to become the fastest growing source of renewable energy generation over the next decade. Increased measurement accuracy, supported by the ADSP-CM40x's integrated high precision converters, is driven by ever more stringent grid compliance requirements.

This coupled with faster power control loops, fueled by the emergence of GaN (gallium nitride) and SiC (silicon carbide) power switching technologies, are combining to enable significant performance and cost improvements in the next generation of solar PV inverter topologies, all enabled with the ADSP-CM40x through its powerful 240-MHz floating point processing capabilities and best-in-class analog conversion speed.