ASM221: SYSTEM-ON-CHIP FOR SMART METER PLC COMMUNICATION,
SINGLE AND POLYPHASE METROLOGY, AND APPLICATION PROCESSING

 

Asmgrid blockdiagram

 

INDUSTRY FIRST INTEGRATED SYSTEM SOLUTION FOR PLC-BASED SMART METERS

 

Accent's ASM221 addresses next generation metering needs for geographies such as Europe requiring advanced OFDM powerline communication including G3, PRIME, and IEEE P1901.2 as it becomes available. The ASM221 represents the industry's first single-chip meter solution to integrate an ARM® Cortex™-M3 processor system, energy measurement system, ample on-chip Flash (576 KB) and SRAM (96 KB), external SRAM/Flash/SDRAM support, and Accent's SUNFX™-PLC modem plus dedicated AFE.

 

The SUNFX-PLC modem's software-based, hardware accelerated architecture provides equipment manufacturers a cost-effective, flexible solution that provides in-field customizability and the ability to track standard changes. SUNFX-PLC implements OFDM techniques with a variety of modulation schemes and numerous modem features for maximum data rate and robustness. The dedicated AFE for PLC eliminates the need for external ADC, DAC, and numerous discrete components.

 

ASM221's energy measurement module integrates a high precision AFE and proprietary DSP for a best-in-class single-phase, residential metering solution, with added support for tamper detection. The ASM221 implements a powerful memory system for maximizing Cortex M3 performance and all meter processing including communication protocol and vendor application stacks. Software expandability is further supported via the ASM221's EMIF for numerous external memory types.

 

The ASM221's full-featured PMU simplifies power management and provides microamp operation in standby mode with retained state information. The ASM221 supports a number of communication interfaces including SPI, I2C, and UART as well as hardware-based security mechanisms. Additional system capabilities includes multi-channel DMAs, general purpose ADC, temperature sensor, and GPIOs.

 

KEY PRODUCT AND PERFORMANCE FEATURES
  • SUNFX- PLC COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
    • Fully integrated advanced PLC modem and AFE
    • G3, PRIME, IEEE P1901.2, proprietary protocols support
    • Innovative hybrid flexible and cost-optimized architecture
    • Support for OFDM with up to 256 subcarriers based on band of operation
    • DBPSK, DQPSK, D8PSK and QAM modulations
    • Frequency support for CENELEC, FCC and ARIB bands from 10 KHz to 490 KHz
    • Data rates up to 207 Kbps
    • Ultra-high sensitivity up to 37dBuV
    • Very low cost external BOM including passives, power amplifier and transformer
  • ARM CORTEX-M3 AND ADVANCED MEMORY SYSTEM
    • Single processor for PHY, MAC, protocol, and complete meter processing
    • Ample available DMIPS and open platform for further software processing (112 DMIPS @ 90 MHz)
    • Integrated memory protection unit
    • On-chip Flash (576 KB) dual bank architecture to support robust firmware update
    • Cache memory:1 KB on embedded Flash, 2 KB 4-way set associative to SDRAM
    • 96 KB SRAM with additional ultra-low power retention RAM
    • Single chip 2 MB/8 MB SDRAM options
    • SPI Flash support
  • SECURITY FEATURES
    • Mechanical and electrical anti-tampering support
    • AES-128 Encryption Engine
    • ARM Cortex-M3 Memory Protection Unit
    • Secure Metrology Processing
    • Secure JTAG interface
  • SYSTEM AND COMMUNICATION PERIPHERALS
    • Two 4-channels DMAs
    • Four 32-bit timers, Watchdog timer
    • Embedded Temperature Sensor
    • Serial communication: up to 2 SPI, 1 I2C, 4 UART
    • ADC at up to 1 Msps
    • Up to 40 configurable GPIO pins
  • AEMET2: HIGH ACCURACY ENERGY MEASUREMENT
    • Supports single-phase, split-phase and three-phase residential and C&I applications
    • Frequency, RMS, active, reactive, apparent powers and power factor calculations
    • Total and fundamental only energy calculations
    • Synthetic voltage and current generator with programmable frequency, amplitude and phase
    • Accent ultra-small 64 bit DSP @ 36 MHz, enabling industry-best dynamic range
    • Software programmable enabling vendor customizations and additional energy applications
    • Support for CT, Shunt, and Rogowski Coil sensors
    • Measurement accuracy: 0.1%
    • Dynamic range: 10,000:1
    • Voltage reference: 30 ppm/°C
    • Applicable standards including IEC62053, ANSI C12.20, EN50470, IEC 61036 
  • OPTIMIZED POWER MANAGEMENT UNIT
    • Real Time Clock: 32 KHz counter and alarms
    • Temperature compensation, calibration support
    • RTC Standby Mode 1.3 uA
    • Brownout mode for a low-power system operation
  • PACKAGE
    • 128LQFP with additional 2 MB or 8 MB options
  • OPERATING CONDITIONS
    • Temperature range -40°C to 85°C
    • Voltage 1.8 – 3.6 V ( optional dual support 1.8/3.3 V)