Integrated TSN-Compliant 3-Port Gigabit Ethernet Switch Supports High-Precision Real-time Communication

Published  August 9, 2022   0
L Lakshita
Author
RZ/N2L Microprocessor Units (MPUs)

Renesas Electronics Corporation has announced the new RZ/N2L microprocessor units (MPUs) for Industrial Ethernet communication that make it easy to add network functionality to industrial equipment and devices. The RZ/N2L complies with many industry-standard specifications and protocols to facilitate the development of industrial automation devices that require real-time capabilities. These new products support the increasingly popular Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) Ethernet standard that ensures real-time communication.

Equipped with an integrated TSN-compliant 3-port Gigabit Ethernet switch and an EtherCAT slave controller, these new devices support all major industrial network communication protocols, such as EtherCAT, PROFINET RT, EtherNet/IP, and OPC UA, along with the new PROFINET IRT. The RZ/N2L has both parallel and serial host interfaces that connect to the host CPU for external applications. This allows direct connection between the RZ/N2L and the CPU for high-speed access. Moreover, the external CPU can directly access communication data stored in the system RAM of the RZ/N2L.

These MPUs are built around the Arm Cortex-R52 with a maximum operating frequency of 400 MHz and integrate large capacity ECC RAM and peripheral functions such as a delta-sigma interface, A/D converter, and PWM timer, allowing it to be used as a standalone device to develop applications such as remote I/O, sensor hubs, and inverters. The UART and CAN functions enable the RZ/N2L to serve as a gateway for converting from a Fieldbus based on RS485 or CAN to Industrial Ethernet.

Key Features

  • CPU: Arm Cortex-R52, maximum operating frequency 400MHz

  • Tightly coupled memory 256KB (with ECC)

  • Internal RAM 1.5MB (with ECC)

  • 3 external ports with Gigabit support

  • TSN support (IEEE 802.1AS-2020, IEEE 802.1Qbv/802.3br, IEEE 802.1Qbu, etc.)

  • Network redundancy support (DLR, PRP)

  • EtherCAT slave controller

  • Industrial Ethernet: EtherCAT, PROFINET RT/IRT, EtherNet/IP, OPC UA, etc.

  • Host I/F (parallel/serial/Dual/Quad/Octa)

  • Memory I/F (Octa-/Quad SPI/HyperRAM/HyperFLASH/SRAM/SDRAM)

  • PWM timer: up to 60ch (3-phase complementary output supported)

  • Trigonometric function accelerator