OREANDA-NEWS. Toshiba Corporation announced the launch of a new one-chip microcontroller for a smart meter, "TMPM411F20XBG", as the latest addition to its line-up of TX04 series, the ARM Cortex(r)-M4F core-based microcontrollers. Sample shipments start today.

A typical smart meter controller consists of an electricity calculation unit that measures current and voltage, a communication control unit that transmits and receives data with external equipment, and a display unit that outputs information to the display.

The new product incorporates two Cortex(r)-M4F cores to enable independent control of the measurement and communication units on one chip and reduce board space. In addition, security functions required for network communications-AES, SHA and ESG-are implemented. Tamper detection and interrupt detection at power failure are also implemented with super-low consumption power.

Toshiba is committed to developing microcontrollers that support and promote the widespread use of smart meters by electric utilities worldwide.