1GHz Renesas RZ/A3M Cortex-A55 MPU embeds 128MB on-chip DDR3L for HMI applications

Renesas RZ/A3M is an Arm Cortex-A55 microprocessor (MPU) clocked at up to 1.0 GHz with 128MB on-chip DDR3L for cost-effective, yet advanced HMI applications with up to 1280×800 resolution.

The RZ/A3M is similar to its predecessor, the Renesas RZ-A3UL, but it integrates 128MB on-chip RAM in a single System-in-Package (SiP), supports both MIPI DSI and parallel display interfaces, and adds a 2D graphics accelerator for smoother user interfaces.

Renesas RZ/A3M specifications:

• CPU – Single-core Arm Cortex-A55 @ up to 1.0 GHz
• GPU – 2D drawing engine
• Memory
  • 128KB on-chip SRAM with ECC
  • Built-in 128MB DDR3L-1600 SDRAM (16-bit bus width)
• Storage
  • SPI Multi I/O Bus Controller× 1 channel (4-bit Double data rate)
  • Boot from Serial NAND or Serial NOR flash
  • SD card host interface
• Display I/F – 4-lane MIPI DSI or Digital parallel output up to 1280×800 resolution @ 60 Hz
• Audio – Serial sound interface (SSI/I2S)
• USB – 1x USB 2.0 host
• Other peripherals
  • GPIO
  • 2x I2C
  • 2x SCI (Serial Communication Interfaces) (SCI)
  • 5x SCIF (Serial Communication Interfaces with FIFO)
  • 2x RSPI (Renesas Serial Peripheral Interfaces)
  • Multi-function timers – 1x 32-bit, 8x 16-bit
  • 3x 32-bit general-purpose timer
  • Watchdog Timer
• Sensor –  Thermal Sensor Unit
• Supply Voltage – 2.97 to 3.63 V (PVDD)
• Package – 17×17 mm, 244-pin LFBGA, 0.8 mm pitch
• Temperature Range – -40 to +85°C

Renesas offers an HMI development environment that includes the usual Flexible Software Package (FSP) with FreeRTOS or Azure RTOS support, evaluation kits like the Renesas EK-RZ/A3M pictured below, development tools, and sample software. Graphical user interfaces (GUIs) can be developed with third-party solutions from LVGL, Crank, SquareLine Studio, and Envox.

The company highlights that the RZ/A3M is designed to reduce system costs, notably thanks to the integrated DDR3L memory that enables the design of 2-layer PCBs since high-speed interfaces are not needed and noise is less of a concern. Renesas further explains that the RZ/A3M’s BGA package has a unique pin layout with two main rows on the outside edge to simplify PCB routing.

The Renesas RZ/A3M is now the top part of the RZ/A SoC family for HMI applications, designed to run real-time operating systems (RTOS). It’s only outperformed by the more complex, Linux-capable RZ/G series microprocessors such as the RZ/G2L within the Renesas HMI solution portfolio.

Renesas says the RZ/A3M is available in volume production today with pricing starting at around $13.94 per unit for orders of 500 pieces or more. The EK-RZ/A3M evaluation kit goes for $284.97 on resellers such as Digikey.  Additional information may be found on the product page and the press release.

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