Renesas RZ/G3E Arm Cortex-A55/M33 MPU targets mid-range HMI systems requiring AI acceleration

Renesas RZ/G3E is a new member of the company’s RZ/G SoCs with a quad-core Cortex-A53 application processor, a Cortex-M33 real-time core, and an Ethos-U55 NPU for mid-range, AI-enhanced HMI (Human Machine Interface) systems with up to two 1920 x 1080 resolution displays.

The industrial-grade processor features MIPI-DSI, dual-link LVDS, and Parallel RGB display interfaces, 2D and 3D graphics accelerators, H.264/H.265 video decoding,  a 4-lane MIPI CSI interface, two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, 2-lane PCIe Gen3, USB 3.0/2.0, and a range of analog and digital I/Os.

Renesas RZ/G3E specifications:

• CPU
  • Dual- or quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 processor clocked at up to 1.8 GHz
  • Arm Cortex-M33 system management processor clocked at up to 200 MHz
• GPU – Arm Mali-G52 3D GPU, Image Scaling Unit (ISC), Frame Data Processor (FDP)
• VPU – H.264/H.265 Video codec unit (VCD)
• NPU – Optional Arm Ethos-U55 NPU clocked at up to 1 GHz (512 GOPS)
• Memory
  • 512KB on-chip SRAM with ECC
  • 1-channel memory controller for LPDDR4-3200 or LPDDR4X-3200 with a 32-bit bus width
• Storage
  • xSPI interface
  • eMMC/SD SDHI interface (1-, 4-, 8-bit bus width supported)
• Display
  • 4-lane MIPI DSI
  • Parallel LCD interface
  • Dual-channel LVDS
  • Up to 2x displays supported
• Camera – 4-lane MIPI CSI-2 interface
• Audio
  • Asynchronous sampling rate converter unit (SCU) up to 192 kHz
  • DMAC for Audio (ADMAC) to transfer audio formats of I2S with SCU.
  • Flexible audio clock generator (ADG) for audio functions.
  • I2S (TDM) input/output interfaces (half-duplex 10 channels; full-duplex 5 channels)
  • 3x SPDIF input/output interfaces
  • 6x Pulse density modulation (PDM) input interfaces
• Networking – 2x Gigabit Ethernet
• USB
  • 2x USB 2.0 (1x Host/OTG, 1x Host-only)
  • 1x USB 3.2 Gen2  host
• PCIe – PCIe Gen3 (1 or 2 lanes)
• Other peripherals
  • 6x CAN/CANFD compliant with ISO11898-1
  • 10x SCI (UART/SPI/I2C-host, RS485 mode support)
  • 3x SPI, 9x I2C, 1x I3C
  • Analog
    • 8x 12-bit ADC up to 2.5 Msps
    • Internal temperature sensor
  • Timers
    • 16x 32-bit general-purpose timer
    • 8x 32-bit CMTW (Compare match timer W)
    • Watchdog timer
• Security
  • Hardware cryptographic engine
  • Secure boot
  • TRNG
  • Device Unique ID
    JTAG disable
  • OTP
• Supply Voltages
  • VDD (core) – 0.8 V
  • VDD (CA55) – 0.8 V @ Normal Drive, 0.9 V @ OverDrive
  • VDD (DDR IO) – 1.1 V/0.6 V (LPDDR4/4X)
  • VDD (except DDR IO) – 1.2 V, 1.8 V, 3.3 V
• Packages
  • 15×15 mm 529-pin FCBGA with 0.5mm pitch (available)
  • 21×21 mm 625-pin FCBGA with 0.8mm pitch (coming soon)
• Temperature Range – −40°C to +125°C

Renesas explains that RZ/G3E implements the same advanced power management features found in the RZ/G3S SoC for IoT edge and gateway devices, such as sub-CPU operation and peripheral functions to achieve a low power consumption of around 50mW while active, and around 1mW in deep standby mode.

Like other Renesas application processors, it is supported by the Verified Linux Package (VLP) based on the reliable Civil Infrastructure Platform with over 10 years of maintenance support. The company also provides the Linux BSP Plus for users requiring the latest LTS Linux kernel and Yocto versions. Finally, Ubuntu by Canonical and Debian open-source OS are also available for server or desktop Linux environments. Renesas also offers a SMARC evaluation kit for the RZ/G3E with 4GB LPDDR4X, 64GB eMMC flash, 16MB QSPI flash, and access to all I/Os from the processor.

The Renesas RZ/G3 is the first RZ/G Series HMI SoC to integrate an NPU for AI acceleration, but I still listed it as a mid-range device since the Renesas RZ/G2H, RZ/G2M, and RZ/G2N processors can support up to three 4K displays. The MPU targets HMI systems for industrial and consumer segments, including factory equipment, medical monitors, retail terminals, and building automation.

Two “Winning Combinations” reference designs are available for the RZ/G3E: Full HD Dual-Display HMI Platform and Digital Otoscope solutions. Renesas also partnered with system-on-module vendors, and three SoMs have been designed so far: TRIA SM2S-G3E (SMARC 2.2), ARIES Embedded MSRZG3E (OSM Size-M), and MXT RZ/G3E OSM Size L.

The Renesas RZ/G3E is available now for $46.60 per piece for 1k orders, while the Evaluation Board Kit is listed on Digikey for $598.69. Renesas guarantees supplies for 15 years under its Product Longevity Program (PLP). More information can be found on the product page.

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