Rabbit 3000 Nibbles At Connected 8/16 Bitters

By Bernard Cole
iApplianceWeb
(04/16/02, 02:32:51 AM EDT)

Davis, Calif. --- Combining a CPU lineage as old as the X86, new instruction extensions to extend its memory and interrupt capabilities and ground-braking EMI reduction techniques, the new 8/16 bit R3000 from Rabbit Semiconductor Inc. is targeted at many new embedded control applications which now need some degree of connectivity.

Designed specifically for embedded control, communications, and Ethernet connectivity, the new R3000, like its predecessor the R2000 incorporates a complex instruction set architecture derived from the venerable Zilog Z80/180, which in the early days of the microprocessor threatened to displace the Intel 8080 and 8086. In addition, it incorporates features such as a clock spectrum spreader, useful in helping designers eliminate Electromagnetic Inteference (EMI) problems that could derail designs targeted at new control applications in the home networking environment.

During testing, EMI for Rabbit 3000-based boards has typically been less than 10 dB µV/m at 3 meters --and some tests have even yielded results of 0 dB. The use of the spectrum spreader effectively reduces clock-related EMI and derivative signals by approximately 15 dB-a design-critical amount, as devices often fail EMI tests by as little as 5 or 10 dB.

Such EMI problems could impact the design of many netcentric iAppliance control designs target at home and consumer devices where the electromagnetic interference problems are strictly controlled by the Federal Communications Commission.

The Rabbit 3000 executes a mix of long and short complex instructions at clock rates up to 54MHz. Compared to the original Z80, the Rabbit 3000 includes to two additional registers, one for managing up to one megabyte of memory code and another one for handling the interrupt vectors for the externally generated interrupts. To the original Z80 instruction set, the R3000 adds a number of new commands, including ones for 16 bit loads and stores relative to the stack pointer and index registers, greatly improving C code execution as well as ones which make the alternate register set accessible. The instruction set also includes commands for long jumps and returns, as well as for long memory address stores and loads to efficiently use the full megabyte of code space available.

Rabbit 3000 development tools include extensive support for Internet and network connectivity, with full source code for TCP/IP provided royalty free.

The Rabbit 3000 operates at 3.3 V (with 5 V tolerant I/O) and boasts 6 serial ports with IrDA, 56+ digital I/O, a quadrature decoder, PWM outputs, and pulse capture and measurement capabilities. It also features a battery-backed real-time clock, glueless interfacing, and ultra-low power modes.

Rabbit 3000 processors are priced from $8-9 in quantity. The Rabbit 3000 Development Kit is priced at only $299 and includes RabbitCore core module (with Rabbit 3000, Flash, and SRAM), prototyping board, and complete Dynamic C SE software development system (not a trial version) and documentation on CD-ROM.

For more information go to http://www.rabbitsemiconductor.com.