Renesas RE01B Ultra Low Power Bluetooth 5.0 Microcontroller Suitable for Unattended IoT Devices

Renesas Electronics recently introduced a microcontroller of the RE family, designated RE01B. It is an ultra-low power 32-bit microcontroller that supports Bluetooth 5.0 Long Range (communication up to 400m) at speeds up to 2Mbps.

Ultra-low power consumption is ensured by the revolutionary Renesas SOTB (Silicon on Thin Buried Oxide) technology. Operating from 1.62 V to 3.6 V at up to 64 MHz, the microcontroller consumes only 35 μA / MHz when using an internal voltage regulator or 15 μA / MHz when using an external ISL9123 DC-DC converter. In standby mode, the current consumption is reduced to 600 nA, of which 500 nA falls to the core, and 100 nA to the Bluetooth interface. The peak current during Bluetooth operation is 3.0 mA for reception, and 4.3 mA for transmission (at a speed of 1 Mbps).

Due to its ultra-low power consumption, the microcontroller is well suited for compact medical devices such as pulse oximeters and sensors, remote controls and smart meters, as well as for IoT devices that do not require batteries and are powered by energy obtained from the environment.

The manufacturer specifies that the Bluetooth interface can be used not only for data exchange, but also for firmware updates.

The microcontroller configuration includes 256 KB of SRAM and 1.5 MB of flash memory, a 14-bit analog-to-digital converter and energy storage control circuitry for direct connection of elements for collection and storage of energy. The microcircuit is enclosed in a 64-pin QFN package with dimensions of 8 x 8 mm. It is already available to order, as is the EB-RE01B evaluation kit.