Renesas Expands RISC-V Embedded Processing Portfolio with New Voice-Control ASSP Solution

New RISC-V ASSP Allows Industrial and Consumer Electronics Designers to Quickly and Cost Effectively Differentiate Applications with Voice Recognition

March 30, 2023 -- TOKYO, Japan ― Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723), a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, today extended its industry-leading RISC-V portfolio with the first RISC-V MCU designed for voice-controlled HMI (human-machine interface) systems. The new R9A06G150 32-bit ASSP, developed in collaboration with RISC-V ecosystem partners, provides a complete, cost-effective, production-ready voice-control system solution that eliminates the need for RISC-V tools and upfront software investment.

Targeting residential and commercial building automation, home appliances, toys and healthcare devices, the new ASSP supports multiple languages and user-defined keywords for voice-recognition operations. The foundation of a turnkey voice-control solution, the R9A06G150 is pre-programmed using specialized application code developed by independent design houses with a proven ability to bring customer designs to volume production.

The introduction reinforces Renesas as a leader in the emerging market for the open-source RISC-V ISA (instruction set architecture) and follows introductions last year of a 32-bit motor-control ASSP and 64-bit general-purpose RZ/Five MPUs based on a 64-bit RISC-V CPU.

“Renesas continues to broaden our RISC-V MCU/MPU offering, in this case by delivering designers an innovative voice-command HMI with pre-developed software that shortens development time and time to market,” said Roger Wendelken, Senior Vice President in Renesas’ IoT and Infrastructure Business Unit. “Through close collaboration with the RISC-V partner ecosystem, this flexible, scalable ASSP solution allows customers interested in voice control to support different application classes on the same MCU hardware platform.”

Optimized Solution in Collaboration with Global Partners

Renesas’ new R9A06G150 voice-control HMI ASSP is based on RISC-V processing IP from Andes Technology Corp., which incorporated its AndesCore D25F CPU core based on the AndeStar™ V5 architecture. "We are excited to be part of Renesas' turnkey voice control solution," said Frankwell Lin, Andes’ Chairman and CEO. "The 32-bit AndesCore D25F was engineered to deliver high per-MHz performance in a small silicon footprint. Major mixed-signal ASSP developers such as Renesas can thus concentrate on their core engineering innovation and outsource non-critical elements of their design to CPU core suppliers such as Andes."

Renesas will deliver the first RISC-V voice-control ASSP pre-programmed with dedicated application code developed by leading independent design house, Cyberon, an expert in voice-recognition technology, and Orbstar, a systems integrator specializing in embedded solutions As they did with Renesas’ previous motor control ASSP, SEGGER Microcontroller GmbH will provide support for the voice-control ASSP with its complete ecosystem, including Embedded Studio and J-Link.

Key Features of the R9A06G150 Voice-Control HMI ASSP Solution

• 100MHz CPU with DSP instructions, floating-point extension and cost-optimized specification
• Specialized audio PDM & SSI I/F for seamless connection to microphones and codecs
• Compatible with low-cost analog microphones and outputs
• Low power consumption helps end products to save energy for a greener environment through optimal mix of lowest active current, reduced standby current, background operation, SRAM power-off choices, fast wakeup, low power timers
• Controlled by external host I/F via SCI/Uart, SPI, I3C or I2C
• Small package support for cost and integration effectiveness (QFN 48, 32, 24)
• 256K program flash, 128K RAM, 16KB data flash
• QSPI interface for easy memory expansion
• Complete reference kit: hardware, software, tools, hardware/software datasheets, GUI manual, app notes

RISC-V Voice Control Winning Combination

Renesas has designed a Winning Combination, Voice Control HMI with RISC-V ASSP, that employs the R9A06G150 and other compatible devices from the Renesas portfolio to support general-purpose voice-control HMI systems. This integrated, pre-programmed, turnkey solution, adds HMI voice control capability without any user code programming, and can be used in IoT, hands-free, or smart appliance applications. The complete reference design enables customized wake-up words and commands and supports multiple languages. Renesas’ Winning Combinations are technically vetted system architectures from mutually compatible devices that work together seamlessly to bring an optimized low-risk design for a faster time to market. Renesas offers more than 300 Winning Combinations with a wide range of products from the Renesas portfolio to enable customers to speed up the design process and bring their products to market more quickly. They can be found at renesas.com/win.

Availability

The R9A06G150 32-bit MCU voice-control HMI ASSP solution is available now. For further information, please visit: renesas.com/R9A06G150. Renesas has also a published a RISC-V blog with additional information at www.renesas.com/blogs/revving-risc-v-engine-help-designers-explore-breakthrough-processor-architecture.

Renesas MCU Leadership

A world leader in MCUs, Renesas ships more than 3.5 billion units per year, with approximately 50% of shipments serving the automotive industry, and the remainder supporting industrial and Internet of Things applications as well as data center and communications infrastructure. Renesas has the broadest portfolio of 8-, 16- and 32-bit devices, and is the industry's No. 1 supplier of 16- and 32-bit MCUs combined, delivering unmatched quality and efficiency with exceptional performance. As a trusted supplier, Renesas has decades of experience designing smart, secure MCUs, backed by a dual-source production model, the industry’s most advanced MCU process technology and a vast network of more than 200 ecosystem partners. For more information about Renesas MCUs, visit: www.renesas.com/MCUs.

About Renesas Electronics Corporation

Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) empowers a safer, smarter and more sustainable future where technology helps make our lives easier. A leading global provider of microcontrollers, Renesas combines our expertise in embedded processing, analog, power and connectivity to deliver complete semiconductor solutions. These Winning Combinations accelerate time to market for automotive, industrial, infrastructure and IoT applications, enabling billions of connected, intelligent devices that enhance the way people work and live. Learn more at renesas.com.