Texas Instruments Incorporated has developed the industry's first System-on-Chip (SoC) solution with a hardware location engine targeting low-power ZigBee/IEEE 802.15.4 wireless sensor networking applications. The CC2431, from the company's Chipcon product line, targets patient monitoring applications. The device is supported by TI's Z-Stack protocol stack.

The CC2431 is based on the industry's first available SoC solution for low-power RF applications, the CC2430. Both devices combine the excellent performance of the industry-leading CC2420 RF transceiver core with an enhanced 8051 microcontroller, up to 128 kB flash memory, 8 kB of RAM and many additional features in a small 7mm x 7mm package.

"Combined with the Z-Stack, the CC2431 provides the market's most competitive ZigBee solution and illustrates the innovation and market leadership of the Chipcon product line," said Art George, senior vice president of TI's high-performance analog business.
The CC2431's RSSI-based location engine accurately calculates the node's position based on the receive signal strength from CC2430-based reference nodes with known locations and can then send the location information to a collector (computer, PDA, handset). This capability reduces network traffic and communication delays compared to centralized location systems. In typical applications, accuracy of 3-5 meters can be achieved.

TI's Z-Stack protocol software is designed to the ZigBee 2006 specification and supports multiple platforms, including the CC2431, CC2430 and CC2420+MSP430 platform. The Z-Stack has been awarded the ZigBee Alliance's golden unit status by the ZigBee test house TÜV Rheinland and is used by thousands of ZigBee developers worldwide.

The CC2431 is sampling now, with volume production scheduled for 3Q 2007. The device is available in a RoHS-compliant 7mm x 7mm QLP-48 package and is priced at $6.45 in 1,000-piece quantities (suggested resale pricing). The CC2430 is in volume production and available from TI and its authorized distributors. Start your development today with the comprehensive ZigBee development kit, CC2431ZDK.

Low-Power RF Developer Network TI's Low-Power RF Developer Network enables customers to find a suitable partner to assist with hardware design, modules, embedded software, gateways, commissioning tools, etc. The Low-Power RF Developer Network consists of recommended companies, RF consultants, and independent design houses that provide a series of hardware module products and design services.

Texas Instruments Inc., provides innovative DSP and analog technologies to meet the signal processing requirements. In addition to Semiconductor, the company includes the Education Technology business. TI is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has manufacturing, design or sales operations in more than 25 countries.