Microchip Introduces Cost-Effective dsPIC33CK Digital Signal Controllers

Microchip Introduces the dsPIC33CK Cost-Effective Digital Signal Controllers (DSC), Delivering Core Performance and Real-Time Control at Low Cost

— Uniform Pricing Regardless of Purchase Volume for Cost-Sensitive Applications

Designers of real-time control applications face increasingly stringent challenges, needing to balance performance and peripheral integration while managing system cost and complexity. To address these challenges, Microchip Technology Inc. has introduced the dsPIC33CK Cost-Effective family of Digital Signal Controllers (DSCs), offering core real-time control capabilities at a highly competitive price. These devices integrate up to 100 MHz deterministic processing capability, high-resolution Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) modules, and 12-bit Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADCs), enabling support for applications such as Field-Oriented Control (FOC) of motors, touch applications, and precision sensing without adding unnecessary features that drive up cost.

The dsPIC33CK Cost-Effective family devices integrate a balanced peripheral set, allowing designers to consolidate multiple system functions into a single device, thereby helping to reduce external component count, shrink printed circuit board footprint, and lower overall Bill of Materials (BoM) cost. The family offers scalable program flash from 32 KB to 256 KB and is compatible with the broader dsPIC33CK family of devices, supporting system scalability and providing an upgrade path to meet future requirements.

"Not all real-time control designs require high-end solutions—many simply need reliable performance at a reasonable cost," said Joe Thomsen, Corporate Vice President of Microchip's Digital Signal Controller business unit. "The dsPIC33CK Cost-Effective family delivers the core features designers rely on most, eliminating complexity while enabling easy development of efficient and reliable systems without paying for features they don't need. Uniform pricing regardless of purchase volume further simplifies customer planning, scaling, and long-term cost control."

The dsPIC33CK Cost-Effective family is designed for cost-sensitive applications, offering stable and competitive pricing across different purchase volumes, helping to simplify device selection during early evaluation and production planning. The family features automotive-grade reliability, including AEC-Q100 Grade 1 qualification and built-in security features for secure boot and secure firmware updates, making it suitable for industrial, automotive, consumer, and medical applications requiring reliable real-time operation.

The Cost-Effective Digital Signal Controllers (DSCs) offer 8-channel PWM resolution up to 2 ns, support 12-bit ADCs at up to 2 MSPS, and include on-chip analog comparators with 12-bit Digital-to-Analog Converters (DACs), along with a comprehensive set of communication peripherals including CAN FD, Local Interconnect Network (LIN), Single Edge Nibble Transmission (SENT), Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART), Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), and I²C. Leveraging Microchip's mature dsPIC33CK DSC ecosystem, designers can implement precise, reliable real-time control functions within a single device, simplifying system design while meeting the requirements of high-stability, cost-effective applications. Please visit the website to learn more about Microchip's full portfolio of Digital Signal Controllers.

To accelerate evaluation and development, Microchip offers the low-cost dsPIC33CK Cost-Effective family Curiosity Nano evaluation kit, which includes an on-board debugger and requires no external programming or debugging tools. The evaluation platform can be used with Microchip's Click Boards™ Curiosity Nano base board and the Curiosity Nano touch adapter board for touch applications. A motor control Dual In-line Module (DIM) is also available to support rapid prototyping of motor control designs. The Cost-Effective DSC family devices are compatible with the MPLAB® development ecosystem, including the MPLAB XC-DSC Pro compiler.

The dsPIC33CK economy series devices start at $0.51 per unit, with uniform pricing regardless of order quantity. They can be purchased directly from Microchip or through your local sales representative or worldwide authorized distributors.

About Microchip Technology Inc.

Microchip Technology Inc. is a leading provider of smart, connected and secure embedded control solutions. Its easy-to-use development tools and comprehensive product portfolio enable customers to create optimal designs that reduce total cost of ownership and shorten time to market. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, USA, Microchip has a strong track record of delivering outstanding technical support to customers across the industrial, automotive, consumer, aerospace and defense, communications and computing markets. For more information, visit the company website at www.microchip.com.