embedded world, Nuremberg, 3rd March 2011 – Renesas Electronics Europe, a premier provider of advanced semiconductor solutions, today announced that it will expand its Solid State Lighting (SSL) support infrastructure to provide dedicated support for the Remote Device Management (RDM) protocol. The announcement underlines Renesas Electronics’ commitment to developers and users of intelligent lighting controls, particularly for lighting-related communications. This new level of support expands Renesas Electronics’ family of dedicated lighting technology solutions, helping developers to meet SSL market requirements and follow the growing trend of RDM adoption while reducing development time.
RDM is an extension to the established DMX512 lighting communications protocol, which is also supported by Renesas Electronics. RDM is widely used in a variety of lighting applications requiring fast scene switching, such as theatre stage lighting. It enhances DMX512 in that it enables bi-directional serial communications between LED drivers and lighting controllers. While DMX512 enables lighting controllers to send a one-way instruction to a lighting device, the RDM protocol enhances this by enabling the lighting device to send back a confirmation that the instruction has been executed. As a result, RDM provides lighting developers and users with new features and capabilities, including easier management, configuration and status monitoring. It also runs in the background, while allowing other non RDM-compliant devices on the network to operate as normal.
Renesas Electronics’ dedicated support for RDM is the newest addition to the company’s broad lineup of lighting-specific solutions and microcontrollers (MCUs). The range of products has been designed to provide reliable networking and communications capabilities as well as optimal power management in intelligent lighting controls. The products are used in a variety of lighting applications, including industrial, building automation and automotive environments as well as the entertainment technologies targeted by Renesas Electronics’ RDM support.
Along with support for the RDM protocol, Renesas Electronics Europe also provides C source code and an API, as well as a dedicated application note. This will provide system designers with reliable, dedicated and cost-effective communication technologies and make it easier for them to develop smart-energy systems with intelligent user interfaces.
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About Renesas Electronics Europe
Renesas Electronics Europe with its Business Operations Centre located in Dusseldorf, Germany, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723), the world’s number one supplier of microcontrollers and a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions including microcontrollers, SoC solutions and a broad-range of analog and power devices. Renesas Electronics’ European structure is comprised of five dedicated business groups serving the region’s key markets: automotive, communications & consumer, industrial, secure MCU applications, and mobile platforms. The business groups are supported by the Engineering Group, which itself includes the Engineering Design Centre; the European Quality Centre that provides technical support to local customers in Europe; and the European Technology Centre to design leading-edge products specifically for the European market. Further information about Renesas Electronics Europe can be found at: www.renesas.eu.
