Infineon Technologies has developed a new programmable 32-bit ARM Cortex-M0 microcontroller (MCU) with embedded near-field communication (NFC) frontend to enable cost effective development of smart actuators, such as passive locks.
Using the NFC interface, the NAC1080 MCU enables devices to be controlled directly by smartphones. Advanced local and cloud functions can be extended within the mobile app offered by regional marketing partners. This reduces the bill of material and supports miniaturized product design. NAC1080 supports various operation modes and can be powered either in passive mode by the NFC field with the energy harvested from the mobile phone, or through a battery supply in active mode. NAC1080 also provides an integrated AES128 accelerator and a true random number generator to enable data encryption/de-encryption in an ultra-low power environment.
Besides the passive NFC lock application, NAC1080 can also be used as an emergency backup power supply application. Active lock systems, for example, depend on battery power. If they are discharged, the NFC interface IC for electronic devices can power the door lock. Since the electric power is transmitted via NFC, this use case may take longer than in passive mode.