As low-power applications expand in the IoT and wireless product families, there has been a growing need for wide-range, high-accuracy measurement probes capable of measuring down to nanoamperes. Accordingly, a product supporting accurate power measurement for products operating in an STM32 MCU environment has recently been released.

STMicroelectronics (ST) announced on the 4th a new in-circuit debugging and programming probe, the STLINK-V3PWR.

STLINK-V3PWR is a product that supports accurate power measurement in applications running on STM32 microcontrollers (MCUs), featuring a wide measurement range to handle power-sensitive projects, including IoT and wireless applications. It measures current values ranging from nanoamperes to 500mA with an accuracy of up to ±0.5% error range.

In addition, since a single USB cable supplies up to 2A of power to the target system, developers can power the board without a separate power supply.

STLINK-V3PWR is directly supported within the STM32CubeMonitor-Power graphics tool, enabling real-time visualization of application power requirements and analysis of the impact of design changes to improve energy efficiency. It is also supported in Arm Keil development tools and IAR's Integrated Development Environment (IDE), allowing users to optimize application energy profiles by synchronizing code execution with energy consumption measurements.

The STLINK-V3PWR, capable of measuring down to low-power nanoamperes, enhances the toolkit for energy-sensitive embedded developers in conjunction with the STM32 Power Shield (X-NUCLEO-LPM01A), a programmable power supply source that provides dynamic current measurements from 100nA to 50mA. This tool is typically used for analyzing applications running on ultra-low-power STM32 MCUs. Additionally, the STM32L562E-DK Discovery Kit mid-range energy meter measures dynamic currents ranging from 300nA to 150mA. The STM32CubeMonitor-Power can collect power measurements through these devices and update the collected parameters while rendering the data in real time.

As a programming and debugging probe, the STLINK-V3PWR also features a single-wire debug (JTAG/SWD) interface that communicates with the STM32 MCU on the application board. In addition, through a Virtual COM port interface and a multipath bridge, it supports the host PC communicating with the target microcontroller via SPI/UART/I2C/CAN/GPIO, and enables on-site firmware updates and power measurement tests.

“Ultra-low power microcontroller applications must use energy harvesting or run on battery power for years, but small design flaws can lead to unexpected power issues,” said Reinhard Keil, Senior Director of Embedded Technology at Arm. “With the new STLINK-V3PWR probe, power profiling with the Keil MDK is possible.”

He added, “The µVision debugger links program events with power consumption to provide developers with analysis capabilities that enable them to identify potential design errors and improve battery life several times.”

Anders Holmberg, CTO of IAR, said, “Because the STLINK-V3PWR probe is fully supported in IAR Embedded Workbench for Arm, developers can access accurate and repeatable high-resolution power analysis capabilities more quickly and easily. This certainly helps significantly shorten time-to-market while realizing the benefits of exceptional energy savings and efficiency improvements in next-generation ultra-low power and ultra-efficient smart connected devices.”