Smart embedded vision and machine learning (ML) require real-time intensive computing. Consequently, products have emerged that push the boundaries of application embedded processing requirements and respond to market trends demanding higher power efficiency, hardware-level security, and high reliability at the intelligent edge.

Microchip Technology (hereinafter Microchip) announced on the 10th that it has launched the PIC64 family to expand computing capabilities and meet the growing demands of today's embedded designs.

As a single supplier of MPU solutions, Microchip is designed to support a wide range of markets requiring both real-time and application-class processing through the PIC64 family, and the PIC64GX MPU, the first to be released in this new family, enables intelligent edge designs for the industrial, automotive, telecommunications, IoT, aerospace, and defense sectors.

Microchip President and CEO Ganesh Moorthy emphasized, “With the addition of a new 64-bit MPU portfolio, Microchip is now able to provide computing processing solutions ranging from low-, mid-, and high-range,” adding, “The PIC64GX MPU is the first of several 64-bit MPUs and is designed to support the intelligent edge and meet diverse performance requirements across all market segments.”

Intelligent edge often requires 64-bit heterogeneous computing solutions with asymmetric processing capabilities to run Linux, real-time operating systems, and bare metal on a single processor cluster with secure boot capabilities.

Microchip's PIC64GX family uses 64-bit RISC-V quad-core processors with Asymmetric Multi-Processing (AMP) and deterministic latency for mid-range intelligent edge computingManages computing requirements.

The PIC64GX MPU is the first RISC-V multicore solution to feature Asymmetric Multiprocessing (AMP) capabilities for mixed-criticality systems, and it is designed with a quad-core, Linux-enabled CPU cluster, a fifth microcontroller class monitor, and a 2MB flexible L2 cache running at 625 MHz.

The PIC64GX family offers significant flexibility in embedded solution development, along with pin compatibility with Microchip's PolarFire SoC FPGA devices. Furthermore, the 64-bit portfolio provides a powerful process that can assist in configuring, developing, debugging, and verifying embedded designs by leveraging Microchip's easy-to-use tools and support software ecosystem.

Microchip is also launching the PIC64 High Performance Space Flight Computing (PIC64-HPSC) family as part of the launch of its first 64-bit product family. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (NASA-JPL) announced in August 2022 that it had selected Microchip to develop HPSC processors as part of its ongoing commercial partnership efforts.

The space-grade 64-bit multicore RISC-V MPU is designed to provide high levels of radiation resistance and fault tolerance for aerospace and defense industry applications while improving computing performance by more than 100 times.

With the launch of the PIC64 portfolio, Microchip has become the only embedded solution provider actively developing the full spectrum of 8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit, and 64-bit microcontrollers (MCUs) and microprocessors (MPUs).

In the future, the PIC64 family will include devices based on RISC-V or Arm architecture, and embedded developers can leverage Microchip's end-to-end solutions from silicon to the embedded ecosystem to perform faster design, debug, and verification and reduce time to market.