The new i.MX RT1180 includes a Gb time sensitive networking (TSN) switch enabling real-time rich networking integration handling both time-sensitive and industrial real-time communication, and also includes a state-of-the-art EdgeLock® secure enclave and an extensive developer ecosystem for a simplified microcontroller design experience.
Manufacturers worldwide are already leveraging industrial IoT (IIoT) technologies to radically improve operations, streamline production and optimize manufacturability. Instead of tearing down existing factories and rebuilding from scratch, manufacturers are adding more efficient equipment, advanced robotics and faster networks.
Communication gaps between legacy protocols like PROFINET make it a challenge for these new technologies to work harmoniously with existing systems. Time-sensitive data needs to transmit in real-time across the network. This fully synchronized operation requires technologies that support a complex mix of protocols and provide backward compatibility.
To achieve this, a combination of optimized processing power, low power consumption, hardware security and flexible architectures with time-sensitive network traffic capabilities are required.
NXP has expanded our crossover MCU portfolio to address this growing industrial application need. The newly announced i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU, the first with an integrated Gb time-sensitive networking (TSN) switch, supports real-time communications and multiple communications protocols, bridging the gap between existing industrial systems and Industry 4.0 platforms. The i.MX RT1180 is also the first NXP crossover MCU to include an EdgeLock® secure enclave, a preconfigured, self-managed and autonomous on-die security subsystem that eases the complexity of implementing robust, system-wide security intelligence for industrial IoT and smart manufacturing.
What's new? Check out the multiprotocol i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU with an integrated TSN switch that unifies industrial IoT communications.
By using an all-in-one MCU solution with an integrated TSN switch and secure enclave, developers can address a wide range of IIoT applications, handling both time-sensitive traffic and best-effort traffic to enable secure automated systems with real-time communication capabilities.
Using an MCU with a built-in TSN switch and multiprotocol capability offers significant application benefits. Data can be transferred to and from the switch, enabling real-time data transfers to interrupt non-real-time data transfers without delay. These queues are managed by the switch driver and interface to the protocol stack to achieve the most efficient data transfers possible. This frees the application software from the tasks of managing the switch, setting low-level registers or keeping track of intricate time management processes, enabling time-sensitive applications to be up and running all the time.
The i.MX RT1180 is among the smallest real-time industrial networking-capable MCUs, making it easier to integrate application-critical multiprotocol and TSN capabilities into a wider variety of industrial use cases. It provides an optimized solution for automation tasks that require high-precision, low-latency and real-time control over factory equipment and the entire plant. Industrial IoT use cases include factory automation, compact motion control, motor control industrial gateways, network companions, AC/servo drives, remote I/O management and IO-link controllers.
The i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU supports the latest TSN standards compliant with the EC/IEEE 60802 industrial TSN profile, as well as multiple industrial real-time network protocols including EtherCAT, PROFINET, Ethernet/IP, CC-Link IE and HSR. It also provides up to 5 Gb ports including 4x ports on a Layer 2 TSN switch and one port on an end-point TSN controller.
In addition to providing an integrated TSN solution, the i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU can serve as a companion chip in industrial designs, offering seamless 1 Gb direct communication between a host device and the companion without requiring an on-board PHY, providing additional power and cost savings.
While smart factories deliver the undeniable benefits of increased production and distribution efficiencies and cost savings, IIoT connectivity also brings new security risks. As factories boost their levels of connected devices, potential cybersecurity threats also increase. Inadequately protected industrial processes, operations and networks pose vulnerable attack surfaces for corporate data and intellectual property theft, disruption or denial of process controls, network security breaches and nation-state attacks on critical infrastructure and supply chains.
To protect factories, equipment and networks against cyberattacks, manufacturers must implement and continuously maintain holistic, state-of-the-art industrial security platforms. Advanced security through on-device and system-level protection is essential to secure today’s smart, connected factories. Even system-level components such as MCUs must provide advanced security features. NXP’s EdgeLock secure enclave—a fully integrated, on-die security subsystem—does just that.
The EdgeLock secure enclave functions like a “security HQ” inside the i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU, overseeing all security functions to protect devices against physical and network attacks. It eases the complexity of implementing robust, device-wide security intelligence for IoT applications through autonomous management of critical security functions, such as root of trust, run-time attestation, trust provisioning, secure boot, key management and cryptographic services.
EdgeLock secure enclave also provides a component-level foundation for IEC 62443 system compliance. IEC 62443 is a set of security standards defining the secure development of industrial automation and control systems (IACS). These standards provide an essential foundation for requirements addressing cybersecurity threats to industrial plants, equipment, networks and infrastructure. IEC 62443 compliance helps manufacturers avoid the proliferation of partial and/or conflicting requirements for addressing the cybersecurity needs of operational technology across multiple industry sectors and operating sites.
Aiming to provide performance, power efficiency as well as design flexibility, the i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU’s efficient SoC design includes a dual-core architecture featuring 800 MHz Arm® Cortex®-M7 and Cortex®-M33 cores that keep both real-time and applications processing tasks in harmony. It easily communicates with host chips such as NXP i.MX processors. This compatibility simplifies industrial design and eases implementation. Scalable and seamless host/companion chip communication going up to 1Gbps without an on-board PHY helps reduce power and cost in industrial designs.
Designed for power efficiency with use cases starting from 250 mW, the MCU’s integrated power management IC (PMIC) helps enable the exceptional energy efficiency that’s critical for many industrial applications while helping to reduce board complexity and BOM cost.
Available in a 10 mm x 10 mm or 14 mm x 14 mm BGA package, the i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU operates in a robust extended temperature range (-40 ⁰C to +125 ⁰C), providing industrial qualification and high reliability for factory equipment running 24/7 and 365 days a year, as well as automotive AEC-Q100 qualification.
An extensive developer ecosystem simplifies the embedded design experience for systems built around the i.MX RT1180 SoC. The MCUXpresso Suite of Software and Tools for NXP MCUs based on Arm Cortex-M technology includes device configuration tools, drivers and middleware, a fully featured IDE, SDK examples and a secure provisioning tool.
The i.MX RT1180 crossover MCU provides a bridge to the future for smart factories, closing the gap between legacy and current protocol standards with an integrated TSN switch. Learn more about the multiprotocol capabilities, advanced security and design efficiency of the i.MX RT1180.
Christian has over 14 years of experience in the industry establishing strategic partnerships and supporting customers in their adoption of new technologies for optimized industrial solutions. He holds engineering and business management degrees from the ESIEE group in Paris, France.
