STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a global semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications, has delivered one million development kits for its STM32 microcontrollers and 100,000 kits for the STM8 family, equipping product designers all over the world to create tiny smart devices.
Each development kit jump-starts product designs to assist faster delivery into markets that can range from a few hundred units to millions of units, and span applications that include wearable wellness monitors, environmental sensors, smart meters, industrial controllers, smart-building equipment, and many more.
“Easy access is a key part of our microcontroller strategy, including affordable boards and design tools that enable low-cost project starts,” said Daniel Colonna, Marketing Director, Microcontroller Division, STMicroelectronics. “In addition, the large families of devices, covering a broad spectrum of performance and features, provide flexibility and scalability. There are now over 700 STM32 variants and 129 STM8 device types including rugged automotive microcontrollers. All these devices are designed to provide efficient processing performance and many functions on-chip to help simplify designs. There are also strong synergies with our market-leading portfolio of MEMS motion sensors and microphones.”
ST’s microcontroller strategy presents the development kits at prices that are affordable for everyone, from independent makers and developers or small design houses to large OEM corporations. For just a few dollars, STM32 Nucleo development boards provide hardware designers with all they need to start projects with the 32-bit STM32 family, and plug-in cards can be added to provide extra functions as needed.
STM32 Nucleo expansion boards are available from ST, including motion sensing, microphone, Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) and other wireless connectivity, Near-Field Communication (NFC), digital audio, or motor-control boards. Users may also choose expansion cards from open-source communities such as Arduino™. By combining STM32 Nucleo with expansion boards in one package, STM32 Nucleo packs make it easy to use complete system solutions; for instance, our all-in-one motor-control STM32 Nucleo pack delivers a small low-voltage BLDC motor, a power-drive expansion card, as well as an STM32 Nucleo-F3 board to enable anyone to try motor-control solutions, get trained, and build prototypes.
In addition, STM32Cube software packages provide tools for setting up the microcontroller, reusable code samples, middleware for accessing on-chip peripherals and memory, and wizards for managing clocks, pins, and power consumption.
The STM32 Discovery kits provide an integrated development platform, associating STM32 microcontrollers with on-board components such as ST MEMS microphones, proximity and motion sensors, or an LCD, for demonstration of specific device features and use cases.
A similar ecosystem supports designers using the 8-bit STM8 microcontrollers. It includes a selection of evaluation boards and Discovery boards, as well as embedded software including sample code, libraries for functions such as touch sensing and audio processing, and a functional-safety package to help achieve IEC 60730 Class-B certification for safety-critical applications.
In addition, a broad range of solution-oriented evaluation tools provide application-focused features to help designers respond quickly to opportunities in fast-moving markets such as smart building, healthcare and wellness, home appliances, digital consumer products, smart industry, lighting, and motor control.
