STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a global semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications, has released its unique ST2100 STreamPlug System-on-Chip (SoC) targeting smart-home and smart-energy applications to the world market. The device is already powering a new portfolio of intelligent products developed jointly by ST and Tatung, a leading electronics company for smart-home solutions.
As the world’s first intelligent-gateway SoC, ST’s ST2100 STreamPlug combines a high-performance processing subsystem with Powerline Communication (PLC), security and peripheral features to support hybrid networks utilizing popular wired and wireless standards. The ST2100 is designed to support IEEE 1905.1 that enables customers to converge Ethernet, Wi-Fi® and other networking standards in new gateway or hub designs. The ST2100 StreamPlug supports popular PLC protocols such as HomePlug® AV and HomePlug Green PHY, as well as IEEE 1901 Broadband Powerline connectivity.
ST’s collaboration with Tatung leveraging the ST2100 STreamPlug SoC has yielded innovations such as Tatung’s Gateway One home networking hub and other smart-energy devices. The Gateway One enables users to setup multi-bearer home networks combining Ethernet, WLAN, PLC and multimedia devices, greatly enhancing opportunities to improve energy efficiency, security, comfort and convenience throughout the home. Tatung’s Meter Bridge and Home-Area Network (HAN) Bridge enable multi-occupancy dwellings to benefit from smart-energy applications, while solving consumption and billing challenges. The M1i and M3 are intelligent devices that provide energy management as well as network connectivity for devices plugged into the AC line. The M1i is optimized for industrial applications, while the M3 is featured for domestic use including charging plug-in electric vehicles.
“Tatung has long envisioned an open service platform as key to releasing the full potential of smart energy and the smart home. Gateway One is a significant milestone working towards this vision, and is just one of the fruits of our partnership with ST leveraging the ST2100 STreamPlug SoC,” said W. K. Lin, president of Tatung Co. “Since our first joint announcement around CES 2013 in January, we have made tremendous progress together, combining many valuable skillsets. We appreciate the commitment of ST, as an industry leader in smart home-networking technologies, which has contributed to realizing our vision.”
“The success of our work with Tatung both validates and underlines the capabilities of the unique ST2100 STreamPlug SoC as a platform enabling hybrid networks for smart-energy and Internet-of-Things applications throughout consumer and industrial markets,” said Matteo Lo Presti, Group Vice President and General Manager, Industrial and Power Conversion Division, STMicroelectronics. “This breakthrough IC is now available to designers all over the world, and we are ready to provide the support customers need to ensure successful project completion.”
The STreamPlug ST2100 is available for selected customers, in a 12mm x 12mm TFBGA 373 BGA package. Please contact your local ST office for pricing and sample requests.
Further technical information
The ST2100 STreamPlug SoC application processor features the ARM926EJ-S core operating at 330MHz, and provides an external memory-management subsystem. Also integrated on-chip is a complete PLC modem and analog front end, USB2.0 and Ethernet interfaces, a color-LCD controller and a dedicated security engine supporting advanced cryptography algorithms such as AES, DES/3DES and IPSec.
From a software point of view, virtualized machine support provides interfaces to guest operating systems, such as Linux Kernel 2.6 distributed directly by ST. Support for PLC protocols includes the latest IEEE 1901 Broadband Powerline (BPL) standard, as well as popular HomePlug standards such as 200Mbps HomePlug AV for carrying HDTV and VoIP traffic and HomePlug Green PHY optimized for smart-grid applications.
