In addition to fulfilling Bluetooth specifications, the TC2000 supports all of the advanced features. Not all chips have this capability. The TC2000 can handle point-to-point and point-to-multipoint operation with up to seven slaves. It accommodates up to four Piconets and scatternets. Plus, it has a master/slave switch for printer applications. The full encryption feature of Bluetooth is implemented. The length of the encryption key can be varied in 8-bit increments from 0 to 128 bits. (For more information on Bluetooth, see "A Low-Power, Frequency-Hopping System," p. 98.)
Furthermore, the Zeevo chip has a unique 2x or 4x turbo mode that helps speed up the data transfers. Presently, the maximum Bluetooth speed is 723 kbits/s. With the Zeevo chip's proprietary turbo mode, a special compression/decompression algorithm allows data rates up to 3 Mbits/s.
When two Zeevo Bluetooth-enabled products encounter one another, they automatically switch to the turbo mode, using the higher data rate. The standard rate prevails when a Zeevo chip talks to a non-Zeevo product.
Finally, the TC2000 is housed in a low-temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) package that measures 9.85 by 11.85 mm. Contained within it are the input filters and baluns. A built-in RF shield protects the entire package. The pin-out is a 0.8-mm on-center ball-grid-array (BGA).
Two versions of this package are available. The TC2000P-4 has 4 Mbytes of on-chip flash and 65 balls, while the TC2000M-E requires an external flash memory and has 123 balls. The circuit operates from a 3.3-V supply.
When using the Zeevo chip, developing a Bluetooth-enabled product is really more of a software project than a hardware project. The software Zeevo provides includes the Bluetooth lower layer stack with host controller interface (HCI), which resides in flash. Additionally, the company offers both the upper and lower Bluetooth stacks in object or source code, as well as full support for all 1.0b profiles. The profiles define how the Bluetooth device works in common applications, including serial ports, cordless telephones, faxes, LAN access, and file transfers. Zeevo also offers the BlueOS proprietary operating system and supports Nucleus Plus.
The software flexibility permits the development of a host-supported application where much of the software is on a host PC. Or, it supports an enabler solution where only part of the software is on the device (a cell phone, for instance) and most of the software resides in the Bluetooth circuits. And, users can create fully embedded solutions, such as gaming devices, digital cameras, barcode scanners, headsets, keyboards, or a mouse, where all software resides in the Bluetooth chip (Fig. 3).
The quickest way to develop these applications is by using the TC2000 development kit. It includes two development boards, each with the TC2000, 4 Mbytes of SRAM, 8 Mbytes of flash, 2 UART ports, one USB port, eight general-purpose I/O lines, and JTAG capability. With this kit, all software, cables, and documentation are supplied.
Price & Availability
The Sierra Development Kit is currently available for $8000. Samples of the TC2000P-4 and TC2000M-E chips also are available now, and full production will start by mid-year. In OEM quantities of 1 million units, the TC2000P-4 costs $17.
Zeevo Inc., 2500 Condensa St., Santa Clara, CA 95051; (408) 982-8000; fax (408) 982-8008; www.zeevo.com.
In addition to fulfilling Bluetooth specifications, the TC2000 supports all of the advanced features. Not all chips have this capability. The TC2000 can handle point-to-point and point-to-multipoint operation with up to seven slaves. It accommodates up to four Piconets and scatternets. Plus, it has a master/slave switch for printer applications. The full encryption feature of Bluetooth is implemented. The length of the encryption key can be varied in 8-bit increments from 0 to 128 bits. (For more information on Bluetooth, see "A Low-Power, Frequency-Hopping System," p. 98.)
Furthermore, the Zeevo chip has a unique 2x or 4x turbo mode that helps speed up the data transfers. Presently, the maximum Bluetooth speed is 723 kbits/s. With the Zeevo chip's proprietary turbo mode, a special compression/decompression algorithm allows data rates up to 3 Mbits/s.
When two Zeevo Bluetooth-enabled products encounter one another, they automatically switch to the turbo mode, using the higher data rate. The standard rate prevails when a Zeevo chip talks to a non-Zeevo product.
Finally, the TC2000 is housed in a low-temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) package that measures 9.85 by 11.85 mm. Contained within it are the input filters and baluns. A built-in RF shield protects the entire package. The pin-out is a 0.8-mm on-center ball-grid-array (BGA).
Two versions of this package are available. The TC2000P-4 has 4 Mbytes of on-chip flash and 65 balls, while the TC2000M-E requires an external flash memory and has 123 balls. The circuit operates from a 3.3-V supply.
When using the Zeevo chip, developing a Bluetooth-enabled product is really more of a software project than a hardware project. The software Zeevo provides includes the Bluetooth lower layer stack with host controller interface (HCI), which resides in flash. Additionally, the company offers both the upper and lower Bluetooth stacks in object or source code, as well as full support for all 1.0b profiles. The profiles define how the Bluetooth device works in common applications, including serial ports, cordless telephones, faxes, LAN access, and file transfers. Zeevo also offers the BlueOS proprietary operating system and supports Nucleus Plus.
The software flexibility permits the development of a host-supported application where much of the software is on a host PC. Or, it supports an enabler solution where only part of the software is on the device (a cell phone, for instance) and most of the software resides in the Bluetooth circuits. And, users can create fully embedded solutions, such as gaming devices, digital cameras, barcode scanners, headsets, keyboards, or a mouse, where all software resides in the Bluetooth chip (Fig. 3).
The quickest way to develop these applications is by using the TC2000 development kit. It includes two development boards, each with the TC2000, 4 Mbytes of SRAM, 8 Mbytes of flash, 2 UART ports, one USB port, eight general-purpose I/O lines, and JTAG capability. With this kit, all software, cables, and documentation are supplied.
Price & Availability
The Sierra Development Kit is currently available for $8000. Samples of the TC2000P-4 and TC2000M-E chips also are available now, and full production will start by mid-year. In OEM quantities of 1 million units, the TC2000P-4 costs $17.
Zeevo Inc., 2500 Condensa St., Santa Clara, CA 95051; (408) 982-8000; fax (408) 982-8008; www.zeevo.com.