Toshiba Electronics Europe is set to mass produce the TXZ+ Family Entry-Class M4L Group, a new series of Arm Cortex-M4-based microcontrollers with a floating-point unit (FPU) operating at up to 80MHz, available with 128KB or 256KB of code flash memory in four compact package options
Developed to meet the real-time processing demands of single-motor control applications, the M4L Group combines motor control hardware, security features, functional safety measures, and firmware support on a single chip. This integration reduces the external component count, minimises PCB area, and simplifies system design for a range of applications, including industrial equipment, factory automation systems, office equipment, home appliances, and consumer products.
The M4L Group features the latest version of Toshiba’s motor control hardware, including the Advanced Vector Engine (A-VE2), Advanced Programmable Motor Driver (A-PMD2), and Advanced Encoder (A-ENC2). These hardware accelerators enable efficient real-time field-orientated control (FoC), reduce processor utilisation, and free additional processing resources for application software by offloading computationally intensive motor control tasks from the CPU.
The microcontrollers also have security functions, functional safety measures and firmware-over-the-air (FOTA) and remote firmware update capabilities. Security features include Chip Protection (CPRO), Secure Access Memory (SAM) and Non-Rewritable Flash Protection (NRFP).
These features protect against unauthorised access, enforce memory access control and safeguard critical code and data regions. This combination provides a hardware-based foundation for securing embedded software and implementing a Root of Trust (RoT).
Functional safety features include diagnostic mechanisms for flash memory, RAM, ADCs, and clock systems, supporting the development of safety-related applications. Toshiba also offers UL 60730 Class B certified software to assist with the development of home appliance applications.
The devices with 256KB of code flash memory feature dual-bank architecture, enabling one flash bank to be reprogrammed while software continues to execute from the other. This facilitates firmware updates without interrupting system operation and supports FOTA implementation. Devices with 128KB of code flash memory incorporate 64KB of data flash memory for storing configuration information and application data.
The M4L Group operates from a single supply voltage of 2.7V to 5.5V, facilitating compatibility with 3V and 5V systems. LQFP and VQFN packages with 44 to 64 pins enable flexibility across applications with different sizes and I/O requirements.
The devices also integrate a high-speed 10MHz oscillator with ±1% accuracy and an overcurrent detection comparator that can be used for emergency motor shutdown, supporting lower system cost and PCB complexity by reducing the amount of external components. A low-power mode is suitable for battery-powered applications.
The M4L Group integrates a variety of communication interfaces, such as UART, SPI, and I²C, and Serial Memory Interface (SMIF) for memory expansion. Other peripherals include 12-bit ADCs, 8-bit DACs, comparators, DMA controllers, CRC calculation hardware and time functions, facilitating connection to sensors, actuators, external memories, and other system components without additional interface devices.
To enable evaluation and product development, Toshiba provides documentation, sample software, and peripheral drivers with evaluation boards and development environments for Arm ecosystem partners.
Developed in collaboration with MIKROE, the Clicker 2 for TMPM4L4A evaluation board provides a cost-effective and easy-to-use platform for exploring BLDC motor control applications. The board is supported by Toshiba’s MCU Motor Studio software available through the Toshiba website.
Documentation, sample software with actual usage examples, and driver software that controls the interfaces for each peripheral can be downloaded from the Toshiba website: https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/eu/semiconductor/product/microcontrollers/txz4eplus-series/m4l-group.html
Evaluation boards and development environments are provided in cooperation with MIKROE and with Arm ecosystem partners. For more information on the Clicker 2 for TMPM4L4A board, visit: https://www.mikroe.com/clicker-2-for-tmpm4l4a.
A complete overview of devices in the TXZ+ Family Entry-Class can be accessed here: https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/eu/semiconductor/product/microcontrollers/txz4eplus-series.html
