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Frequently asked questions

LPC3000 Family FAQ

Q How can I get more information about the ARM926EJ-S CPU?
A
The Technical Reference Manual for the ARM926EJ-S CPU is available for free download at the ARM website. This document has all the information about the ARM9 core.
Q Is Linux ported to the LPC3180? Do you have any other software support?
A
Linux 2.6.10 is ported to the LPC3180, and the package is available from NXP. Along with the Linux port, one would also get drivers for USB host/device/OTG, Ethernet over USB, SD card interface, I2C, SPI, Key scan, UART and timers.
There is also a software package from NXP, and it includes software for the following blocks: interrupt controller, USB OTG, high-speed timer, I2C and power management.
Q What kinds of evaluation boards are available for the LPC3180?
A
Evaluation boards are available from two tool vendors:
Q This part can run at 0.9V. Is that true?
A The microcontroller is able to operate down to 0.9 volts, which reduces power tremendously (dynamic power is reduced over 50% compared to 1.2V operation) but which requires operation at lower clock frequencies (13MHz). This is suitable for very low-power standby modes where system operation is required but performance can be compromised. The chip has a pin indicating that the chip is in a low-power state so that the software can manage the system accordingly.
Q Can I switch off power to the LPC3180 and still run the RTC?
A The RTC clock is on a separate power domain and also has 32 words of low-power SRAM. To save the maximum amount of power, the microcontroller power can be turned off altogether while keeping the RTC alive with some critical system information that can be saved between power cycles. This also eliminates leakage current power consumption.
Q Does enabling the Vector Floating Point (VFP9) Unit help in power consumption?
A Intensive benchmark code was run on the LPC3180. During this, enabling the VFP9 did reduce power consumption.
Q Does NXP have any software utilities to program external NAND flash?
A
Nohau supports NAND flash programming with their JTAG debugger. Currently, NXP does not have any software utilities that support this feature.
Q When I try to enter bootstrap mode, I don't see any communication on the serial terminal program. Any suggestions?
A Auto-baud capability is not incorporated in the bootstrap code. The serial terminal program should communicate at 115200 baud with UART5.
Q Does the AHB clock have a maximum operating speed?
A The maximum speed of the AHB clock is 104MHz.
Q I understand there are three operating modes: RUN, DIRECT RUN, and STOP. Can I directly jump from RUN to STOP and vice versa?
A No. This is not possible. To switch between these modes, the application has to go via the DIRECT RUN mode. DIRECT RUN mode is the mode under which the chip will run after reset.
Q Can the LPC3180 access NOR Flash?
A The LPC3180 does not support the interface for NOR flash.
Q Is there any USB software support for the LPC3180?
A
NXP offers a software package that includes support for the USB OTG functionality.
Also the Linux 2.6.10 package comes with USB drivers.
Q Except for Linux, are there any other RTOS ports for LPC3000?
A
Micrium has ported their RTOS, MicroCOS2 to the LPC3180.
Q Does the multilayer AHB help in improving performance?
A
There are four internal AHB buses. The bus matrix connects bus masters to their respective slaves. Because of this architecture, simultaneous operation is now possible between several modules like:
  1. Data Cache to SRAM
  2. Instruction Cache to DRAM
  3. DMA to Peripheral
Q What is the correct JTAG TAPID for the LPC32x0 series or LPC3180/01 MCUs?
A The TAPID register in the LPC32x0 and LPC3180/01 reports a GENERIC ARM9EJ-S core. The value reported is 0x17900F0F instead of the typical 0x17926F0F for the ARM926EJ-S core. This can be problematic for some tools (eg RVI). The workaround is to manually configure the tool with the correct JTAG TAPID.

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