1. ST Microelectronics ST7540 vs
ST Microelectronics ST7540 vs. Cypress PSoC 5LP Power Line Communication(PLC) Applications
Reliable, Ready-to-Certify PLC Solution

2. ST7540 Overview
ST7540 is a half duplex synchronous/asynchronous FSK modem for PLC applications featuring
Integrated power line driver with programmable voltage and current control
Single supply voltage (from 7.5V up to 13.5V)
8 programmable transmission frequencies
Programmable baud rate up to 2.4 kbps
CENELEC EN50065 (band C) and FCC (part 15) compliance
ST7540 finds application in
Home and Building Automation like Smart Plug
In-Home Display (IHD)
E-Vehicle
Smart Meter
Solar Panel
ST Micro’s ST7540
ST7540 is a reliable, non-conventional communication device that offers a high performance/cost ratio

3. Challenges Using ST7540 1. PLC systems require multiple ICs
ICs are needed for FSK Transceiver, Network Protocol, Application Firmware and other system functions such as power measurement and DC-AC conversion
Higher # of ICs increases the # of points of failure (PoF) which reduces the system reliability
ST7540 provides the FSK transceiver only and needs additional integration like MCU and power measurement IC to provide desired functionality
2. PLC devices are difficult to certify
Certification standards vary across countries and are not well defined
The standards require your customers to build complicated Network Protocol firmware
ST7540 provides only partial compliance within the standards, CENELEC EN50065 (band C) and FCC (part 15)
PSoC One-Chip PLC Solution
FSK Transceiver
MCU for Network Protocol and Application Firmware
Additional Power Measurement IC
PSoC 5LP solves these problems
Integrates all PLC and other system functions on a single chip reducing # of PoFs
Makes customer certification easy as it is pre-tested to FCC, CENELEC and UL standards
PSoC 5LP delivers a one-chip, reliable, ready-to-certify PLC solution
PSoC 5 one-chip PLC solution

4. (8- to 20-bit ADC, 8-bit DAC, comparators, filters, opamps)
ST7540 vs. Cypress PSoC 5LP
Feature
ST7540
PSoC 5LP CY8C58LP
Ready-to-certify Design No
Yes
Network Protocol
None
Included
Transceiver
FSK
Data rates
2.4 kbps
Error Detection
8-bit CRC
Integrated microcontroller
32-bit ARM Cortex M3
(100 DMIPS)
Integrate other system components
(8- to 20-bit ADC, 8-bit DAC, comparators, filters, opamps)
The indicated parameters are in the perceived order of importance

5. Customer Objections to Adopting Cypress PSoC 5LP over ST7540
“ST7540 is a cheaper solution”
PSoC 5LP integrates PLC and other system functions on a single chip and is pre-certified, thereby reducing time to market (TTM)
PSoC 5LP has superior power saving modes and restores device configuration to active mode on wake up
“Previous design was using ST7540” / “More familiar with ST7540”
PSoC 5LP offers an integrated microcontroller, better features and performance than the ST7540
Easy-to-use ‘Drag and Drop’ implementation on PSoC Creator and supporting training modules allows for easy migration and
lowers cost on subsequent designs

6. Sales Cautions for Cypress PSoC 5LP
PSoC 5LP has 4 device families
CY8C52LP – Digital Only
CY8C54LP – Analog Lite
CY8C56LP – Performance Analog
CY8C58LP – Precision Analog
Only CY8C56LP and CY8C58LP families provide PLC functionality because of presence of dedicated Digital Filter Blocks (DFBs)

7. Integrated PLC Components
PSoC 5LP PLC Design Win Example –
Emergency Airfield Lighting System
PSoC Value
Block Diagram
PSoC 5LP One-Chip Solution
Design Challenges
Communicate over an AC power line at 480V AC
Support 2000 units on the power line
PSoC® Solution
Provides PLC system that works on 480V AC line
Supports more than 64,000 units on a power line
Integrated PLC Components Tx
RC Filter Passives
FSK Modulator
Tx, Rx LEDs
UART 3 2
GPIO 32
LP Notch Filter Passives
ARM® CortexTM-M3
(32-bit)
MCU
Network Protocol
Line Driver 32
Power line
Power line
Coupling Circuit
Suggested Collateral
FSK Demodulator
App Notes: PSoC 5LP PLC Solution
PLC Repeater Implementation
Training: Introduction to PSoC 5LP
LP Notch Filter Passives Rx
Competition
ST MCU + Power Measurement IC
Emergency Airfield Lighting System by Ross Design
Uses the PLC subsystem to remotely manage landing lights