NXP Semiconductors has introduced the i.MX RT Industrial Drive Development platform. Specifically, it offers a comprehensive modular solution that unites essential technologies for the next era of secure Industrial IoT (IIoT).

The i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU family and EdgeLock SE05x secure element power the i.MX RT Industrial Drive Development platform. The platform supports multi-axis motor control, and deterministic Ethernet with time-sensitive networking (TSN) communication. In addition,  it also backs human machine interfaces (HMI) and next-generation security and cyber resilience. Hence, the platform simplifies development for Industry 4.0 applications, including robot arms, mobile service robots, 3D printers, multi-axis machinery, AC drives and servo drives.

Enables Secure Communication

Industrial systems increasingly rely on secure, smart, connected devices to advance the automation of factories, buildings and infrastructure. Moreover, these Industry 4.0 devices require increasingly complex security, deterministic real-time communications, and autonomous control technologies. The i.MX RT Industrial Drive Development Platform of NXP speeds time to market. Especially, it allows system designers to leverage a single platform to develop and test complex industrial use cases that incorporate a security-by-design approach.

Jeff Steinheider, Vice President and General Manager, Industrial Edge Processing, NXP, said intelligent industrial applications must securely communicate, share data, and interact with both their users and with other machines.

“The i.MX RT Industrial Drive Development Platform provides flexibility to develop and test advanced IIoT applications that require security-by-design. This new platform simplifies the development of a new generation of industrial devices that will drive the transition to truly smart factories,” said Steinheider.

Other Tech Features

To illustrate, the dual-core i.MX RT1170 family, which features a 1GHz Arm Cortex-M7 core, as well as a Cortex-M4 core, make up the i.MX RT Industrial Drive Development Platform. It also comes with a security-by-design approach and an embedded Common Criteria EAL 6+ certified EdgeLock SE05x secure element. Hence, the platform helps ease the path to system-level ISA/IEC 62443-4-1,-4-2 security compliance.

i.MX RT Industrial Drive Development platform supports a variety of interfaces, including TSN Ethernet, high-speed CAN-FD, secure CAN, RS485, and digital I/O. Moreover, the platform also supports software configurable analog inputs and near-field communications (NFC) for fast credential commissioning. It supports up to four motors.

In addition, the i.MX RT1176 crossover MCU combines low power consumption with a high-performance Arm Cortex-M7 core at 1GHz (800MHz in industrial qualified version). It comes integrated on-chip security, including secure boot and crypto engines.

Likewise, the next-generation Analog Front End (AFE) platform with software configurable analog inputs offers for high-precision data acquisition and condition monitoring systems.