
Application Note 78
Using Power Management
with the DS87C5x0
APPLICATION NOTE 78
030998 1/27
OVERVIEW
Power management is critical in battery–powered
applications. Differences of microamperes can trans-
late into months or years of operating life, which can
make or break a product in the marketplace. The high
level of integration of Dallas Semiconductor microcon-
trollers make them ideal for portable or battery–oper-
ated applications which demand low power consump-
tion. By combining the processor and peripherals onto a
single die, redundant hardware is eliminated, and power
savings are achieved. In addition, power management
features designed into the DS87C5x0 High–Speed
Microcontrollers further reduce power consumption.
Dallas Semiconductor microcontrollers are manufac-
tured with a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconduc-
tor (CMOS) process which makes them inherently low
power devices. Unlike other technologies, CMOS
devices have an infinitesimal quiescent current and only
draw significant currents when switching logic states.
This means that without further intervention, the user
has already designed a low power system. The power
management features of the DS87C5x0 family of micro-
processors allow the system designer to effect an even
greater reduction in power. The maximum current con-
sumption in both operating and halted states of the
microcontroller is shown below.
Maximum Current, 25 MHz
Slowest Operating Speed (PMM2) Osc. Halted
DS87C520 1.2 mA
1
μ
A
A number of factors can affect power consumption that
are generally beyond the ability of the device to control
during operation. The single largest factor in power con-
sumption of a microcontroller is clock frequency. The
power consumed by a microprocessor is directly pro-
portional to its operating speed, so it follows that a
device operating at the lowest possible frequency will
produce the maximum power savings. The speed cho-
sen depends on the system requirements, most notably
interrupt service time. Temperature can also affect
power consumption. Semiconductor devices draw
greater power at lower temperatures. If the system
under development is being designed for cold tempera-
tures, the designer should expect higher than typical
power consumption values. System design also has a
direct bearing on power consumption, and driving large
external loads will increase power consumption.
This application note covers the DS87C520 and
DS87C530 High–Speed Microcontrollers. Their power
management features are explained, and techniques
are presented for minimizing power consumption.
Because the power management feature operates in
conjunction with many of the peripheral functions, espe-
cially the interrupt and serial functions, the user is urged
to become familiar with the overall operation of the pro-
cessor before beginning this section.
The DS87C5x0 incorporates a number of new features
specifically designed for power management. They
were designed to reduce power consumption without
sacrificing throughput or responsiveness to external
events. These features are listed below:
DYNAMIC CLOCK SPEED CONTROL
The High–Speed Microcontrollers support four clock
management modes: Stop, PMM1 (Power Manage-
ment Mode 1), PMM2 (Power Management Mode 2),
and Idle. The DS87C5x0 can dynamically switch
between these modes, allowing the user to optimize the
speed of the device while minimizing power consump-
tion. The Stop mode has been improved over standard
8051 capabilities, and now supports resume from exter-
nal interrupts as well as reset sources.
SWITCHBACK
The DS87C5x0 incorporates an automatic “switchback”
feature to allow a device operating in a Power Manage-
ment Mode (PMM) to switch into “high gear” upon
receipt of an external interrupt or serial port transmis-
sion. This enables a device in power–saving mode
respond quickly to external events and/or operate its