This thread has been locked.

If you have a related question, please click the "Ask a related question" button in the top right corner. The newly created question will be automatically linked to this question.

What is a MSP430TCH5E?

Other Parts Discussed in Thread: MSP430TCH5E, MSP430G2553, MSP430BT5190, MSP430F5438A

What is distinctive about an MSP430TCH5E?

It's called a 'Haptics Enabled Device authenticated to run Immersion Touchsense technology,' but I can't figure out what that means.  The part seems similar to lots of other MSP430's.

Wade Hassler

  • Wade Hassler said:
    but I can't figure out what that means.

    Perhaps you shall read product webpage and datasheet. There's everything you need to get understanding about what exactly is  "Immersion Touchsense technology"

    Product page:

    http://www.ti.com/product/MSP430TCH5E

    Datasheet:

    http://www.ti.com/lit/gpn/msp430tch5e

    Excerpt from product page:

    Haptics technology provides tactile feedback, using mechanical vibrations, dramatically reducing user error in touch applications. Haptics can be used in a variety of end equipments, including handsets, tablets, digital cameras touch screens, home appliances, computer accessories, automotive products, and more. Haptics can also be implemented in portable media players to generate subwoofer-like effects using audio-to-haptics technology.

  • My understanding is it's an MSP430G2553 28-pin chip "authenticated to run Immersion's stack"... probably legalese for "It has a proprietary API in ROM" although I don't know that for sure. It allows customers to use Immersion's hardware without paying a licensing fee so TI undoubtedly had to do something special to the chip to mask the details of the hardware from the developer. I draw a comparison to another vaguely similar example, the C2000 InstaSPIN-FOC chip variants. That's not licensing someone else's API or tech per se, but it's giving the developer access to some "proprietary secret sauce" without revealing the details of the secrets, merely exposing an API for using them.
  • Eric Brundick said:
    I draw a comparison to another vaguely similar example, the C2000 InstaSPIN-FOC chip variants.

    Closer, there is the MSP430BT5190 which is actually an MSP430F5438A with some secret marker that allows the MindTree BT stack (precompiled lib) to run on it. The costs of the BT5190 includes the license fee for the BT stack.

**Attention** This is a public forum