低功耗智能電源應用的微控制器

　　微控制器正在以更低的功耗運行，以開辟新的應用，如智能照明和無線計量。新的設備正在降低功耗，給工程師們提供更多的選擇，從高級語言開發工具到不同外設的范圍。

　　智能電源的驅動來自多個方向。能夠監視和控制接近負載點的電力消耗，使電力更均勻地分布在電網上，減少了操作員的浪費能力。對于用戶來說，它可以提供更靈活的關稅，更低的電力成本，并有助于降低整體電力使用，降低成本甚至更進一步。然而，無論是在資金成本還是在維護方面，這些設備都必須具有成本效益。數以百萬計的智能電表更換電池是電網運營商的主要運營成本，也是實施的一個潛在缺陷。降低智能設備的功耗不僅可以降低功耗，還能使電池運行多年。

　　Reducing power further through effective device management， new low power design architectures， and power-sensitive manufacturing processes can also bring the total power budget down to the point where no batteries are needed. At this point， energy can be harvested from the environment – often from vibrational or thermal energy in an industrial environment – and stored in a local battery. This provides power for a microcontroller and often a sensor and a network link for monitoring. The choice of architecture for the node and for the microcontroller is vital for the performance and the battery life， and there are several different options.