A document to take you to know the SmartConnect WINC1500, easy to pass SPI to wifi interface components

Overview

The SmartConnect WINC1500 is an IEEE 802.11 b/g/n IoT network controller SoC designed to seamlessly integrate Wi-Fi capabilities into your embedded systems. This powerful chip allows you to connect any AVR® MCU with minimal resource usage, making it an ideal solution for adding wireless connectivity without overloading the main microcontroller.

Target Applications

• IoT Devices
• Smart Home Appliances
• Media Streaming
• Security Systems
• Home Automation
• Consumer Electronics
• Industrial Automation

The WINC1500 supports single-stream 1x1 802.11n mode, offering a maximum physical layer throughput of 72 Mbps. It includes a fully integrated power amplifier, low-noise amplifier (LNA), and switch, along with advanced power management features for efficient operation.

The device comes with built-in flash memory and uses an SPI serial interface for communication with the host MCU. It only requires an external high-speed crystal or oscillator (12–32 MHz) for operation. The WINC1500 is available in a compact QFN package, making it suitable for space-constrained designs.

Power Architecture and Power Consumption

The WINC1500 features an innovative power architecture that minimizes energy use while maintaining strong performance. This design reduces the number of external components needed, lowering overall system cost and complexity.

The device has several operational states:

• Configuration: Receive and send data at any time, including sending beacons as a Wi-Fi Soft AP.
• Idle Listening: Receive data via TIM/DTIM and send data when needed.
• Idle: Stay associated with the AP but do not receive or send data.
• Suspended: Fully disconnected from the AP, no data transfer or polling.

Speed Up RF Design

Microchip offers a fast-integrated WINC1500 module and a compatible XPRO expansion board for all existing Xplained PRO evaluation boards, accelerating the development process for designers.

Main Features

• IEEE 802.11 b/g/n (1x1) up to 72 Mbps
• Integrated PA and T/R switches
• Excellent sensitivity and long-range transmission with advanced signal processing
• Supports Wi-Fi Direct, Workstation Mode, and Soft AP
• WEP and WPA security protocols
• On-chip memory management engine to reduce host load
• 4/8 MB stacked flash with OTA firmware update support
• Serial Host Interface: SPI
• TCP/IP stack with client/server socket support
• DHCP/DNS and Secure TLS protocol stack
• Wireless Simple Configuration (WPS/WSC)

Original text from Microchip micro core