Vishay Intertechnology

Company Overview

Vishay Intertechnology, Inc., a Fortune 1,000 Company listed on the NYSE (VSH), is one of the world's largest manufacturers of discrete semiconductors (diodes, rectifiers, transistors, and optoelectronics and selected ICs) and passive electronic components (resistors, capacitors, inductors, sensors, and transducers). The Optoelectronics group of Vishay includes infrared emitters, photo detectors, optical sensors, Optocouplers, solid state relays, infrared receivers for remote control, visible LEDs and infrared (IrDA) transceivers. The infrared transceiver team launched the Courier-115 infrared wireless communication solution to increase adoption of infrared transceivers in the industrial and medical markets. Target segments of these markets include data loggers and meters.

Description of Product(s) or Service(s)

The Courier-115 protocol adopts key features of the IrDA® protocol but leaves the bulk and complexity behind. Courier lets you focus on your application knowing that the infrared wireless feature is ready to go. On the host (PC) side, it includes the royalty-free software protocol, Courier1.1, and an infrared dongle with RS-232 or USB connector. On the device or sensor side, the reference design includes the TI MSP430F2x controller with Courier1.1 protocol and Vishay's low profile TFDU4300 infrared transceiver with supporting components. In return for a royalty-free license to use the Courier-115 protocol, customers will purchase infrared transceivers and adapters exclusively from Vishay.

Courier-115 supports data rates up to 115 kbit/s. The free protocol and driver library are easily invoked by the customer’s application software. The infrared transceivers are very low cost and are a proven technology with over 1 billion transceivers serving the wireless market. Clearly, the microcontroller has ultra-low power consumption with a wake-up-listen-sleep routine for the transceiver resulting in an average current of 1.0 uA. Infrared is an unregulated medium with no UL, CE or FCC regulations or compliance testing required. The code size and RAM needed are small making Courier-115 easy to embed.