Epson Introduces ARM® Based Microcontroller for Speech Synthesis and Audio Playback

All-in-One MCU with a Dedicated Speech/Audio Processing Engine and Free Speech Integrated Development Tool Allows for Adding Voice Capabilities to End-Products

Epson today introduced a new 32-bit ARM® Cortex®-M0+ Core microcontroller (MCU) – the Epson S1C31D50 with speech synthesis and audio processing capabilities. This MCU is ideal for human machine interface (HMI) applications requiring voice guidance and audio playback in electronic products. Such products include home automation equipment, security and alarm panels, household appliances, consumer medical devices, fitness equipment, industrial safety, and educational gadgets.

The new Epson S1C31D50 MCU with speech synthesis engine offers an embedded 192KB Flash memory for up to 90 seconds of audio, and supports 12 languages, including English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Japanese, and Korean. Epson also offers the easy-to-use Epson speech synthesis IDE tool at no charge, which allows for voice guidance audio to be created without a studio recording. In addition, the built-in Epson Original Voice (EOV) Decoder offers high data compression for effective audio data storage in memory.

“Sound is becoming an increasingly popular feature in home electronics, industrial devices, health and fitness equipment, and alarms,” said Rajasekhar Suribhotla, Director, Semiconductor ICs and Sensor Systems, Epson America, Inc. “This new MCU is ideal for such applications and offers extra value with both a general-purpose ARM M0+ MCU and a Speech Engine on the same silicon, as well as free software development tools that reduce design effort and time to market.”

The Epson S1C31D50 MCU with speech synthesis engine comes with smart speech functions, including 2-channel hardware mixer, enabling voice and background music to be played simultaneously. Voice speed, pitch, volume can also be flexibly adjusted without requiring main CPU resources. The MCU also offers a 1-channel 12-bit ADC and Resistance to frequency converter (RFC) for interfacing with analog inputs, as well as GPIOs.

Availability 

The Epson S1C31D50 32-bit ARM Cortex-M0+ MCU with speech synthesis engine is now in production. For additional information or to request a demo, visit https://epson.com/integrated-circuit-solutions-semiconductors.

About Epson
Epson is a global technology leader dedicated to becoming indispensable to society by connecting people, things and information with its original efficient, compact and precision technologies. The company is focused on driving innovations and exceeding customer expectations in inkjet, visual communications, wearables and robotics, and is underpinned by original microdevices. Epson is proud of its contributions to realizing a sustainable society and its ongoing efforts to realizing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Led by the Japan-based Seiko Epson Corporation, the worldwide Epson Group generates annual sales of more than U.S. $10 billion. 

Epson America, Inc., based in Long Beach, Calif., is Epson’s regional headquarters for the U.S., Canada, and Latin America. To learn more about Epson, please visit: epson.com. You may also connect with Epson America on Facebook (facebook.com/Epson), Twitter (twitter.com/EpsonAmerica), YouTube (youtube.com/EpsonAmerica), and Instagram (instagram.com/EpsonAmerica).

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