Companies seldom have a market to themselves for more than a few months these days, and Motorola Inc already has competition for its innovative MC68302 communications controller chip, announced last September (CI No 1,264) and adopted by Peer Networks Inc for its new communications processor last week (CI No 1,356). The competition comes from Cirrus Logic Inc, Milpitas, California, which yesterday unveiled the CL-CD2400 Intelligent Multi-Protocol Communications Controller, which unlike the Motorola part is built around an embedded RISC processor rather than the 68000. Cirrus claims that the part is the only one currently available to offer eight-channel direct memory access and four data channels – the Motorola part has six direct memory access channels and three data channels. As with the Motorola part, each channel can be handling a different protocol concurrently, and operates synchronously or asynchronously. Protocols supported on the Cirrus part are HDLC, SDLC, X25 – of which HDLC is a part, X21 and Signalling System 7. Designed for use in front-end processors, cluster controllers, multiplexers, local area networks and terminal servers, the CL-CD2400 is packaged in an 84-pin plastic-leaded chip carrier and is available now in sample quantities at $45. Volume production is set for late in the first quarter at less than $40 – the surface mount version of Motorola’s part is $25 in volume. The general-purpose multiprotocol CL-CD2400 is also planned to serve as the basis for a family of devices that will have all four channels dedicated to specific protocols. First company to come up with such a part was probably National Semiconductor Corp with its DP8344 Bi-phase Communications Processor, but that does only IBM 3270, 3299 and 5250 (CI No 819). Chips & Technologies Inc also has a part handling 3270 only.
