A new chip to eat is normally not the tastiest of news bites. But a new electronic chip from Freescale Semiconductor happens to be the smallest ARM-powered chip yet devised — and it's small enough to be swallowed.
That's right: Freescale Semiconductor's ARM-powered chip is the world's first "swallowable computer," and it is on display at Embedded World in Nuremberg, Germany from Feb. 26 through 28.
Wired notes that the Kinetis KL02 — which measures just 1.9 by 2 millimeters — was announced Tuesday, Feb. 26.
"It's a full microcontroller unit (MCU)," writes Wired, "meaning the chip sports a processor, RAM, ROM, clock and I/O control unit — everything a body needs to be a basic tiny computer."
The Kinetis KL02's product page states the features of the chip as follows:
- 32k of flash memory
- 4k of RAM
- 32 bit processor
- 12-bit analog to digital converter and a low-power UART built into the chip that allow for makers of devices to shrink down their designs, resulting in infinitesimal boards in just as tiny devices
Why do they need to be so very tiny?
"We are working with our customers and partners on providing technology for their products that can be swallowed but we can't really comment on unannounced products," says Steve Tateosian, global product marketing manager.
Freescale already works with clients in the health and wellness industries such as Fitbit and OmniPod, companies that make insulin pumps. Although such new, much smaller chips could be used to help monitor a person's health from inside his/her body, Wired suggests this may create the new problem of chips accumulating in sewers and waste-treatment plants.
Other applications of the Kinetis KL02 include its placement in shoes to allow for wireless reporting on number of steps taken, and in plumbing pipes to monitor leaks.
Freescale says that the chip was specifically designed to suit the specifications of an undisclosed party. That specification: "a chip smaller than 3 by 3 mm," has been met and the KL02 will be released for general retail soon.
iTechPost reminds its readers that should the day come, it might be best to forego the traditional glass of water while swallowing a computer.
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