ATMEGA6490-16AI - 64KB Flash 16MHz AVR LCD MCU | Microchip
MPN: ATMEGA6490-16AI ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $7.2 | $7.20 |
| 10 | $6.55 | $65.50 |
| 100 | $5.9 | $590.00 |
| 500 | $5.35 | $2,675.00 |
| 1,000 | $4.85 | $4,850.00 |
ATMEGA6490-16AI Overview
An 8-bit AVR microcontroller is a Harvard-architecture RISC processor that executes most instructions in a single clock cycle. Within the power-management hierarchy of embedded systems, it serves as the central processing element, sitting above simple logic ICs but below 32-bit application processors. The AVR ATmega family from Microchip (formerly Atmel) is widely used for cost-sensitive embedded control where integrated peripherals reduce system part count.
Key features include 64 KB of self-programming Flash with read-while-write capability, 135 powerful instructions with most executing in a single cycle, 32 general purpose working registers, and an on-chip LCD controller supporting up to 4x40 segments. The picoPower technology enables low sleep-mode currents for battery-operated designs.
The advanced RISC architecture combines a rich instruction set with fast single-cycle ALU operation, delivering up to 16 MIPS throughput at 16 MHz. Integrated peripherals include an 8-channel 10-bit ADC, multiple timers/pWM channels, USART serial interfaces, SPI, TWI (I2C), and JTAG for on-chip debugging, allowing a single chip to replace MCU plus dedicated LCD driver plus external ADC solutions.
Typical applications include utility metering with LCD displays, industrial control panels, battery-powered instrumentation, and white-goods human-machine interfaces where the integrated segment LCD driver and 69 general purpose I/O lines simplify board design.
When designing with this device, the -AI suffix denotes the industrial temperature range of -40C to +85C; verify JTAG fuse settings before debugging, since JTAG can be disabled by default. Place 100 nF decoupling capacitors at each VCC/GND pair.
This page synthesizes verified distributor data, same-family drop-in alternatives, and practical design notes not found in a single manufacturer source.
Drop-in alternatives for ATMEGA6490-16AI — same package, pin-to-pin compatible. Different-package parts requiring PCB rework are excluded.
Variants in this series
Same-series models that are drop-in compatible with ATMEGA6490-16AI (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Operating Temperature, EEPROM, Package, SRAM, Core Architecture.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
ATMEGA6490-16AU
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$8.65 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATMEGA6450-16AUR
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$5.66 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATMEGA3290-16AI
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$4.14 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATMEGA6450V-8AU
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$2.31 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATMEGA6490P-16AU
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ 参数待验证📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA3250-16AU
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ 参数待验证✓ In Stock
$5.74 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATMEGA6490-16AI Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Core Processor | AVR |
| Core Size | 8-Bit |
| Speed | 16 MHz |
| Program Flash Memory | 64 KB (32K x 16) |
| EEPROM Size | 2 KB |
| RAM Size | 4 KB |
| Number of I/O | 69 |
| LCD Driver | Yes, segment LCD (up to 4x40 segments) |
| ADC | 8-channel 10-bit |
| Connectivity | USART, SPI, TWI (I2C) |
| Peripherals | Brown-out Detect/Reset, POR, PWM, WDT, LCD, JTAG |
| Oscillator Type | Internal |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +85C |
| Package / Case | 100-TQFP (14x14 mm) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Technology | picoPower |
ATMEGA6490-16AI 100-tqfp (14x14 mm) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for ATMEGA6490-16AI (100-tqfp (14x14 mm) package). This digital IC includes GPIO, communication interfaces (UART, SPI, I2C), and power pins. Refer to the manufacturer datasheet for alternate pin functions and configuration options. Essential for embedded system design and PCB layout.
No detailed pinout data available for ATMEGA6490-16AI.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
ATMEGA6490-16AI is suitable for 6 applications: Utility Metering (Electricity, Water, Gas), Industrial Control Panels and HMI, Battery-Powered Portable Instrumentation, White Goods and Appliance UI, Building Automation and Security Panels, POS Terminals and Payment Peripherals.
Utility Metering (Electricity, Water, Gas)
The ATMEGA6490-16AI fits electricity, water, and gas meters because it integrates the MCU, 4x40 segment LCD driver, 10-bit ADC, and 2 KB EEPROM in one 100-TQFP chip, removing a dedicated LCD controller from the bill of materials. The 10-bit ADC samples shunt or current-transformer signals for energy measurement, while the EEPROM stores calibration and tariff data through power cycles. picoPower sleep modes cut standby current for battery-backed meters, and read-while-write Flash allows firmware update without losing measurement state. Designers should budget ADC sampling and LCD refresh timing carefully so that measurement accuracy is maintained during segment multiplexing, and should reserve UART or TWI for AMR/AMI communication heads.
Recommended
Industrial Control Panels and HMI
Factory panels need local display, keypad scanning, and serial links - exactly the peripheral set of the ATMEGA6490-16AI. The 69 GPIO lines drive keypads, LEDs, and relays; the segment LCD shows setpoints and alarms; USART, SPI, and TWI connect to PLC backbones or sensors. The -40C to +85C industrial rating and brown-out detector ensure reliable reset behavior on noisy industrial power rails, while JTAG enables on-chip debugging of state machines. Using the single-chip LCD MCU replaces an MCU-plus-LCD-driver stack, cutting BOM and board area in the 14x14 mm TQFP. Designers should add transient protection on externally exposed I/O and debounce key inputs in firmware or with RC networks.
Recommended
Battery-Powered Portable Instrumentation
Handheld testers and portable gauges benefit from the ATMEGA6490-16AI's picoPower architecture: power-down and power-save modes drop current to microamp levels while the asynchronous timer or RTC keeps timing. The internal oscillator eliminates an external crystal for cost-sensitive or shock-prone products, with the option to add one for USART accuracy. The LCD driver draws minimal current compared to backlit graphic displays, extending battery life in daylight-readable designs. The 64 KB Flash accommodates feature-rich measurement firmware, logging tables, and multi-language menus without external memory. Engineers should measure actual sleep current with all unused GPIO configured as inputs with pull-ups disabled to realize the datasheet-class battery lifetime.
Recommended
White Goods and Appliance UI
Washers, ovens, and HVAC thermostats use the ATMEGA6490-16AI as a single-chip UI controller: segment LCD for cycle status, GPIO matrix for touch buttons, 10-bit ADC for NTC temperature sensing, and PWM-capable timers for buzzer and heater/relay drive. The industrial temperature grade tolerates kitchen and boiler-room ambient conditions, and the watchdog timer plus brown-out reset recover cleanly from brown-out events on shared mains supplies. Firmware stored in 64 KB Flash supports multiple product SKUs from one PCB. Use the EEPROM for wear-leveled cycle counters and fault logs. Verify LCD biasing resistor values against panel specifications to balance contrast against drive current.
Recommended
Building Automation and Security Panels
Zone controllers and access panels leverage the ATMEGA6490-16AI's mix of many I/O, serial links, and local LCD status display. TWI (I2C) and SPI expand to RTC chips, EEPROM, and sensor front-ends; USART connects to RS-485 transceivers for long cable runs across floors. The 64 KB Flash holds protocol stacks and event logs, while the on-chip EEPROM securely retains configuration through outages. The 16 MHz core executes most single-cycle instructions, giving headroom for CRC checks and keypad encryption routines. Designers should isolate RS-485 lines, use the watchdog for lockup recovery, and keep JTAG disable fuses set in deployed units so the debug port cannot be used to dump firmware.
Recommended
POS Terminals and Payment Peripherals
Point-of-sale keypads and customer-display modules use the ATMEGA6490-16AI's LCD driver for price/quantity segments and its GPIO matrix for keypad scanning, with USART or SPI linking to the main payment board. The 64 KB Flash supports multi-protocol firmware, and EEPROM stores device serials and calibrations. Low sleep current suits countertop devices that idle most of the day. The mature AVR toolchain (AVR GCC, MegaCore Arduino support) speeds firmware development and long-term maintenance for legacy POS fleets. Engineers should implement keypad scanning with row/column diode matrices to prevent ghosting and use checksummed EEPROM writes to survive unexpected power loss during transactions.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for ATMEGA6490-16AI — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | ATMEGA6490-16AU | ATMEGA6450-16AUR | ATMEGA3290-16AI | ATMEGA6450V-8AU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 100-TQFP (14x14 mm) | 100-TQFP (14x14 mm) - same | 100-TQFP (14x14 mm) - same | 100-TQFP (14x14 mm) - same | 100-TQFP (14x14 mm) - same |
| Brand | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology |
| Program Flash | 64 KB | 64 KB | 64 KB | 32 KB | 64 KB |
| Max CPU Speed | 16 MHz | 16 MHz | 16 MHz | 16 MHz | 8 MHz |
| SRAM | 4 KB | 4 KB | 4 KB | 2 KB | 4 KB |
| EEPROM | 2 KB | 2 KB | 2 KB | 1 KB | 2 KB |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +85C | -40C to +85C | -40C to +85C | -40C to +85C | -40C to +85C |
| LCD Driver | Yes (segment LCD, up to 4x40) | Yes (same) | Yes (segment configuration differs) | Yes (same family) | Yes (same family) |
Key Differentiators
- Double the program memory of the value tier (vs ATMEGA3290-16AI)
- Full-speed operation (vs ATMEGA6450V-8AU)
- Integrated segment LCD driver (vs ATMEGA640-16AUR)
Design Notes
Estimated: decouple each VCC/GND pin pair of the 100-TQFP with a 100 nF ceramic capacitor placed within 2 mm of the pin, plus one bulk 4.7-10 uF capacitor near the supply entry. Input values used: 16 MHz core activity and typical AVR supply decoupling practice from the ATmega datasheet layout recommendations. Undecoupled high-frequency transients on multi-pin MCUs cause flash corruption and LCD ghosting that are hard to diagnose.
JTAG shares pins with port F GPIO and can be disabled by fuse settings, leaving debug sessions silently broken. Verify JTAGEN fuse state before hardware bring-up, and if the pins are needed as GPIO in production, disable JTAG via fuse and document it in the BOM change notes. Similarly, the LCD driver pins multiplex with GPIO - configure the LCDCSR registers before assuming port reads on those pins reflect external signals.
Route LCD segment lines away from the ADC input traces and crystal; segment multiplexing creates fast-switching edges that couple charge into the 10-bit ADC and degrade effective resolution. Keep the crystal (if used for UART timing) within 10 mm of the XTAL pins with short ground return. Use a solid ground plane under the TQFP rather than thermal-relief spokes on the exposed ground returns for lowest impedance.
Compliance Information
Compliance attributes were not stated in the verified web data retrieved; confirm RoHS/REACH status on the official Microchip product page before procurement.
