Panthronics AG, a fabless semiconductor firm specializing in high-performance wireless technology, has announced a partnership with Renesas Electronics for the latest design for secure mobile point-of-sale (mPoS) contactless payment terminals.
This design in fact curbs the size and bill of the materials for the OEM merchandise. The firms are displaying the latest mPoS design at the Panthronics stand 5.2 B041 at the Trustech exhibition (Paris, France, 30 November-2 December 2021).
The design is based on Panthronics’ PTX100R NFC Reader IC for contactless communication, and the Renesas RA6M4 general-purpose secure microcontroller (MCU). As per the firms’ sources The RA6M4 MCU, which is equipped with ArmCortex-M33 CPU with TrustZone technology and integrated security IP, and RA6M4 MCU will have encryption, key management, and others required to comply with strict payment card industry (PCI) security standards and EMVCo Level 2.
It also performs security functions and that is standard for contactless payments. EMVCo Level 1 compliant software runs on the PTX100R.
Backed with a secure MCU, this particular design offers noteworthy budget and size advantages over the conventional mPoS terminal designs. Currently, the mPoS terminals either have joint general-purpose MCUs and discrete secure elements, or else a dedicated PoS-specific system-on-chip (SoC) with built-in security features.
Panthronics / Renesas solutions are superior to both in form of:
Eradicate the requirement for individual secure elements by implementing secure payment capabilities within RA6M4. This shrinks the budget of the bill of materials and saves space on the board. It also boosts security by abolishing vulnerable communication paths between the discrete secure element and the host MCU.
RA6M4 is a lower budget component than dedicated SoCs and can be broadly utilized without worrying about supply security.
Statement from Markus Vomfelde, European Senior Manager for MCU Business Development at Renesas
Markus Vomfelde, European Senior Manager for MCU Business Development at Renesas, stated: “Security, cost and size are the key concerns for manufacturers of the next generation of mPoS terminals, as they battle for market share in a highly competitive market. By proving that a mPoS terminal based on a standard MCU can be fully compliant with all the relevant security and payment industry standards.”
Markus also added: “Renesas and Panthronics have demonstrated a new way for terminal manufacturers to gain a competitive edge while meeting customer demand for security, functionality, and performance. We are confident that with this solution, mPoS terminal manufacturers can achieve a BoM cost saving of at least 10% compared to typical designs in production today.”
Comprehensive Design aids swift latest product line progression
The mPoS solution gears a comprehensive set of payment terminal features, comprising EMVCo Level 1 and Level 2 compliant software. It provides an effective platform for device manufacturers to validate the concept compliance with the EMVCo standard and complete rapid design integration based on the hardware and software components provided by Renesas and Pantronics.
As per the firms’ reports, the design embraces a space-saving antenna that surrounds the display screen, a configuration that is only possible due to the outcome of the robust connectivity performance of the PTX100R card reader.
The PXT100R’s unique sine wave architecture results in industry-best sensitivity and transmission strength, boosting the terminal’s signal-to-noise ratio and allowing for dependable coupling with payment cards or mobile phones in all usage conditions, and via an antenna placed close to an electrically noisy display.
The solution comprises of two boards:
EK-RA6M4 evaluation kit for the RA6M4 MCU
PTX100R reader/display shield board The design is anticipated to be available to procure from Renesas as a comprehensive evaluation kit in early 2022. Clients observing to begin designs instantly can contact Renesas sales directly.
