AMI Embedded Controller (EC)

AMI Embedded Controller (EC) Firmware Solution

Embedded Controller
EC
NOT YOUR FATHER’S KEYBOARD CONTROLLER
EC firmware has steadily evolved from the keyboard controller of the FEATURES:
last millenia to what it is today. Along the way, it’s kept many of its legacy
components, which include old-fashioned communication methods ACPI Compliant
such as communicating through the low pin count (LPC) bus. At the
same time, it’s picked up added features such as LED status indicators Keyboard Controller
and added button controls. AMI’s EC firmware is a highly compatible • 8042 software compatible
Embedded Controller solution that can be used across many different • Port 92 support
EC chipsets and developed using AMI’s Visual eBIOS (VeB) development
environment. As a total EC and BIOS solution, the AMI EC solution allows RTOS Multitask
customers to shift from basic keyboard controllers to full-featured EC • Dedicate task for individual service
products. • High performance scheduling
LATEST TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT Smart Battery
The latest EC silicon features higher processing power and complex • Smart Battery Data 1.1 Compatible
features, requiring a more robust firmware solution. AMI EC has integrated • Retrievable battery-related data
support for the latest technologies including full eSPI functionality (Flash
Keyboard Matrix
Channel, OOB Channel, Virtual Wire Channel, Peripheral Channel) and
USB Type-C Power Delivery. • 18*8 and 16*8 matrix support
• Numeric keypad
BROAD EC SUPPORT FOR CHIPS AND CRBS
USB Type-C Power Delivery Support
AMI EC extends support for a broad range of EC chip vendors, giving
customers the ability to port the EC firmware to many different chipsets. • Power Role detection (DRP, Sink, Source)
Chipsets supported by AMI EC include: • Data Role detection (DRD, DFP, UFP)
• ITE: IT8516E, IT8500, IT8518E, IT8519, IT8380, IT8528, IT8991, FN Hot Key Support
IT8390, IT8587, IT8987 • GPIO control
• Renesas: H8S2117, H8S2117-R, Cohiba, Cohiba 2C, Cohiba HR, • Generate SCI, SMI and SWI
H8S2113
• Scan code
• Microchip: MEC1609, MEC1308, MEC161x, MEC1632, MEC1418,
MEC1322, MEC1703
• Nuvoton: NPCE775, NPCE776, NPCE781, NPCE783, NPCE79x,
NPCE88x, NPCE98x, NPCE28x
• USB PD: TI TPS65982 and TPS65988, Realtek RTS5450
• FreeRTOS- eSPI: Microchip MEC1703 and MEC1418, ITE IT8390
For those working on Intel® customer reference boards (CRB), the AMI EC
solution has been validated on the following CRBs:
• Intel® Skylake: ITE IT8528, Microchip MEC1703
• Intel® Kaby Lake: Microchip MEC1703

COMMON TOOLS BETWEEN BIOS AND EC

There are various AMI toolsets that have been tried and tested to
work in conjunction with the AMI EC solution for greater development
capabilities. The following toolsets include:
• VeB Development Tool for tailor-made EC development and
integrated source control/project management
• AMI Firmware Update (AFU) for EC firmware updates
• Debug Tool for debug view in real-time and current status
information for battery, thermal and fan
• Test Tool for auto reboot tests, auto EC flash updates and fan/
thermal and backlight simulation tests

Statement of Liability: © 2019 American Megatrends Inc. Product specifications are subject to change without notice. Products mentioned may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
All rights reserved. No warranties are made, either expressed or implied, with regard to the contents of this work, its merchantability or fitness for a particular use. This publication contains proprietary information,
which is protected by copyright. American Megatrends reserves the right to update, change and/or modify this product at anytime.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONALITY
Keyboard Controller Functionality: AT and PS/2 8042 compatibility with support for matrix keyboard scan controllers, device hot-
swap, hot-plug and OEM hot-key implementations
• Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) Embedded Controller
• Full compatibility with ACPI EC requirements
• Designed to extend beyond the specification
• Use ASL to control EC functionality
• Customize notifications and external events
• Smart Battery Management: SMBus interface for smart or control method batteries
• OEM Customization: Utilize EC advanced functionality to create unique platform functionality. Including General Purpose I/O
(GPIO), Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC), Pulse-Width Modulator (PWM) and Watch Dog Timer (WDT) functionality
EC eSPI SUPPORT FEATURE
• Windows 10 support
• Internal and External PS/2 Compatible Auxiliary Device
• Dual Internal Auxiliary Device
• Internal Matrix (keyboard)
• Smart Battery
• Power Management
EC RTOS SUPPORT FEATURE
• RTOS Multitask
• Power Management Support
• Keyboard Controller
• ACPI Embedded Controller Interface
• Smart Battery SMBus
• Internal Matrix (keyboard)
• Hot Key Support
• PS/2 Compatible Auxiliary Device
• USB type-c multiple PD support

FLEXIBLE DEVELOPMENT OPTIONS

• Full source code available for development
• Firmware development in C or assembly language (depends on part selection)
• Supports ShareBIOS and Internal Flash implementations (depends on part selection)
• AMI offers EC firmware ported to many popular chipset reference board (CRB) designs

There are more parts available and more that are under development. Please contact AMI for details.

Note: Specific feature support depends on capabilities of embedded controller hardware and platform design.

American Megatrends Inc. | ami.com

5555 Oakbrook Park way, Bldg. 20 0
Norcross, G A 30 093 | 770.246.860 0

For more information: https://ami.com/

Statement of Liability: © 2019 American Megatrends Inc. Product specifications are subject to change without notice. Products mentioned may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. w03
All rights reserved. No warranties are made, either expressed or implied, with regard to the contents of this work, its merchantability or fitness for a particular use. This publication contains proprietary information,
which is protected by copyright. American Megatrends reserves the right to update, change and/or modify this product at anytime.