The Texas Instruments MSP430 family of ultralow power microcontrollers consist of several devices featuring different sets of peripherals targeted for various applications. The architecture, combined with five low power modes is optimized to achieve extended battery life in portable measurement applications. The device features a powerful 16-bit RISC CPU, 16-bit registers, and constant generators that attribute to maximum code efficiency. The digitally controlled oscillator (DCO) allows wake-up from low-power modes to active mode in less than 6s. The MSP430F42x0 is a microcontroller configuration with a 16-bit timer, a high performance 16-bit sigma-delta A/D converter, 12-bit D/A converter, 32 I/O pins, and a liquid crystal display driver. Typical applications for this device include analog and digital sensor systems, digital motor control, remote controls, thermostats, digital timers, hand-held meters, etc.