Electronic – Using a watchdog in low power application

embeddedlow-powerwatchdog

Most low-power applications operate in burst mode, where the system is asleep most of the time.
I don't understand how to use a watchdog (WD) in those kinds of systems.

The perfect scenario would be to wake up periodically to reset my MCU's internal WD.
The problem: internal WDs are too energy expensive (usually more than 1uA) to use while sleeping. (Assuming a CR2032 coin cell battery as a power source).

What are the strategies to use a WD in a low power system?
Use a specialized IC?
Enable WD at wakeup?

Best Answer

The watchdog has the task to monitor code execution and possibly to reset the CPU.

When the CPU is stopped, there's no reason for the watchdog to work or to be awaken.