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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
XILINX SPARTAN-3 FPGAs SELECTED FOR
INNOVATIVE MICROSOFT TELEMATICS SOLUTION
Microsoft Automotive teams with Xilinx and others to develop
new telematics solution for Fiat
SAN JOSE, Calif., February 28, 2005 Xilinx, Inc., (NASDAQ: XLNX),
the world's leading programmable logic supplier, today announced
the use of their Spartan -3 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)
devices in the successful development and delivery of a flexible,
low-cost telematics system that will be integrated into every Fiat
vehicle. Based upon a reference design that they defined with Fiat
Auto, Microsoft's Automotive Business Unit collaborated with Xilinx,
Samsung, ScanSoft, Siemens, SiRF and Magneti-Marelli to develop
the solution with each company contributing to key aspects of the
system including chipset, processor, telecommunications module,
speech engine and hardware development.
The Xilinx Spartan-3 FPGA is used as a companion to a Samsung processor
to implement the mobile application processor within the platform.
The Spartan-3 FPGA delivers a high-value solution, lowering the
system bill of material (BOM) costs through the integration of several
functions, including two UARTs (Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitters),
a volume controller, a noise suppression filter, echo cancellation,
decimetres, and scalers, which would otherwise require discrete
devices. In addition, Xilinx Spartan-3 FPGAs are fully programmable
so updates can be made to the hardware even after deployment to
the field. This is an especially attractive feature for the automotive
industry where a car's life span often exceeds ten years. As the
first 90nm programmable device in the industry, the Spartan-3 platform
provides unrivalled cost benefits with higher density and numerous
performance features.
Xilinx is already the leading PLD provider to the automotive market
with many programmable devices "on the road" in areas
such as GPS, infotainment, communication, driver assistance and
comfort applications. In addition to its Spartan-3 family of FPGAs,
Xilinx offers a complete line of temperature-tolerant devices designed
specifically for the automotive industry. Unveiled at Convergence
2004, the new Xilinx Automotive (XA) line is the only programmable
logic line to meet the Automotive Electronics Council AEC-Q100 qualification
flow and fully support the Automotive Industry's Production Part
Approval Process (PPAP) provision.
Market analysts indicate that the worldwide market for semiconductors
for in-car audio, infotainment and driver information/telematics
systems is forecasted to more than double from $5.6 billion in 2003
to $12.8 billion in 2010. According to Frank Visquez, director of
Automotive Technologies at ABI Research, the FPGA/CPLD revenue portion
of this segment is expected to grow 94 percent from $240.3 million
to $449.3 million during the same time frame.
About the Microsoft Telematics Platform
Today's motorists are talking on the phone, enjoying their personal
music selections and looking for directions - all while driving.
The joint telematics solution gives easy access to all these applications.
Diagnostic data can be transferred to and analyzed by the manufacturer
and the preferred dealer. Later this year, Fiat customers will be
able to purchase vehicles with new systems offering several levels
of connectivity. Key features among these systems include seamless
integration of customers' own devices such as cellular phones, Pocket
PCs or Windows Mobile™-based devices using Bluetooth connectivity
for access to contacts, appointments and making hands-free calls.
In addition to hands-free phones, motorists can access Web services
for off-board navigation and real-time traffic. Drivers and passengers
also will enjoy digital music in the car through a USB port on the
dashboard for easy connectivity to personal electronic devices.
All systems will feature high-quality speech recognition. As a result,
Fiat customers will more easily be able to make calls, access contacts
and other information stored on their own PDA or mobile phone over
the car audio system hands free - all by simply using their voice.
About Xilinx FPGAs
The 90nm Spartan-3 platform is the world's lowest-cost FPGA offering
unrivaled price points with more density and performance features
than any other device in its class. Spartan-3 devices feature an
industry-leading combination of block and distributed RAM, up to
784 I/Os, MicroBlaze™ 32-bit RISC soft processors and XtremeDSP™
functionality with dedicated 18x18 multipliers that deliver up to
330 billion multiply and accumulates (MACs) per second.
The XA line consists of both FPGA and CPLD devices, providing significant
flexibility for automotive device designers. The FPGA devices are
available in densities ranging from 50,000 to 1,000,000 system gates
in a variety of packages. The CPLD devices range in density from
32 to 256 macrocells with I/O ranging from 33 to 184. Xilinx XA
devices operate over the extended temperate range with both Q-Grade
(-40oC to +125oC) and I-Grade (-40oC to +100oC) devices. The XA
product line is complemented by a suite of intellectual property
(IP) optimized for the automotive market, including communications
and connectivity cores, such as Controller Area Network (CAN) and
Local Interconnect Network (LIN) IP cores provided by Xilinx AllianceCORE
partners, as well as a variety of reference designs.
About Xilinx
Xilinx is the worldwide leader in complete programmable logic
solutions. For more information, visit www.xilinx.com.
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