Atmel Unveils Industry's First Off-the-Shelf LF Antenna Driver IC for Passive Entry Go/Passive Go Systems

Heilbronn, Germany (ots/PRNewswire) -

Atmel(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML) announced today the
availability of the new LF coil driver IC ATA5279 designed for
Passive Entry Go (PEG) and Passive Go (PG) hands-free car access
systems. This is industry's first and only off-the-shelf antenna
driver IC. Compared to today's discrete or ASIC solutions, this IC
enables much smaller and considerably less expensive designs, while
at the same time offering increased reliability.

The ATA5279 is capable of sequentially driving up to six separate
125 kHz low-frequency antennas (i.e., coils) to provide a wake-up and
initialization channel to the key fob. Superior EMC behavior is
guaranteed by the sinusoidal-like output signals at all six channels,
which helps avoid interferences with other electronic car components.
In addition, the IC has twenty individually selectable coil currents
steps at each channel to enable precise field-strength measurements.

With its superior diagnostics, the ATA5279 monitors all six
connected antennas and stores any possible failures in the internal
register. As a result of this, the ATA5279 protects the system and
itself from any damage, reducing service work at the OEM's assembly
line and their authorized repair shops.

The ATA5279 is manufactured using Atmel's own BCD-on-SOI
(SMART-I.S.(R)) technology, which, amongst others, results in a very
low power-down current consumption of 6 uA to 8 uA, thus minimizing
battery usage. The ATA5279 also meets strict automotive qualification
demands by withstanding load dump and jump start scenarios as
specified by ISO/TR 7637/1. The new antenna driver IC ATA5279 is, of
course, fully protected against electrical and thermal overloads.

Outstanding EMC behavior, superior diagnostics and the ability to
drive six separate low-frequency antennas make the ATA5279 an ideal
fit for all LF 125-kHz-based Passive Entry Go (PEG) and Passive Go
(PG) hands-free car access systems.

Availability and Pricing

Samples of the ATA5279 are now available in RoHS-compliant QFN48
packages measuring only 7 mm x 7 mm. Pricing starts at US $3.31 (for
10k piece quantities). To support the system designer, an LF trigger
board (ATAB5279), an AVR(R)-based main board (ATAB-LFMB-79), a 3D LF
receiver board (ATAB5282), and an additional LF antenna module
(ATAB-LFTX-Mod1) are also available.

Footnote
ASIC = Application-Specific Integrated Circuit
BCD = Mixed technology: Bipolar CMOS DMOS
EMC = Electro Magnetic Capability
LF = Low Frequency
OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer
PEG =Passive Entry Go
PG = Passive Go
QFN = Quad Flat No leads
RoHS = Restriction of Hazardous Substances
SOI= Silicon on Insulator

About Atmel

Atmel is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of
microcontrollers, advanced logic, mixed-signal, nonvolatile memory
and radio frequency (RF) components. Leveraging one of the industry's
broadest intellectual property (IP) technology portfolios, Atmel is
able to provide the electronics industry with complete system
solutions focused on consumer, industrial, security, communications,
computing and automotive markets.

(C) 2008 Atmel Corporation. All rights reserved. Atmel(R), logo
and combinations thereof, AVR(R), SMART-I.S.(R), and others are
registered trademarks or trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its
subsidiaries. Other terms and product names may be trademarks of
others.

Information

Product information on Atmel's new LF antenna driver IC ATA5279
may be retrieved at:
http://www.atmel.com/dyn/products/product_card.asp?part_id=4323

Press Contacts
Dr. Susanne van Clewe, Marcom Manager Communications and Automotive
Products
Tel: +49-7131-67-2081, Email: susanne.van-clewe@atmel.com
Helen Perlegos, Public Relations
Tel: +1-408-487-2963, Email: hperlegos@atmel.com

Web site: http://www.atmel.com

ots Originaltext: Atmel Corporation
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Contact:
Dr. Susanne van Clewe, Marcom Manager Communications and Automotive
Products, +49-7131-67-2081, susanne.van-clewe@atmel.com, or Helen
Perlegos, Public Relations, +1-408-487-2963, hperlegos@atmel.com,
both of Atmel