Atmel's CAP Customizable Microcontroller Hosts Ultra Wideband Media Access Controller

Rousset, France (ots/PRNewswire) -

- Institute of Embedded Systems, Zurich University of Applied
Sciences, Personalizes CAP for UWB Applications

Atmel(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML) and the Institute of Embedded
Systems (InES), Zurich University of Applied Sciences, announced
today the availability of an Ultra Wideband (UWB) transceiver that
InES has implemented by personalizing Atmel's AT91CAP9S Customizable
Microcontroller. The CAP(TM) implements the logic of the UWB Media
Access Controller (MAC) in its metal programmable block, driven by
software running on the embedded ARM926EJ-S(TM) processor.

Hans-Joachim Gelke, InES Microelectronics Project Leader,
commented, "The porting of an UWB MAC onto Atmel's CAP is an
excellent example of the collaboration between our Institute and
industrial partners in order to bring advanced applications of
embedded systems to the marketplace. We are working with a lead
partner in order to industrialize this system, and are now able to
offer the IP to others who wish to use the CAP as a platform for an
UWB application."

Michel Le Lan, Atmel's ASIC Marketing Director, added, "The CAP
UWB implementation shows how our customizable microcontroller can be
rapidly adapted to complex tasks like Ultra Wideband media access
control. UWB is an emerging technology that is ideal for many
applications, in particular in the medical field, where its
resistance to interference and ability to penetrate obstacles,
together with its high bandwidth, make it the medium of choice for
the next generation of wireless medical imaging and similar
equipment. The medium volumes of projects like these make CAP the
best choice in terms of price/performance. CAP costs much less per
unit and consumes far less energy than an equivalent MCU-plus-FPGA
solution, but costs far less to develop than an equivalent ASIC."

The IP that personalizes the CAP metal programmable block for the
UWB Media Access Controller, together with the software drivers for
the ARM926EJ-S(TM) processor, are available from InES. The UWB MAC
logic does not occupy the entire CAP MP Block, leaving ample space
for complementary application-specific logic, for example to
implement a graphical user interface.

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.

About Institute of Embedded Systems (InES)

As a member of Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), the
Institute of Embedded Systems is a recognised expert in the field of
industrial communications, specifically Real-Time-Ethernet
communications, with a staff of around 40, including 4 Professors and
lecturers directly involved in international research projects in the
field.

(C) 2008 Atmel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Atmel(R), Atmel
logo and combinations thereof and others, are registered trademarks,
CAP(TM) and others are trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its
subsidiaries. ARM(R) and others are registered trademarks or
trademarks of ARM Ltd. Other terms and product names may be
trademarks of others.

Information:
Atmel's AT91CAP product information may be retrieved at:
http://www.atmel.com/products/at91cap/default.asp
For UWB EMAC product information, go to: http://www.ines.zhaw.ch/uwbmac
Atmel Press Contacts:
Peter Bishop, Communications Manager, Atmel Rousset
Tel: +33(0)4-42-53-61-50, Email: peter.bishop@atmel.com
Helen Perlegos, Public Relations
Tel: +1-408-487-2963, Email: hperlegos@atmel.com
InES Press Contacts:
Hans-Joachim Gelke, Microelectronics Project Leader
InES Institute of Embedded Systems, Winterthur, Switzerland,
Email: hans.gelke@zhaw.ch
Web site: http://www.atmel.com
http://www.ines.zhaw.ch/uwbmac

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

Contact:
Peter Bishop, Communications Manager of Atmel Rousset,
+33(0)4-42-53-61-50, peter.bishop@atmel.com, or Helen Perlegos,
Public Relations of Atmel Corporation, +1-408-487-2963,
hperlegos@atmel.com; or Hans-Joachim Gelke, Microelectronics Project
Leader of InES Institute of Embedded Systems, Winterthur,
Switzerland, hans.gelke@zhaw.ch