Real Intent signs GTI as distribution partner for Taiwan

USA & TAIWAN: Real Intent Inc., the leading provider of software products that accelerate early functional verification and advanced sign-off of electronic designs, today announced its newest distribution partner – Grand Technology Inc. of Taiwan, also known as GTI.

Adding local sales and support expertise in Taiwan addresses growing demand there for Real Intent’s advanced verification solutions, and complements Real Intent’s existing sales and support teams in Europe, North America and Asia.

Founded in 1996, Grand Technology Inc. is a leading technology supplier in Taiwan representing numerous high-tech firms. It provides application-specific software and hardware, consulting services, customer specific support, and education and training for the semiconductor industry. With its considerable expertise, GTI focuses on providing the best available tools for developing future chip and micro system technologies.

Hamed Emami, VP of worldwide sales and marketing at Real Intent, said: “GTI strives to bring best-in-class EDA technology to design teams in Taiwan, helping them eliminate complex failure modes of SoCs.  That’s exactly what we deliver – comprehensive CDC verification, advanced RTL analysis and sign-off solutions that lead the market in performance, capacity, accuracy and completeness. We are pleased to partner with GTI, especially given its strong relationships with semiconductor customers there and our shared goal of serving customers to the best of our abilities.”

Grand Technology CEO, Chin-Lung King, added: “We see strong demand from semiconductor companies for powerful, innovative solutions that deliver a clear edge in efficiency and productivity. Real Intent’s Ascent products offer the fastest early functional verification for clean RTL prior to simulation and synthesis. Their Meridian products provide advanced sign-off verification that cannot be achieved with simulation or static timing analysis. By partnering with Real Intent, we foresee growth and opportunity throughout Taiwan.”

RDA Microelectronics achieves volume shipments of GPS LNA for Samsung 3G handsets

CHINA: RDA Microelectronics, a fabless semiconductor company that designs, develops and markets radio frequency (RF) and mixed-signal SoC semiconductors for cellular, connectivity and broadcast applications, has begun volume shipments of its RDALN16 GPS LNA for use in Samsung's 3G handsets deployed in Europe and emerging markets worldwide, such as South America.

Developed on Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) CMOS process technology, RDA's GPS LNA is a high gain, low noise, small size amplifier ideally suited for GPS, Galileo and GLONASS applications in 2G and 3G handsets.

Vincent Tai, chairman and CEO of RDA Microelectronics, said: "We are very pleased to reach volume shipments for Samsung's 3G handsets and further advance our relationship. Through this partnership, we are able to further penetrate the 3G markets in emerging countries, while gaining access to developed markets in Europe.

"This win validates RDA's world-class technical capabilities and competitive strengths in producing high quality, low cost designs. We remain focused on expanding our market share penetration of the 2G and 3G markets through new product introductions and further developing relationships with global Tier-1 customers, such as Samsung."

EDA Consortium outlines CEO forecast and industry vision event

USA: The EDA Consortium (EDAC) announced the panel of distinguished industry executives who will participate in the EDAC Annual CEO Forecast and Industry Vision panel on Thursday, March 14, 2013.

Richard Valera, MD of Equity Research at Needham & Co., will moderate this year’s event. Panelists, who will discuss trends affecting the EDA industry and offer insights on growth for the upcoming year, are:

* Raul Camposano, CEO of Nimbic.
* Aart de Geus, chairman and co-CEO of Synopsys.
* Walden C. Rhines, chairman and CEO of Mentor Graphics.
* Simon Segars, president of ARM.
* Lip-Bu Tan, president and CEO of Cadence Design Systems.

Valera said, “Having been involved with the EDA industry as a financial analyst for almost the last decade – and as an employee of a major EDA company for almost a decade before that – I am quite familiar with our impressive lineup of panelists. I look forward to interacting with them to explore some of the key challenges and opportunities facing the industry.”

“Emerging companies continue to play a vital role in the EDA industry, not only by innovating but also by expanding the footprint of our industry” highlighted Raul Camposano, who will be representing this largest group of EDAC members on this year’s panel. “2012 was a good year for emerging companies, a trend that is likely to continue in the near future.”

Kathryn Kranen, chairman of the EDA Consortium, and president and CEO of Jasper Design Automation added: “The EDAC CEO Forecast event provides our members and guests a unique forum to explore current and future trends fueling our industry’s growth and innovation. I look forward to everyone joining our esteemed speakers and me at this event.”

DSP Group-powered Clarity Alto phone system by Plantronics first to achieve TIA-4953 standard for sound amplification

USA: DSP Group Inc., a leading global provider of wireless chipset solutions for converged communications, announced that its XceedR DECT chipset solution has been selected to power the Alto, a new amplified telephone from Clarity, a division of Plantronics.

The DSP Group-powered telephone is the first to pass the Telephone Industry Association's (TIA) new standard for sound amplification and frequency, TIA-4953.

DSP Group's cutting-edge XceedR SoC DECT cordless chipset family brings extended range, powerful processing capability, and superb audio quality to cordless telephony. Together with its firmware and reference software features, XceedR minimizes R&D costs and reduces time to market, while guaranteeing standards compliancy, HD quality audio, multi-line, multi-party conferencing and mobility support through DECT/CAT-iq handsets and headsets.

The new TIA-4953 standard, published in May 2012, establishes the first official industry benchmarks for telephones designed for individuals with hearing loss. The purpose of TIA-4953 is to provide hearing impaired consumers with objective information to verify how a specific telephone model will help them communicate better.

Toshiba drives Visconti3 image recognition processor to automotive market

USA:  Toshiba America Electronic Components Inc. (TAEC) has expanded its Visconti series of image recognition processors for the automotive market with the launch of Visconti3, part number TMPV7528XBG.

Visconti3 offers the superior image recognition technology that customers have come to expect from the Visconti series, while the integration of an ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore, with two A9 CPUs and single/double-precision floating point unit (FPU), improves connectivity, performance and system integration for automotive applications.

Real-time image recognition requires the performance of several desktop PC-class processors, but that's not practical for today's car applications due to cost, power and area constraints. The Visconti series uses specialized processors and accelerators to put all the processing needed into a single IC that can fit even in a severely constrained location like a rearview mirror.

The Visconti series incorporates up to four image processors and several types of accelerators enabling camera-based systems in cars to more accurately recognize lanes, vehicles, traffic lights, signs and pedestrians in real time, both day and night. The addition of the dual-core Cortex-A9 MPCore lets automotive OEMs leverage today's popular operating systems to more easily connect Visconti3 to other automotive systems like navigation, smartphone, driver assistance, and the cloud.

The A9 CPU core includes an FPU that improves performance of image processing by handling the mathematical computations required to analyze large volumes of image data from the video source, frame-by-frame in real time, in some of the algorithms whose implementation would be technically more difficult for developers to perform without an FPU.

The FPUs also simplify optimization of the imaging algorithms, so software developers can reduce their overall design time and speed time to market.

"This newest addition to the Visconti series not only demonstrates the Toshiba commitment to creating great automotive products enabling safer cars, it also complements the company's camera line giving Toshiba a bigger systems offering for the camera/image recognition market," says Andrew Burt, VP of the Analog and Imaging Business Unit, System LSI Group at TAEC.

"With the introduction of the Visconti3 device, Toshiba has expanded even further the range of choices for automotive manufacturers implementing image recognition systems in their new car designs. Advanced driver assistance systems are a key selling point in today's car market and the Visconti series gives OEMs the ability to better target price/performance points from low-end to high-end and implement cost-effective options for each tier of their product line-ups."

Samples of the Visconti3, TMPV7528XBG, will become available in April 2013. Pricing will be provided to customers upon request.

Spansion and UMC announce joint technology development and licensing agreement

USA & TAIWAN: Spansion Inc., a leading innovator of flash memory solutions, and United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), announced the joint development of a 40nm process that integrates UMC's 40nm LP logic process with Spansion proprietary embedded Charge Trap (eCT) Flash memory technology. As part of this non-exclusive agreement, UMC is licensed to manufacture products based on this technology for Spansion.

Spansion embedded Charge Trap is a new high performance, low power, and cost- effective NOR Flash technology optimized for integration with advanced logic process in system-on-chip (SoC) products. The technology is scalable beyond 40nm and can be integrated into High-k manufacturing process.

Products based on Spansion eCT will drive the development of faster, more intelligent connected technologies in industrial, automotive and consumer applications. Spansion eCT technology is a key enabler for expanding the roadmap for Spansion's Programmable System Solutions (PSS), which combine Flash memory with configurable logic to enhance processing performance for applications that are memory, processing and MIPS intensive.

"Collaborating with UMC furthers Spansion's licensing strategy," said John Kispert, president and CEO of Spansion. "By working with a leading foundry such as UMC, we can more effectively expand our PSS product roadmap and licensing business. In addition, we will enable others to take advantage of our Charge Trap technology, extending into new markets and bringing additional value to our customers."

W.Y. Chen, COO of UMC, said: "We look forward to working with Spansion to offer an industry leading logic platform that integrates our robust 40nm production process with their well established Charge Trap memory technology. The result of the collaboration will deliver a cost-effective, innovative technology solution for customers designing into a wide range of market segments."

Single European semiconductor strategy on way

ITALY: At the International Semiconductor Strategy Symposium (ISS Europe) on February 24-26, the European semiconductor industry affirmed its ability to innovate. More than 170 top industry representatives agreed on a number of joint steps and strategic measures to strengthen their competitiveness and sustainability.

The controversial question whether the best way to attack future challenges will be "More Moore" or "More than Moore," ended in an expected compromise, namely that the industry should pursuit both strategies concurrently, the high-caliber participants of a panel expressed. While the “More than Moore” sector is traditionally strong in Europe, going on with “More Moore” is important for two to three device makers in Europe and in particular for the European equipment suppliers which export 80 percent of their products.

In a global scale, the semiconductor industry is approaching the move to 450mm wafer processing technology — a step that promises to greatly boost the productivity of semiconductor manufacturers.

However, since the investment to build a 450mm fab easily exceeds the 10 billion dollar mark, this move is regarded as risky and, for this reason, reserved to only the very largest enterprises. In the past, this perspective divided the European industry into two camps — the "More Moore" group that advocates taking on the 450mm challenge, and the "More than Moore" group which shunned this risky investment and preferred to rely on application-oriented differentiation instead.

At the event, SEMI Europe, an industry association embracing enterprises that represent the entire value chain and organizer of ISS Europe, set up a high-ranking panel discussion on options and choices of a single European semiconductor strategy. The panel proved that entrepreneurial spirit is well alive among Europe's chipmakers, technology suppliers and researchers.

The time is ripe to close the ranks and take on the challenges, as the speakers in the panel pointed out. Judged on the basis of its expertise and abilities, the European semiconductor and equipment industry has remarkable strengths, the experts said unanimously. "We have to think in European terms," said Luc Van den hove, CEO of the Belgian research center imec. "Talking in a common voice allows the European Commission to act and support this industry."

Jean-Marc Chery, chief manufacturing and technology officer of chipmaker STMicroelectronics, reminded that a holistic approach is necessary. "We have to push the full value chain cooperatively," he said.

The panel participants recognized that the European semiconductor industry possesses the necessary expertise. So far the willingness to jointly face these challenges has been affected adversely by the macroeconomic environment and the Euro crisis, which discouraged far-reaching strategic decisions. The members of the European Commission that recently signalized understanding the needs of the semiconductor industry's vital role for the high-tech location Europe, certainly contributed to the optimism in the industry.

"We have all the knowledge, the materials and the equipment," said Rob Hartman, director of strategic programs for leading equipment manufacturer ASML, during the panel. "Let's do it in the EU."

European Commissioner Neelie Kroes' idea of creating an "Airbus for chips," a European initiative for the semiconductor industry comparable to the initiative that once led to the launch of the Airbus in the aviation industry, was strongly hailed by the panel. "An ‘Airbus for chips’ could be a very powerful tool," Van den hove said. "It does not need to be a single company, it also can be a framework of companies," added Laurent Malier, CEO of French research center CEA-LETI.

The main concern of the industry is the slow decision process of the European institutions due to a complex political approval process inside of the European Union, the participants agreed. This industry is moving fast and so the decisions have to be taken fast, too. The strong Euro and the lack of qualified labor are further regarded as potential stumbling blocks for the technological progress and the business competitiveness.

At the panel, the European Commission signaled its support for the industry as well. “If policy instruments would be combined on EU and national levels, a critical mass of support for R&D for both ‘More than Moore’ and ‘More Moore’ could be achieved,” said Khalil Rouhana, director of Components & Systems at the European Commission.

Contract market momentum continues throughout Feb., DDR3 4GB module prices grow 11 percent

TAIWAN: According to DRAMeXchange, a research division of TrendForce, pricing momentum for the February contract market has been as strong as it was during January. DDR3 1600Mhz 4GB module prices grew by approximately 11 percent, approaching $19.75 on average and reaching up to as high as $20.

Prices for DDR3 2GB modules, similarly, rose by nearly 13 percent MoM and surpassed the $11 threshold. In the spot market, prices showed similar movements to the contract prices:

Given the DRAM manufacturers’ reduced supplies and increased focus on the contract market, the prices for DDR3 1600Mhz 2Gb saw an increase of 8 percent, climbing from $1.26 in January to approximately $1.36 this month. It appears likely that the strong pricing uptrend will persist for both spot and contract market.

Observing from the market perspective, DRAM manufacturers are sticking to the original plan of gradually reducing PC DRAM and allocating capacity towards the more profitable mobile and server DRAMs. Even if PC shipments end up being weaker than it was last year and average content per unit growth shows very little noticeable growth, PC OEMs are still concerned over a potential PC DRAM shortage, and have taken the rare effort to increase inventory during the off-peak season.

These said manufacturers are currently more tolerant towards the contract prices, given their plans to ensure a stable supply for the peak quarters. According to TrendForce, with the firm establishment of the pricing uptrend, there is hope that DDR3 4GB prices will reach $25 during 2H13. Korean DRAM manufacturers are currently on their way to becoming the first to improve PC DRAM’s overall profitability.

Intended P3 transaction from GlobalFoundries officially cancelled following absence of payment
Because of the lack of payment from GlobalFoundries during the February 28 deadline, Powerchip will now pursue a different buyer for the equipments at its P3 Fab. As indicated earlier by DRAMeXchange, when Powerchip purchased P3 from Macronix for $5.3B NTD during 2006, it began to use the 90nm manufacturing process and gradually transformed the plant into a major DRAM production facility.

As time passed, the company went on to buy three immersion scanners, upgraded to the 30nm technology, and expanded its capacity to around 45K. One possible reason GlobalFoundries eventually opted out of the P3 transaction is that most of the plant’s equipment had been intended for PC DRAM production, which is different from the types of product GlobalFoundries has been known to produce.

In the short term, the continued production of PC DRAM may be the most appropriate way to utilize Powerchip’s P3 fab. This option makes sense given the recent revival of PC DRAM prices (evidenced by the more than 60 percent growth observed in the 2Gb prices back in November, which grew from $US 0.86 to $1.4), and the tightening of overall DRAM supply following the persistent lowering of PC DRAM production by global brands.

Following the canceled transaction from GlobalFoundries, there’d also been news that Powerchip is negotiating with first tiered module manufacturers concerning its foundry business. With global manufacturers beginning to decrease overall PC DRAM production, TrendForce’s initial prediction has been that a shortage is likely to occur in the second half of 2013.

Even if Powerchip were to re-start production and ease the market shortage situation, the company’s limited capacity (approximately 45K per month) is unlikely to affect the original prediction that PC DRAM prices will gradually return to a break-even point.

Tokyo District Court officially approves Micron and Elpida’s re-organization plans on 2/28, new Micron Group becomes official

TAIWAN: According to DRAMeXchange, a research division of TrendForce, the Tokyo District Court in Japan has officially approved Micron’s acquisition of Elpida on 2/28, and reorganization procedures are expected to begin starting March.

Although several of Elpida’s creditors had been against the move, the Bank of Japan, which has one of the largest stakes in the company, was able to amass enough votes to gain an eventual approval. Of the 200 Billion Yen payment (or $2.16 billion) that Micron is expected to make for the Elpida acquisition, approximately 60 billion (or $6.5 billion will be paid out first, while the remaining 140 billion (or $1.5 billlion) will be made during 2019, following the completion of the merger between the two companies.

With regards to Elpida’s current debt of 450 Billion Yen ($4.9 billion), under the regulatory procedures approved by the courts, insured creditors are allowed to receive full indemnity as the debt is trimmed in half.

For those who are not properly insured, the compensation received from the convertible debt will be of a lesser amount. Elpida is expected to make a comeback under Micron following the lowering of the total debt and the extensions made to the repayment period. The new Micron group is expected to officially take form during 2013.

In terms of revenue ratio, with Micron’s acquisition of Elpdia, the chances of there being further consolidation within the DRAM industry is increased, and big changes are expected to take place within the industrial and supply chain infrastructures. While Micron and Elpida each took a respective 10.5 percent and 14.1 percent market share during the recent quarter, both are currently still lagging behind SK Hynix, which is second in the industry and has approximately 25 percent of the market.

Following the merger, Micron and Elpida will have a combined share of 24.6 percent, which not only pulls them within distance of SK Hynix, but also enables them to join the likes of Samsung as one of the “big three” within the industry. With regards to the mobile memory market, although Micron’s and Elpida’s market shares are currently around 1.3 percent and 19 percent, respectively, the merger effectively brings their total to 20 percent.

This is still noticeably less than SK Hynix’s 28.3 percent, but makes the new Micron group a major force to be reckoned with. As the DRAM industry moves closer and closer to an oligopoly, there is a chance for the condition of the DRAM industry to improve dramatically.

Newly established Micron Group to utilize different strengths within the organization
Analyzing from the competition perspective, the newly established Micron group will utilize the manufacturing capabilities of Taiwan, US, and Japan, and become a formidable threat to the major Korean DRAM manufacturers. While Micron will be directing the majority of its focus to the production and development of NAND Flash products, for Elpida, most of the emphasis will be placed on DRAM-related development.

With its gradual reduction in DRAM capacity, Micron is expected to begin allocating some of the manufacturing responsibilities to its Taiwanese and Japanese subsidiaries. Elpida’s Hiroshima plant, for example, is expected to concentrate on mobile DRAM, which currently accounts for over 80 percent of the plant’s production. In the future, Micron’s advances in NAND Flash technology will enable more and more MCP products to enter the smartphone market, and allow it to take advantage of the vertical integration within the market.

For Rexchip, other than standard PC DRAM production, there is a chance that the company will begin manufacturing mobile DRAM to gradually improve its profitability. For Inotera, following the increased demand in the cloud market, the amount of PC DRAM produced has been reduced, while the proportion of server DRAM increased back to 50 percent.

Given the relationship between Micron and US-based manufacturers, there’s hope for the server DRAM market to advance to further heights. In the event that Micron successfully utilizes the manufacturing capabilities of its Taiwan, Japan, and US plants, other than achieving steady revenue, wafer productions are predicted to reach close to 360K on a monthly basis, accounting for nearly 35 percent of the world’s DRAM production.

The DRAM market is set to become an oligopoly following the establishment of the new Micron group as a major player within the industry.

Cadence on Union budget 2013

Jaswinder S. Ahuja, corporate VP and MD, Cadence Design Systems

INDIA: We commend Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram for making key decisions about critical areas like infrastructure, agriculture and education that will aid in the overall growth of the economy and benefit the common man.

We are pleased to note that the budget provides incentives to the semiconductor industry in the form of import duty waivers on plants and machineries for companies looking to set up domestic fabrication units.

The provisions of the National Policy on Electronics announced last year and this incentive are the first steps to kickstarting local manufacturing and accelerating the growth of the Indian electronics eco-system.

Silicon Labs targets China’s smart metering market with best-in-class wireless transceiver

IIC China, CHINA: Silicon Labs has introduced a high-performance, ultra-low-power wireless transceiver optimized for China’s rapidly growing smart metering market.

Silicon Labs’ new Si4438 EZRadioPRO IC is designed to maximize wireless range and battery life while reducing bill of materials (BOM) cost by 30 percent for smart meters. Designed for the 425-525 MHz ISM band, the Si4438 transceiver also provides an ideal sub-GHz wireless solution for in-home energy management systems and other smart grid infrastructure applications such as long-range back-haul communications to utilities.

One of the world’s fastest-growing smart metering markets, China is rapidly upgrading its power grid to a “greener” smart grid, and smart meters for residences and businesses are key elements of this grid transformation.

According to a new report by Pike Research, the installed base of smart meters in China will grow from 139 million units in 2012 to 377 million units by 2020. Smart meter market penetration in China will also reach 74 percent by 2020.

Silicon Labs engineered the Si4438 transceiver to meet the performance, energy efficiency, system cost and regulatory requirements of smart meters operating in the 470-510 MHz band in China. Featuring an efficient on-chip power amplifier (PA), the Si4438 IC provides extended range and robust communication links for smart metering by leveraging best-in-class specifications in transmit output power (+20 dBm), sensitivity (-124 dBm), link budget (144 dB) and adjacent channel rejection (58 dB).

Built-in antenna diversity and support for frequency hopping further extends range and enhances wireless performance. Tightly integrated into the Si4438 transceiver, antenna diversity can improve the system link budget by 8-10 dB, resulting in substantial range increases even under adverse environmental conditions.

The Si4438 transceiver is the most energy-efficient sub-GHz wireless solution available for China’s smart metering market. The Si4438 IC’s 50 nA sleep/standby current (with register retention) is 40 times lower than competing transceivers in the China market.
From its 50 nA sleep mode, the Si4438 transceiver can transition to either receive (RX) or transmit (TX) mode in only 450 microseconds. The device’s active mode TX current consumption of 75 mA at +20 dBm and active RX current consumption of 14 mA, coupled with its ultra-low standby current and fast wake times, maximize battery life for power-sensitive wireless applications, resulting in fewer battery replacements and/or reduced battery size with the same lifetime cost savings.

Because of the Si4438 transceiver’s high performance and integration, there is no need to add external PAs, low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) or surface acoustic wave (SAW) filters for most wireless applications, thereby reducing BOM cost. The on-chip PA can be used to compensate for the reduced performance of low-cost antennas while competing solutions require larger, costlier external PAs to achieve comparable performance.

An integrated temperature sensor, power-on-reset and GPIOs further reduce system cost and board size. The Si4438 IC is designed to work with a low-cost MCU, a crystal and a few passive components to create a cost-effective wireless system. Its 4 mm x 4 mm package is also the smallest in its class, minimizing board real estate.

The Si4438 IC is pin compatible with Silicon Labs’ Si446x EZRadioPRO transceivers, which can be used in worldwide sub-GHz ISM frequency bands for smart meter/smart grid products designed for global deployment.

The EZRadioPRO family includes a complete line of transmitters, receivers and transceivers covering a wide range of wireless applications. In addition, Silicon Labs offers Ember ZigBee wireless networking solutions for smart energy and connected home applications in the 2.4 GHz band, as well as 32-bit Precision32 MCUs, mixed-signal 8-bit MCUs, wireless MCUs, and digital isolators for smart metering applications.

Mentor Graphics reports fiscal Q4 results

USA: Mentor Graphics Corp. announced financial results for the company’s fiscal fourth quarter and year ended January 31, 2013. The company reported revenues of $331.2 million, non-GAAP earnings per share of $.58, and GAAP earnings per share of $.49.

For the full fiscal year, revenues were $1,088.7 million, non-GAAP earnings per share were a record $1.42, and GAAP earnings per share were $1.17.

“The fourth quarter was our sixteenth quarter in a row of exceeding non-GAAP earnings guidance. It capped a year in which Mentor Graphics achieved all-time records in revenue, operating margin and non-GAAP earnings per share,” said Walden C. Rhines, chairman and CEO of Mentor Graphics. “Like our peers in EDA, we continue to benefit from semiconductor retooling requirements driven by advanced design activity. Also like some others in our industry, our business benefits from the growth of the market for system-level design, which is outpacing the market for chip design software.”

In fiscal year 2013, revenue grew 7.3 percent while non-GAAP and GAAP earnings per share grew 26 percent and 58 percent, respectively. Non-GAAP and GAAP operating margins for the year were all-time records at 19.3 percent and 14.8 percent, respectively. For the full fiscal year, non-GAAP operating expense was up 2 percent and up 1.2 percent on a GAAP basis.

“The company delivered record operating results in fiscal 2013, primarily as a result of continued expense control,” said Gregory K. Hinckley, president of Mentor Graphics. “We solidly exceeded our non-GAAP operating margin target in fiscal 2013 and on a GAAP basis our margins are among the best in technical software. In recent years we have successfully balanced our investment in product and market development and the sales channel while delivering continuous improvement in operating results.”

During the fourth quarter the company announced two products related to printed circuit board design: the next-generation PADS flow, with enhancements to interactive routing, improved usability and Chinese language support; and the newest release of the market-leading HyperLynx product for high-speed design and analysis.

Another announcement this quarter was the Tessent IJTAG solution, which allows designers to reuse existing test, monitoring and debugging logic embedded in IP blocks. With the new T3Ster DynTIM Tester technology, the company launched a new method of measuring thermal characteristics of interface materials. Mentor also introduced a hardware emulation solution for testing ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore processor-based System-on-Chip (SoC) designs using Veloce emulators.

During the quarter the company also announced that Tesla Motors, a leader in the production of electric automobiles, has standardized on the Capital toolset for its electrical systems design. India-based Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., a leading global tractor manufacturer, also standardized on the Capital products for design, engineering and analysis in their tractor and automotive divisions.