PARIS, November 7 /PRNewswire/ --
Atmel(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML) and Melexis Microelectronic Integrated Systems N.V. (Euronext Brussels: MELE) announced today their collaboration to propose innovative solutions for 13.56 MHz RFID readers and Near Field Communication (NFC) devices. They will target applications such as passport and ID verification, contactless payment, transaction and peer-to-peer information exchange.
Atmel and Melexis are demonstrating at Cartes in Paris (Atmel booth 4J013 Hall 4), a passport reader and a NFC application based on a two-chip solution. The demos feature the powerful Atmel AT90USB AVR(R) microcontroller and the Melexis MLX90131 RFID/NFC transceiver.
The Atmel AT90USB is an AVR RISC microcontroller featuring 16 MIPS at 16 MHz, full-speed USB, 64 KB of Flash and low power consumption. Thanks to its CPU power and its large on-board Flash memory, it is well suited for contactless applications.
The new MLX90131 is the next generation of Melexis' popular MLX90121 13.56 MHz RFID transceiver IC. Both handle ASK, FSK and PSK sub carrier demodulation. Their analog front-end circuitry may be used independently when in direct mode. The MLX90121 conforms to ISO/IEC14443A/B and SO/IEC15693 standards and provides support for non-ISO/IEC-compliant applications. The MLX90131 will add high data rates (848 kBaud) and ISO/IEC 18092 (NFC) compliance.
"The choice of Atmel as a partner was natural," said Gilles Cerede, product marketing manager at Melexis. Since the beginning of its RFID reader IC activity, Melexis has been using Atmel AVR microcontrollers in its demos and development kits. "We chose the AVR microcontroller for its high performance, combined with the low power consumption. This is the ideal candidate for designing a RFID reader device. Customers will gain benefits from Atmel and Melexis' expertise in microcontrollers and RFID."
"This partnership with Melexis will allow us to propose advanced contactless solutions to our customers for the fast growing RFID reader and NFC market. It will offer customers an attractive alternative to current market solutions," stated Arnaud Ruchon, product marketing manager for Atmel. "Thanks to their long RF experience and their proven design capability on contactless reader interfaces, Melexis is a reliable partner and is one of the most advanced companies in this area."
Availability
The AT90USB64 is available in volume production while the MLX90131 is currently in final design validation phase. A demonstration kit and a development platform based on the two devices will be available in the second quarter of 2007.
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, Atmel ICs can be found Everywhere You Are(R).
NOTE: Atmel(R), logo and combinations thereof, Everywhere You Are(R), AVR(R) and others, are the registered trademarks or trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other terms and product names may be trademarks of others.
About Melexis
Melexis Microelectronic Integrated Systems N.V. (Euronext Brussels: MELE) is a mixed signal semiconductor manufacturer. Our core experience supplying ICs for automotive electronics sustains the expansion into Application Specific Standard Products for industrial and consumer product applications. Melexis' enthusiastically pursues its role as a component supplier whose innovations, while physically small, are the essential element in nearly every one of our customers' extraordinary systems. At Melexis we believe that "Small things make a big difference." Melexis' products include sensor, communication, actuator ICs and Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs).
About NFC
Near Field Communication (NFC) is a new, short-range wireless connectivity technology that evolved from a combination of existing contactless identification and interconnection technologies. Products with built-in NFC will dramatically simplify the way consumer devices interact with one another, helping people speed connections, receive and share information and even make fast and secure payments. Operating at 13.56 MHz and transferring data at up to 424 Kbits/second, NFC provides intuitive, simple, and safe communication between electronic devices. NFC is both a "read" and "write" technology. NFC can be used with a variety of devices, from mobile phones that enable payment or transfer information to digital cameras that send their photos to a TV set with just a touch. The possibilities are endless, and NFC is sure to take the complexities out of today's increasingly sophisticated consumer devices and make them simpler to use. ABI Research(R) estimate that in 2011, nearly 30% of the 1.5 billion handsets shipped worldwide will be NFC-enabled.
Information:
Atmel AVR USB products: http://www.atmel.com/products/avr/usb/
Melexis products: http://www.melexis.com
Information on NFC forum: http://www.nfc-forum.org
Atmel Press Contacts:
Philippe Faure, Marketing Communications Director - Microcontrollers
Phone: +33-2-40-18-18-87
Email: philippe.faure@nto.atmel.com
Veronique Sablereau, Corporate Communications Manager - Europe
Phone: +33-1-30-60-70-68, Fax: +49-71-31-67-24-23
Email: veronique.sablereau@atmel.com
Helen Perlegos, Public Relations - USA and Asia Pacific Rim
Phone: +1-408-487-2963
Email: hperlegos@atmel.com
Melexis Press Contacts:
Peter Riendeau, Marketing Communications - USA
Phone: +1-603-223-2362
Email: pre@melexis.com
Tanguy Scorpati, Marketing Communications - Europe and Asia
Phone: +32-13-67-07-95
Email: tas@melexis.com
Web site: http://www.atmel.com
Philippe Faure, Marketing Communications Director - Microcontrollers, +33-2-40-18-18-87, or philippe.faure@nto.atmel.com, or Veronique Sablereau, Corporate Communications Manager - Europe, +33-1-30-60-70-68, or fax, +49-71-31-67-24-23, or veronique.sablereau@atmel.com, or Helen Perlegos, Public Relations - USA and Asia Pacific Rim, +1-408-487-2963, or hperlegos@atmel.com, all of Atmel; or Peter Riendeau, Marketing Communications - USA, +1-603-223-2362, or pre@melexis.com, or Tanguy Scorpati, Marketing Communications - Europe and Asia, +32-13-67-07-95, or tas@melexis.com, both of Melexis Microelectronic Integrated Systems N.V.
