OmniVision and Xilinx Develop Automotive Reference Design for 360-degree Surround View Applications

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- OmniVision Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: OVTI), a leading developer of advanced digital imaging solutions, today announced that its OV9715 automotive-grade megapixel sensor has been selected by Xilinx, Inc. for its four camera, 360-degree surround view automotive reference design. The Xilinx reference design highlights the advantages of megapixel resolution sensors over VGA-based systems for extreme wide-angle field of view applications, such as greatly improved image distortion correction and stitching. Designed to meet the stringent requirements of the automotive and sensing applications markets, the OV9715 also improves on obstacle and pedestrian detection by capturing more detailed scene information.

"We selected an OmniVision product for this reference design because of the company's strong expertise, product support and track record in the automotive market," said Nick DiFiore, director of automotive systems architecture and platforms at Xilinx. "We are very pleased with the end result of this 360-degree surround view platform, and look forward to a continued partnership with OmniVision to keep innovating in the automotive industry."

"360-degree view systems, obstacle detection and many other advanced driver assistance applications requiring megapixel resolution sensors are gaining widespread acceptance in the automotive market," said Jeff Morin, senior technical product manager for North American automotive products at OmniVision. "This trend is reflected in projections from market research firm Techno Systems Research Co., Ltd., which indicate that megapixel sensors for the automotive market are expected to jump from 1.3 percent market share in 2010 to nearly 35 percent market share by 2014."

The OV9715 uses a 3-micron OmniPixel3-HS™ pixel to achieve best-in-class low light sensitivity of 3300 mV/lux-sec. This allows the OV9715 to operate in virtually any lighting condition, making it popular for use in automotive vision and sensing systems. The OV9715 comes in a lead-free 48-pin QFP package and, with an operating temperature range of -40 degrees C to +85 degrees C, is built to meet the stringent specifications of the Automotive Electronics Council (AEC). The OV9715 is AEC-Q100 qualified and has completed the production parts approval process.

The OV9715 is a 1/4-inch sensor providing full-frame, sub-sampled or windowed 8-bit/10-bit images in RGB RAW format via the digital video port. The sensor offers complete user control over image quality, formatting and output data transfer. The OV9715 incorporates image processing functions, including exposure control, gain control, white balance, lens correction and defective pixel correction. These functions are also programmable through the serial camera control bus interface.

The Xilinx 360-degree surround view camera will be available for demonstrations at SAE Convergence, October 19 and 20, 2010 in Detroit, Michigan. Please visit the Xilinx booth #917 to see the design or visit www.ovt.com/automotive for further information about OmniVision's automotive imaging solutions.

About OmniVision

OmniVision Technologies (NASDAQ: OVTI) is a leading developer of advanced digital imaging solutions. Its award-winning CMOS imaging technology enables superior image quality in many of today's consumer and commercial applications, including mobile phones, notebooks and webcams, digital still and video cameras, security and surveillance, entertainment devices, automotive and medical imaging systems. Find out more at http://www.ovt.com.

Safe-Harbor Language

Certain statements in this press release, including statements regarding the expected benefits, performance, capabilities, potential market appeal, and anticipated timing of mass production of the OV9715, are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties, which could cause the forward-looking statements and OmniVision's results to differ materially, include, without limitation: potential errors, design flaws or other problems with OV9715, customer acceptance, demand, and other risks detailed from time to time in OmniVision's Securities and Exchange Commission filings and reports, including, but not limited to, OmniVision's annual report filed on Form 10-K and quarterly reports filed on Form 10-Q. OmniVision expressly disclaims any obligation to update information contained in any forward-looking statement.

OmniVision® and the OmniVision logo are registered trademarks of OmniVision Technologies, Inc. OmniPixel3-HS™ is a trademark of OmniVision Technologies, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE OmniVision Technologies, Inc.