ROHM / OKI Semiconductor Co-Develop a Dedicated Chipset for Intel® Atom™ Processor E6xx Series

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- ROHM Semiconductor, in collaboration with its affiliated company, OKI Semiconductor Co., Ltd., today announced the launch of a dedicated Large Scale Integrated (LSI) circuit family designed to support the Intel® Atom™ processor E6xx series (formerly code-named Tunnel Creek). This chipset consists of a power management IC (PMIC), a clock generator IC (CGIC) and an input/output hub (IOH) IC. A reference board that simplifies customer development is also available.

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Mr. Toshiki Takano, a director of ROHM Co., Ltd. and head of LSI development headquarters says, "This complete chipset marks the first major achievement combining ROHM's analog/linear technologies with OKI Semiconductor's low-power logic expertise. We plan on continuing to fill our lineup of chipset solutions for the Intel® Atom™ processors while strengthening our support for a wide variety of applications, from consumer devices such as digital AV to industrial equipment."

"The Intel® Atom™ processor E6xx series are fully integrated System-on-a-Chip (SoC) products designed specifically for embedded applications and are unprecedented in that they utilize the open standard PCI Express as the processor-to-chipset interface. This unique feature provides our customers with the I/O flexibility needed for a broad range of embedded applications, including solutions such as in-vehicle infotainment systems and media phones," says Mr. Ton Steenman, vice president of the Intel Architecture Group and general manager of the Low Power Embedded Products Division for Intel Corporation. "By providing dedicated PMIC and clock generator chips as well as application-specific input/output hubs (through OKI Semiconductor) to support Intel® Atom™ E6xx designs, ROHM Group products will help reduce design complexity and cost for embedded customers."

ROHM's PMIC supplies all of the voltage rails required not only for the Intel® Atom™ processor E6xx series and the Intel® Platform Controller Hub EG20T, but also for the DDR2 memory and BIOS-storage SPI Flash connected to the Intel® chip. Furthermore, it controls start-up and power-down sequencing that eliminates the need for an external microcontroller or a CPLD required in most conventional x86 processor designs.

ROHM's CGIC is ideal for Intel® Atom™ processor E6xx series-based designs since it alone provides all of the clocks needed by the Intel® chip and the controller hub, as well as by commonly employed external devices such as SATA, USB, etc.

OKI Semiconductor has developed two kinds of application-specific input/output hubs, the ML7223(V) and ML7213. The former is intended for telecom terminal applications such as web-enabled media phones. It integrates a rich collection of industry-standard I/O such as USBs, SATA, SD-Host, UART as well as application-specific functions including an IPsec hardware accelerator and echo and noise cancellers for hands-free operation. The latter, ML7213, was developed primarily for in-vehicle infotainment applications. The built-in MediaLB®, SDVO converter and video input interface, along with the above-mentioned industry-standard I/O, reduce valuable board space while contributing to reduced bill of materials.

The complete LSI chipset, along with the key features of each, includes:

Power Management IC (PMIC)—ROHM BD9591MWV or BD9594MWV

• 20-channel system power supply (1-channel DC/DC controller + 4-channel DC/DC regulator + 8-channel LDO + 6-channel load switch + 1-channel VTT for DDR)
• Exclusive H3Reg™ technology ensures fast transient response
• Specialized power supply ON/OFF sequence controller eliminates the need for conventional complex power supply sequence designs utilizing microcontrollers and PLDs, resulting in improved performance and greater space savings

Clock Generator IC (CGIC)—ROHM BU7335MWV

• Patented PLL technology ensures high-frequency accuracy
• Spread Spectrum (SS) technology utilized as an EMI countermeasure
• All required clocks are built in, including CPU, PCIe, SATA and USB
• Sequence control possible via ROHM BD9591MWV or BD9594MWV

Input/Output Hub (IOH) for IP media phones—OKI Semiconductor ML7223 or ML7223(V)

• Compatible with SATA and USB
• Gigabit EtherMAC and IPsec hardware accelerator
• Echo/noise cancellation function
• High-speed bus supports cascade connections of external FPGAs
• Common design facilitates application development

Input/Output Hub (IOH) for in-vehicle infotainment devices—OKI Semiconductor ML7213

• Compatible with video input, SDVO, USB and SATA
• MediaLB® interface included for support with MOST networks

*Intel® and Atom™ are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation in the United States and other countries.

About ROHM Semiconductor

ROHM Semiconductor is an industry leader in system LSI, discrete components and module products, utilizing the latest in semiconductor technology. ROHM's proprietary production system, which includes some of the most advanced automation technology, is a major factor in keeping it at the forefront of the electronic component manufacturing industry. In addition to its development of electronic components, ROHM has also developed its own production system so that it can focus on specific aspects of customized product development. ROHM employs highly skilled engineers with expertise in all aspects of design, development and production. This allows ROHM the flexibility to take on a wide range of applications and projects and the capability to serve valuable clients in the automotive, telecommunication and computer sectors as well as consumer OEMs.

About OKI Semiconductor Co., Ltd.

OKI Semiconductor was acquired by ROHM Co., Ltd. in 2008, bringing more than thirty years of design and manufacturing experience in advanced semiconductor technology. OKI Semiconductor products include Communication ICs, Low Power Microcontrollers, Speech LSIs, Audio and Video ICs, Security Authentication LSIs, Video Memory, MEMS/Sensors, and P2ROM™.

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SOURCE ROHM Semiconductor