1997-09-16 , E/IC-720/540

Philips Semiconductors has developed the world's first two-chip solution for GPS (Global Positioning System). Unlike other GPS chipsets, these are being sold complete with all the necessary GPS software to form a total solution, making it very easy for manufacturers to create GPS-based products without having to invest resources to develop GPS design skills. The highly integrated chips require very few external components to create a fully working system and so, at $30 a pair in volume, they will enable a new generation of smaller, lighter, less expensive GPS products to be created.

"Philips Semiconductors' skills at RF design and integration have enabled us to set a new standard for GPS chip design," said Bob Marshall, Philips Semiconductors' International GPS Product Marketing Manager. 'We are not far short of the stage where you could build a GPS system into a wristwatch."

The SA1570 and the SAA1575 form the new GPS chipset, which is designed to operate at only three volts enabling two-cell solutions to be created. The SA1570 front end is a standard double conversion, spread spectrum, radio receiver circuit, which has been designed to work with low-cost filters and crystals, and provides the communications component of the solution. The SAA1575 baseband processor uses Philips Semiconductors' advanced 16-bit XA microcontroller core and processes the GPS data to provide velocity, position and time outputs. The information in and out of the chipset is via the on-board serial UART on the baseband chip, making it easy to connect to other devices to create integrated multi-functional systems.

The GPS software for the chipset is stored in an external ROM and has been created by Ashtech, Inc., one of the world's leading providers of GPS software. This processes the information from up to eight GPS satellites at a time as they orbit the earth to compute the exact location of the user to within five metres.

Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd. (MEW) of Osaka, Japan, will be the first volume customer for the chips and will be using them to create GPS boards as sub-assemblies for major OEMs in Japan.

Complete system evaluation boards and sample host system interface programs for the SAA1575 and the SA1570 are available from Philips Semiconductors immediately.

About Ashtech, Inc.
Ashtech, Inc., a telecommunications company, is the leading provider of precision solutions for global positioning and is ISO 9001 certified. Incorporated in 1987, Ashtech manufactures and markets GPS receiver systems, GPS+GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receivers and related subsystems which utilise NAVSTAR and GLONASS satellites to determine position and time information for users worldwide. Revenues for 1995 were $35.5 million and for 1996 were $47.4 million. Ashtech is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, USA, with domestic sales offices in Belgrade, Montana and Reston, Virginia. Ashtech maintains sales offices in Europe and Asia, as well as research and development facilities in Moscow, Russia. More than 60 international and domestic dealers represent Ashtech products worldwide. Ashtech's main number is +1 408 524 1400.

About Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd.
Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd. (MEW) is a manufacturer of some 220,000 products which help create comfortable everyday living and work environments. MEW traces its roots back to 1918 when Konosuke Matsushita, founder of the Matsushita group, began his enterprise to manufacture wiring devices. MEW is actively involved in the six business fields of lighting products, information equipment and wiring products, home appliances, housing and building equipment, electronic materials and devices, and automation control products. MEW products are marketed under the Panasonic, NAIS and National brand names. The sales network consists of 178 sales offices and 2,584 agents in Japan and 30 overseas facilities. MEW sales for fiscal 1996 totalled 1,192 billion yen ($10.4 billion). MEW's main telephone number is +81-6-908-1131.

Philips Semiconductors, a division of Philips Electronics NV, headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, is the ninth largest semiconductor supplier in the world and the third largest supplier of discretes in the world. Philips Semiconductors' innovations in digital audio, video, and mobile technology position the company as a leader in the consumer, multimedia and wireless communications markets. Sales offices are located in all major markets around the world and are supported by systems labs.