Accelchip and Elixent form alliance to provide direct implementation path from Matlab to reconfigurable algorithm processing IP

Schaumburg, IL, USA, August 21,2002: AccelChip,Inc and Elixent Limited today announced a technology alliance to provide a direct path from MATLAB®, the technical design language used by the majority of DSP designers, to D-Fabrix, Elixent’s reconfigurable algorithm processor (RAP) architecture. The two companies are developing a version of AccelChip’s behavioural synthesis tool, AccelFPGA, to produce optimised implementations of DSP algorithms targeting Elixent ’s D-Fabrix embedded RAP array. By implementing AccelFPGA in the D-Fabrix tool chain, Elixent can help reduce its customers’design cycles by several man-months through the automatic generation of RTL models and simulation testbenches. This technique also eliminates many risks associated with ambiguous written specifications that can cause unforeseen design iterations late in the design process

“The performance requirements of today’s communication technologies are driving DSP designers to seek hardware accelerated solutions to replace their traditional DSP processors that can no longer provide the throughput required,” commented Dan Ganousis, President and CEO of AccelChip. “Elixent ’s D-Fabrix architecture is an ideal solution to this performance gap and we feel Elixent is well poised to be very successful in the communications, consumer, transportation and defense industries ”

Elixent has purchased AccelFPGA for internal use in the design and development of D-Fabrix Intellectual Property (IP) and DSP core cells, and has licensed a custom version of it to be included in the tool chain provided to its customers. The tool enables a true top-down DSP design process by providing a direct link from MATLAB models and Simulink system-level designs to standard RTL design flows based on the Verilog and VHDL design languages. This efficient design path allows Elixent ’s customers to do all their DSP algorithm development in the MATLAB language and then quickly realise the hardware implementation in the company’s D-Fabrix architecture This tight link of the MATLAB and D-Fabrix design flows will allow customers to reduce time-to-market, optimise performance and cost,and eliminate design iterations late in the product development cycle

“By including AccelChip ’s behavioural synthesis tool in the D-Fabrix tool chain, we can address our customer ’s requirement to support their existing design environment,” said Kenn Lamb,Elixent’s CEO. “MATLAB is the dominant design language for DSP algorithm development and with AccelFPGA we can now provide seamless integration with our RTL-based tool chain.”

Elixent ’s patented RAP technology allows developers to exploit parallelism to achieve high-performance by utilizing the reconfigurable hardware architecture of the D-Fabrix RAP array. In traditional DSP processors, the architecture is fixed and developers have to fit their algorithms to the architecture, thus sacrificing performance and functionality. With D-Fabrix IP, developers can fit the architecture to their algorithms to deliver the required performance at the most cost effective price and shortest time-to-market.

About Elixent

Elixent is a leader in reconfigurable semiconductor IP. The company's patented reconfigurable signal processing (RSP) technology will provide solutions for companies producing electronic products for imaging and communications applications in consumer and industrial markets. Visit www.elixent.com for more information.

About AccelChip,Inc.

AccelChip develops and markets high-level synthesis tools that accelerate the process of chip design. Founded in 2001, the company is headquartered at 999 Plaza Drive,Suite 340,Schaumburg,IL. For more information visit www.accelchip.com .