According to a recent announcement, Imagination Technologies (News - Alert) and TSMC are set to collaborate on a series of advanced IP subsystems for the IoT, designed to accelerate time to market and simplify the design process for mutual customers. These platforms bring together the Imagination's IP and TSMC’s advanced process technologies from 55nm down to 10nm.
The new partners determined that audio and vision sensors will likely be a key component of future customers’ needs in a wide range of IoT applications, including smart surveillance, retail analytics and autonomous vehicles.
“We have been working with TSMC for more than two years on advanced IP subsystems for IoT and other connected products. Many of our licensees rely on TSMC to provide them with leading-edge, low-power, high-performance silicon foundry capabilities,” said Tony King-Smith (News - Alert), EVP marketing, Imagination. “Through our ongoing collaboration with TSMC, we are focused on creating meaningful solutions that will help our mutual customers quickly create differentiated, secure and highly integrated products.”
The IoT IP subsystems in development include small integrated connected solutions for simple sensors that will combine an entry-level M-class MIPS CPU with an ultra-low power Ensigma Whisper RPU for low-power wifi, Bluetooth Smart and 6LowPan, and OmniShield multi-domain hardware enforced security, and on-chip RAM (News - Alert) and flash. The advanced RF and embedded flash capabilities from TSMC enable Imagination to push the boundaries of IoT integration.
“In order to simplify our customers' designs and shorten their time-to-market, TSMC and our ecosystem partners are transitioning from chip-design enablers to subsystem enablers,” said Suk Lee, senior director, Design Infrastructure Marketing Division, TSMC. “We are working closely with Imagination, an established IP leader, as part of our new IoT Subsystem Enablement initiative to help companies get their IoT and connected products to market more quickly and easily.”