Altera Corp. and core vendor MorethanIP have released a 10-Gbit Ethernet media-access controller (MAC) solution for Altera's programmable-logic devices. In addition, Altera has made 65 of its cores available via the Virtual Component Exchange (Livingston, Scotland) and is in the process of working out a way to speed the licensing process of Altera intellectual property for VCX customers.
MorethanIP, a member of the Altera Megafunction Partner Program, will provide high-speed communication cores that enhance Altera's Apex II and Stratix devices, suiting them for applications such as core, backbone or work group switches, and for test equipment.
The companies said MorethanIP's 10-Gbit Ethernet MAC core implements the reconciliation sublayer, the MAC layer and user-programmable FIFOs for clock and data decoupling. It also implements advanced system-level features such as automatic pause frame generation (per IEEE 802.3 x31) with user-programmable pause quanta and pause-frame termination, said the companies.
The core supports a programmable 48-Bit MAC address with a "promiscuous-mode option." Its programmable Ethernet frame length supports IEEE 802.1Q virtual-LAN-tagged frames or jumbo Ethernet frames. In addition, the core supports broadcast traffic and multicast address resolution with a 64-entry hash table.
The companies claim the core implements the 10-Gbit Media Independent Interface, which allows it to link to Xaui devices such as Xenpack modules, via a 10-Gbit commercial serializer/deserializer. Customers can obtain the core from MorethanIP, starting at $30,000 for a single-use encrypted Apex II device netlist. Visit www.altera.com/products/devices/apex2/ap2-index.html.
Separately, Altera said it's making its portfolio of 65 intellectual-property cores licensable through the Virtual Component Exchange Trade Floor. In so doing, Altera becomes the first PLD vendor to offer its IP through the exchange.
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The VCX and Altera are creating a simplified license that will make it easier for VCX customers to use the cores targeting Altera devices. For more information visit www.altera.com and www.thevcx.com.
Tensilica Inc. has scored design wins for its configurable processor cores with two Israel-based companies: IC4IC Inc., which is developing VLSI chips for 3G wireless infrastructure markets, has licensed Tensilica' s Xtensa configurable MPU, and Optix Networks will use the Xtensa cores in VLSI chip sets targeting broadband optical backbone, interoffice and metro-area comms applications.
IC4IC will embed the technology into SoC ICs in its X-cess product line, which supports migration of wireless access networks from voice to wireless data (Internet Protocol).
In the second deal, Optix Networks, a privately held, Israel-U.S. company specializing in the design, development and marketing of VLSI solutions for the broadband optical backbone market, will also use Xtensa cores in upcoming products. Optix Networks says its products support the evolving worldwide markets in both wavelength-division multiplexing transport and optical switching.
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