Simplified SoC designs for WiMAX

Feb 12, 2008 1:25 PM

Sonics Inc. has announced SonicsWM, a family of integrated SMART Interconnect solutions ideally suited for SoC designs that incorporate WiMax. SonicsWM enables customers to leverage a configurable platform to meet the rapidly changing requirements of the WiMax market while reducing SoC development costs and improving time to market. Resulting SoCs offer numerous advantages including higher performance, lower power, IP re-use and simplified software architecture.

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This unified interconnect platform targeted at WiMax applications provides SoC developers the ability to guarantee data flow behavior for critical components like the MAC, PHY and memory. Sonics’ multithreaded, non-blocking architecture delivers predictable low-latency data flow that improves overall system performance. Advanced data flow services, including quality of service (QoS), enables software developers to easily manage complex real-time data burst traffic. The company says that this is especially true when SoCs combine WiMax with other technologies such as WLAN or cellular.

Sonics will offer three products as part of the SonicsWM family: SonicsWMsp, a streamlined SMART Interconnect solution designed for support of low-cost single-function applications such as a WiMax handset; SonicsWMmp, which enables seamless plug-and-play integration of multiple IP cores such as Wi-Fi and WiMax MACs; and SonicsWMturbo, which supports full integration of multiple-protocol MACs along with the application processor. The SonicsWMturbo solution allows maximum configurability and supports applications requiring the highest performance like video over WiMax.

Managing the data flow also has the benefit of overall system power reduction. Optimizing processor and memory access efficiency allows the processors to spend less time waiting for data, allowing more time in a low-power state. In addition, SonicsWM is power-efficient, consuming only mirowatts when in an idle state.