Fujitsu Introduces New Graphics Display Controller for Vehicle Navigation Systems

New MB86276 Delivers Cost-Effective GDC for 2D Systems in Mid-Range Vehicles

Shanghai, April 24, 2006 — Fujitsu Microelectronics (Shanghai), Co., Ltd. (FMC) today extended its global leadership in graphics display controllers (GDCs) for automotive applications, introducing a new, cost-efficient version for the mid-range vehicle market.

The Fujitsu MB86276 is a streamlined version of the innovative three-dimensional (3D) graphics display controller, the Fujitsu MB86296, which has been designed into high-end vehicles in Japan and Europe. The new two-dimensional (2D) GDC MB86276 is ideally suited for the mid-range navigation and entertainment market that is now emerging in North America and expected to be a future trend in Asia market. The MB86276 2D GDC includes many of the special features offered in the high-end 3D device, including dual display support, video capture, multiple alpha-blending options, and a 16-bit Z buffer that enables low-level 3D operations.

"Fujitsu is the leader in 3D graphics display technology for vehicle navigation systems worldwide, with more than 30 percent of the global market. With the new MB86276 2D GDC, we are expanding our controller line to meet the specific price and performance benchmarks of North American vehicle manufacturers," said Andy Chang, Deputy General Manager, Marketing, Fujitsu Microelectronics Shanghai. "We believe this cost-efficient, high performance GDC will be enable our customer to design excellent navigation products appropriate for the mid-range cars in Asia."

The MB86276 2D GDC incorporates the display controller, rendering engine and video-input unit developed originally for the Fujitsu MB96296 3D version, along with built-in alpha-blending, anti-aliasing and chroma-keying capabilities, and an up/down video scalar. An optimized central processor allows more direct CPU connections, so the new 2D GDC can be linked to a wide range of processors and controllers from various manufacturers. All available operating system drivers developed for the Fujitsu 3D GDC family can be used with the 2D GDC with only minimal modification.

The MB86276's internal and memory frequency is 133MHz; the base clock for display operates at 400.9MHz. Display resolutions range from 320 x 240 to 1280 x 768. Six layers of overlay windows, all of which have a color depth of 8, 16, or 24 bits/pixel, can be used simultaneously, and can be changed in size, position, and priority. The maximum logical layer size is 4096 x 4096 pixels. Specific layers can be blended easily using the alpha map, which can be freely assigned to any of the six layers and which allows the assignment of 8 bits per pixel. Each pixel can be mixed to provide excellent control of transparency levels.

Internal and external DMA is supported, along with an external 32-bit SDRAM interface for up to 64MB of graphics memory. An I2C interface also is included, as are GPIO inputs and outputs.

Dual Display Output Enables Multiple Applications

The MB86276 provides all of the 2D capabilities of the MB96296 3D GDC, including texture mapping, alpha blending, Gouraud shading, flat shading and the innovative dual-display output. Using the dual-display mode, the GDC can individually drive two connected displays with identical resolution.

Note to editors:

Click here to download the Fujitsu MB86276 product fact sheet:
http://www.fujitsu.com/downloads/MICRO/fma/pdf/MB86276.pdf
Click here do download a block diagram of the Fujitsu MB86276:
http://www.fujitsu.com/downloads/MICRO/fma/imagelib/gdc/medres/gdcblockdiagram.jpg
Click here to download a medium-resolution picture relevant to this press release:
http://www.fujitsu.com/downloads/MICRO/fma/imagelib/gdc/medres/Lime4_medres.zip
Click here to download a high-resolution picture relevant to this press release:
http://www.fujitsu.com/downloads/MICRO/fma/imagelib/gdc/highres/Lime4_hires.zip

About Fujitsu Microelectronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd

Fujitsu Microelectronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. was established in October 2003 as Fujitsu's semiconductor business representative in China. Headquartered in Shanghai, it has branch offices in Beijing and Shenzhen to provide sales and service support to customers throughout China.
Fujitsu Microelectronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. offers an extensive range of products from microcontroller, application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), application-specific standard product (ASSP), system-on-chip (SoC) to system memory, that can be supplied as product or complete solution. With technology resource centres and ASIC design support centres strategically located in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Singapore, as well as Heavy investments in design and engineering capabilities and application support resources, complemented by a regional network of design partners, suppliers and distributors, Fujitsu Microelectronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. can readily delivers innovative and value-added solutions and varied range of products to its target markets in China.
For more information, please see: http://cn.fujitsu.com/fmc/en