Atmel and u-blox Introduce Single-chip GPS Receiver

Atmel® Corp., a global leader in the development and fabrication of advanced semiconductor solutions, and u-blox AG, a provider of innovative GPS receiver technology, announced today the availability of their latest weak-signal tracking GPS technology in an ultra-small form factor. The new single-chip ATR0635 measures just 7 x 10 mm and integrates a complete ANTARIS 4 GPS receiver including ROM-based SuperSense™ software in a 96-pin BGA package. The small size plus the extremely low power consumption (62 mW in continuous power mode) make the ROM-based ATR0635 an excellent fit for handheld and mobile applications such as mobile phones, PDAs, smartphones, after-market navigational products and recreational consumer products. Other products such as GPS 'plug-in' accessories for PCs, small GPS mice, Bluetooth® GPS devices and other accessories equipped with GPS functionality will also enjoy the single chip’s advantages in terms of small size, reduced power needs and built-in features such as the ANTARIS™ 4 USB port. Its high tracking sensitivity of -158 dBm allows for weak-signal tracking in urban canyons and even indoors.

The 96-pin, ball-grid-array single chip has an excellent cost-performance ratio due to needing only a few external components. The ATR0635 also brings benefits such as simplified chipset integration, which accelerates design projects for ANTARIS 4-based products. A shorter bill of materials translates into lower design risks. Lower PCB costs are achieved due to a 45% reduction in footprint and a simplified board layout, but also by reducing costs in purchasing, stocking and mounting due to the low number of components. Like all ANTARIS 4 chipsets, the ATR0635 supports serial EEPROM memory, which is a cost- and space-efficient alternative to Flash EPROMs for storing custom configuration settings. The on-chip USB connectivity eliminates the need for an expensive serial-to-USB converter, which makes ANTARIS 4 products plug-and-play devices for any PC environment by emulating a standard COM port to the operating system.