3Dlabs Ships GLINT Delta 3D Geometry Pipeline Processor; Accelerates GLINT or PERMEDIA-based Graphics Boards up to three times; Hard-wired 100MFlop processor delivers 1 Million polygons/second for under $50.SAN JOSE San Jose, city, United States San Jose (sănəzā`, săn hōzā`), city (1990 pop. 782,248), seat of Santa Clara co., W central Calif.; founded 1777, inc. 1850. , Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 11, 1996--3Dlabs(R) Inc. today announced immediate availability of the GLINT(R) Delta(TM) 3D Geometry Pipeline Processor, designed as a companion chip to the company's award-winning GLINT and PERMEDIA(TM) 3D rasterization chips. By off-loading up to 70% of the 3D geometry processing Geometry processing is a fast-growing area of research that uses concepts from applied mathematics, computer science, and engineering to design efficient algorithms for the acquisition, reconstruction, analysis, manipulation, simulation and transmission of complex 3D models. load into dedicated hardware, GLINT Delta can increase the already significant performance of GLINT-based accelerator boards by a further factor of three. When used on a high-performance PC, using a Pentium Pro The sixth generation of the Intel x86 family of CPU chips. The term may refer to the chip or to a PC that uses it. Introduced in 1995 as the successor to the Pentium, models from 150 MHz to 200 MHz were released. processor, GLINT Delta-based designs have been measured to deliver over 750K polygons per second via OpenGL, in many cases outperforming 3D workstations costing several times more. For intensive 3D graphics applications, GLINT Delta significantly improves overall system performance by freeing the CPU CPU in full central processing unit Principal component of a digital computer, composed of a control unit, an instruction-decoding unit, and an arithmetic-logic unit. from demanding 3D pipeline calculations -- providing more processor time for application level processing. GLINT Delta provides 100MFlops of hard-wired processing power to accelerate some of the most compute-intensive parts of 3D geometry calculations In 3D graphics rendering, the computation of the base properties for each point (vertex) of the triangles forming the objects in the 3D world. See graphics pipeline. . The introduction of GLINT Delta makes 3Dlabs the only chip vendor to provide silicon solutions for both the geometry and rasterization sections of the 3D pipeline. GLINT Delta is shipping in volume immediately and is priced under $50 in quantities of 10K/month. Boards and systems using GLINT Delta are now shipping from select 3Dlabs customers. Delta Information Implemented as a PCI (1) (Payment Card Industry) See PCI DSS. (2) (Peripheral Component Interconnect) The most widely used I/O bus (peripheral bus). bridge with full PCI master capability, GLINT Delta acts as a front-end processor front-end processor - (FEP) 1. A small computer necessary to enable an IBM mainframe using SNA to communicate beyond the limits of the dinosaur pen. 2. A small computer controlling the screen and keyboard of a Symbolics 3600 LISP Machine. to GLINT or PERMEDIA and processes the setup calculations for 3D primitives such as lines and polygons. GLINT Delta's advanced design includes support for texture-mapping, anti-aliasing and 16, 24 or 32 bit Z buffering - all with high-precision, sub-pixel accuracy. GLINT Delta's processing throughput is up to 1 million texture-mapped, Z-buffered polygons per second. GLINT Delta supports full byte-swapping and is compatible with PC or Macintosh systems. GLINT Delta provides a glueless, single-chip geometry solution for GLINT 300SX or PERMEDIA. GLINT Delta also supports multiple GLINT rendering processors -- also without glue logic A simple logic circuit that is used to connect complex logic circuits together. For example, an ASIC chip may contain large functions, such as a microprocessor, memory block or communications block, which are tied together via small amounts of glue logic. -- for high-end desktop, arcade and VR applications seeking unmatched rendering performance. The combination of GLINT Delta and two GLINT rendering processors enables board vendors to provide dual- GLINT 3D acceleration on a single PCI board, seamlessly combined with full Windows performance and functionality. PERMEDIA does not require GLINT Delta to provide class-leading performance, however the ability to combine the two devices in a low-cost designs enables board vendors to provide a wide-range of price/performance options at performance levels far beyond other 3D chip offerings. GLINT Delta is software compatible with the GLINT and PERMEDIA families, and 3Dlabs' extensive range of software drivers is already available for GLINT Delta-based boards. These drivers include: Windows NT (Windows New Technology) A 32-bit operating system from Microsoft for Intel x86 CPUs. NT is the core technology in Windows 2000 and Windows XP (see Windows). Available in separate client and server versions, it includes built-in networking and preemptive multitasking. , Windows 95, OpenGL on Windows NT, OpenGL on Windows 95, Heidi from Autodesk, Direct3D from Microsoft, CGL See Carrier Grade Linux. from Creative and QuickDraw 3D and QuickDraw 3D RAVE from Apple. The drivers for Windows NT and OpenGL are available on Intel, Alpha, MIPS (Million Instructions Per Second) The execution speed of a computer. For example, .5 MIPS is 500,000 instructions per second; 100 MIPS is a hundred million instructions per second. and PowerPC processors General-purpose PowerPC processors IBM/Motorola
"With GLINT Delta, 3Dlabs has broken the 3D bottleneck on the PC platform to unleash the rendering power of the GLINT family," said Neil Trevett, vice president of marketing at 3Dlabs. "The combination of a Pentium Pro with GLINT and GLINT Delta enables anyone to have stunning 3D workstation performance -- at desktop PC prices. Designing geometry processing into hard-wired logic is the most effective way of increasing 3D geometry performance. It is far more efficient than using main CPU cycles, and much faster than RISC RISC in full Reduced Instruction Set Computing Computer architecture that uses a limited number of instructions. RISC became popular in microprocessors in the 1980s. front-ends with no hardware floating point support in the graphics subsystem." Industry Support "3Dlabs is a key vendor as the Pentium Pro becomes the workstation platform of choice. Pentium Pro processor workstations are the only ones offering a homogeneous compute environment - delivering workstation performance at superior price/performance, plus the best of personal productivity applications," said Andre Wolper, Director of Workstation Marketing at Intel Corporation. "3Dlabs' technology is extending the 3D capabilities of the Pentium Pro platform. GLINT Delta is complementary to the Pentium Pro as it off-loads the fixed-function aspects of the 3D geometry pipeline into hardwired logic -- allowing the Pentium Pro processor to deliver highest application performance." "3Dlabs is currently the only chip vendor that is addressing our complete 3D pipeline processing needs -- including both geometry and rasterization," said David Ludvigson, president of NeTpower, Inc. "The Elite2 3D graphics accelerator in our new Calisto(tm) Pentium Pro-based workstation depends on GLINT Delta to provide astounding a·stound tr.v. a·stound·ed, a·stound·ing, a·stounds To astonish and bewilder. See Synonyms at surprise. [From Middle English astoned, past participle of astonen, levels of performance for sophisticated 3D applications such as Softimage(r) and Pro/ENGINEER(tm). Thanks to GLINT 300SX and GLINT Delta, Calisto outperforms far more expensive Silicon Graphics workstations when running real applications." "Our new Sapphire(tm) 3D Designer Pro 3D accelerator extends our Sapphire board family by using GLINT Delta to set new standards for professional-class 3D performance in the PC industry," said Bill Crouch, director of sales and marketing for graphics products at Fujitsu Microelectronics. "With 3Dlabs' GLINT family we are able to mix and match performance options to meet all the price and configuration needs of our customers. 3Dlabs is central to our 3D focus and now we have GLINT boards ranging from the sub-$1000 Designer to the 3D Designer Pro." "Symmetric is proud to be the first company to ship GLINT Delta-based product in volume," said Perry Copus, CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Symmetric Inc. "By working closely with 3Dlabs through the design and development process, we were able to ship the GLyder(tm) cards using GLINT Delta, with fully optimized OpenGL drivers, just weeks after GLINT Delta silicon was sampled. Symmetric provides leading-edge solutions to our customers, utilizing the most advanced technologies available. 3Dlabs is a valued partner as we bring innovative, high performance graphics solutions to the marketplace." "Elsa has found exceptional interest among PC OEMs in integrating our award-winning GLoria(tm) 3D graphics accelerators into their systems," said Theo Beisch, managing director of Elsa GmbH. "Our new GLoria-M uses the GLINT Delta in a board that is superbly matched to the processing power of Pentium Pro, backed by Elsa's unmatched reputation for performance, quality and design. We also appreciate 3Dlabs' quality philosophy which ideally matches our quality attitude." "Interest in our GLINT-based 3DEMON(tm) PCI and PCI Mezzanine Card (hardware) PCI Mezzanine Card - (PMC) A family of low profile mezzanine cards for VMEbus, Futurebus+, desktop computers and other computer systems with logical and electrical layers based on the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) specification. PMC is defined in IEEE P1386. (PMC (1) See Portable Media Center. (2) (PCI Mezzanine Card) A PCI-based mezzanine card that is widely adapted to VMEbus, CompactPCI and PCI cards. ) accelerators is sky-rocketing," said Kelly Stuart, vice president of sales and marketing at Omnicomp Graphics Corporation. "With GLINT Delta we can offer a new range of price and performance options to end-users, OEMs and system integrators alike. We are integrating GLINT Delta into both our PCI and PMC board families. For example, the 3DEMON DSX DSX Digital Cross Connect DSX Digital Signal Cross-Connect DSX Data Service Cross-connect DSX Digital Signal Level X 88 PCI board includes a GLINT Delta, GLINT 300SX and 16 Mbytes of memory to drive high resolution screens at very high performance levels." Company Information 3Dlabs is a worldwide supplier of merchant chips, software and core technology for 3D graphics. With over 10 years experience in 3D graphics, the company's products enable chip, board and system manufacturers to integrate advanced 3D capabilities into their products for such applications as multimedia authoring, CAD, simulation, virtual reality, interactive TV and video games. 3Dlabs has consistently led the industry in being first to deliver successive generations of 3D devices that precisely meet the emerging needs of the 3D market. In a recent article the company was positioned as the "First member of the next generation of chip companies" by the influential Red Herring Red Herring A preliminary registration statement that must be filed with the SEC describing a new issue of stock (IPO) and the prospects of the issuing company. Notes: magazine. In January 1996, 3Dlabs' GLINT and PERMEDIA silicon were honored with a First Place Computer Graphics World Editor's Choice Award for outstanding innovation. 3Dlabs Inc., headquartered in San Jose, was founded in April 1994, and is privately owned. -0- Note to Editors: 3Dlabs and GLINT 0re registered trademarks and Delta and PERMEDIA are trademarks of 3Dlabs Inc. Ltd. All other brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders, and are hereby acknowledged. CONTACT: 3Dlabs Inc. Neil Trevett, 408/436-3456 neil.trevett@3dlabs.com http://www.3dlabs.com or Horizon Public Relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most Jonathan Hirshon, 408/982-2555 jh@horizonpr.com http://www.horizonpr.com |
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