Agilent Technologies Introduces Plug-and-Play Infrared Adapters that Enable Wireless Communications for Point-of-Sale Devices.Business Editors/High-Tech Writers PALO ALTO Palo Alto, city, California Palo Alto (păl`ō ăl`tō), city (1990 pop. 55,900), Santa Clara co., W Calif.; inc. 1894. Although primarily residential, Palo Alto has aerospace, electronics, and advanced research industries. , Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 12, 2004 IrDA Smart Dongles Easily Attach to Wide Range of Digital Devices to Provide Connectivity with Mobile Phones, PDAs Agilent Technologies This article needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Alone, primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of this article are not sufficient for an accurate encyclopedia article. Inc. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :A) today introduced a series of smart dongle The term was originally slang for a "hardware key." Today, the term is often used to refer to any small adapter that has a short cable with connectors at both ends. See hardware key and PC Card dongle. IrDA (Infrared Data Association See IrDA. (standard, body) Infrared Data Association - (IrDA) A non-profit trade association providing standards to ensure the quality and interoperability of infrared (IR) hardware. ) serial adapters that can be easily attached to millions of point-of-sale devices that lack infrared (IR) connectivity. Other digital devices that stand to benefit from IR connectivity include vending machines, bank ATMs, printers, car navigation See GPS. systems and blood pressure monitors. The added IrDA functionality will allow users of IR-equipped mobile phones and PDAs to conduct financial transactions and more easily share data between devices. The HSDL-D100 family of smart dongles, from Agilent's Semiconductor Products Group, is a comprehensive hardware and software platform that supports a wide range of customizable IrDA applications. These include point-and-pay IrFM financial payment services, picture and music file transfers between mobile devices, and kiosk data distribution to mobile devices. The platform complies with the IrDA SIR specification and supports data rates from 9.6 kb/s to 115.2 kb/s. "Our smart dongle provides an easy, cost-effective upgrade for already installed equipment without IrDA functionality," said Kee Hane Ngoh, vice president and general manager of Agilent's Infrared Products Division. "These upgrades are critical for the widespread adoption of IrDA-based transactions." Available as printed circuit board assemblies or as a complete, packaged dongle, Agilent's IrDA smart dongle solution provides a simple-to-use bridge for adding IrDA infrared communications capabilities to digital devices and applications. Simple plug-and-play connectivity makes the devices easy to integrate with minimum development resources. Agilent's Smart Dongle Family The HSDL-D100-001 smart dongle is an entry-level solution designed for simple file-transfer applications. It comes with two memory options: 2 kb RAM with 32 kb flash memory as a standard, and 4 kb RAM with 64 kb flash as optional. The HSDL-D100-002 and HSDL-D110-002 smart dongles have greater computing power and memory resources for more complex applications and greater operational flexibility. These devices feature a default 256 kb flash memory and 32 kb program memory on-chip as a standard, with optional 512 kb flash memory and 32KB on-chip RAM. The HSDL-D100-001 and HSDL-D100-002 are printed circuit subassemblies with dimensions of 20 mm x 20 mm and 46 mm x 65 mm, respectively. The HSDL-D110-002 is a complete unit in an attractive case. Agilent IrDA smart dongles are microcontroller-based standalone systems, complete with an embedded IrDA protocol stack The set of protocols used in a communications network. A protocol stack is a prescribed hierarchy of software layers, starting from the application layer at the top (the source of the data being sent) to the data link layer at the bottom (transmitting the bits on the wire). . Supporting application programs such as the IrFM Profile, OBEX Server and OBEX Client are available upon request. The smart dongles handle IrDA communication transparently without the need for constant host supervision. Smart dongles are connected to host terminals using a three-wire null-modem serial RS-232 interface, which is used for transferring data, command and control, and firmware A category of memory chips that hold their content without electrical power. Firmware includes flash, ROM, PROM, EPROM and EEPROM technologies. When holding program instructions, firmware can be thought of as "hard software." See flash memory, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM and FOTA. updating. Agilent smart dongles offer an optional, easy-to-use Smart Dongle Flash Utility that facilitates on-the-fly firmware updating from a PC running Microsoft(R) Windows(R) 2000/NT/XP. Pricing and Availability Agilent's IrDA smart dongles are priced from $15.00 to $38.00 each in moderate volumes. They are available now through Agilent's direct sales channel and worldwide distribution partners. Further information about Agilent's infrared products and applications software is available at www.agilent.com/view/ir. About Agilent's Mobile Appliance Solutions Agilent is a leading supplier of semiconductor solutions for today's highly integrated, feature-rich mobile handsets. In addition to infrared transceivers for transmitting data, Agilent provides CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Pronounced "c-moss." The most widely used integrated circuit design. It is found in almost every electronic product from handheld devices to mainframes. imaging solutions that enable camera phones, FBAR FBAR Film Bulk Acoustic Resonator FBAR Foreign Bank Account Report FBAR First Born Anal Retentive filters and E-pHEMT power amplifiers that help shrink handset size and save battery life, surface mount LEDs that provide backlighting back·light n. A type of spotlight, used in photography, that illuminates a subject from behind. tr.v. back·light·ed or back·lit , back·light·ing, back·lights styling options, and ambient light sensors that save battery life by controlling backlighting. No other component vendor offers all of these solutions for mobile appliances. About Agilent Technologies Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE:A) is a global technology leader in communications, electronics, life sciences and chemical analysis. The company's 28,000 employees serve customers in more than 110 countries. Agilent had net revenue of $6.1 billion in fiscal year 2003. Information about Agilent is available on the Web at www.agilent.com. Note to Editors: Please direct reader inquiries to Agilent Semiconductor Products Group at 800-235-0312, or e-mail us at semiconductorsupport@agilent.com. Further technology, corporate citizenship Corporate Citizenship The extent to which businesses are socially responsible in meeting legal, ethical and economic responsibilities placed on them by shareholders. The aim it to create higher standards of living and quality of life in the community in which it operates, while and executive news is available on the Agilent news site at www.agilent.com/go/news. Microsoft and Windows are U.S. registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation (company) Microsoft Corporation - The biggest supplier of operating systems and other software for IBM PC compatibles. Software products include MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows, Windows NT, Microsoft Access, LAN Manager, MS Client, SQL Server, Open Data Base Connectivity (ODBC), MS Mail, . |
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