Atheros Chipsets:Innovative Wireless Capability Heralds New Era in Automotive IT

    LAS VEGAS--Nov. 13, 2001--Mercedes-Benz USA is demonstrating 802.11a wireless technology from Atheros Communications in a specially equipped C320 Sedan at the Comdex trade show. The sedan is a research prototype used to develop and show services that would be made possible by high-performance wireless communications in a vehicular environment.
    In the Mercedes demonstration, these services distribute web and media content from roadside units to the sedan's onboard computer. The driver can purchase music and other digital media they hear about on the radio and have them transparently download to vehicle's onboard computer as they pass by "DriveBy InfoFueling stations." The high speed drive by transfers are enabled by Atheros 802.11a technology operating at up to 54+ Mbps. In future systems, automobiles could access up-to-date map data, traffic and road conditions, and information on local points of interest as the vehicle drives by roadside beacons. In addition, rich audio, video, and gaming content could be downloaded from a person's home computer, entertainment center or residential gateway. Commercial vehicles could exchange detailed cargo status and other information as they pass truck stops and gas stations.
    The Mercedes sedan uses Atheros AR5000-based products in a DriveBy InfoFueling application that combines automotive, computer and wireless telecommunications technologies -- an emerging capability called telematics. Such applications would complement current Mercedes-Benz telematics technologies such as the Tele Aid automated emergency communications systems, GPS (Global Positioning System), collision avoidance radar, and cellular communications.
    "Mercedes-Benz is blazing new ground in its development of telematics," said Frank Howley, vice president of business development for Atheros Communications. "The ability of the AR5000 to perform well in the challenging vehicular environment is a credit to the versatility and the robustness of that chipset."
    The Atheros AR5000 chipset was also used in Federal Highway Administration-sponsored testing of technologies for an interoperable standard for high-bandwidth telematics applications. The success of the benchmark AR5000-based products in reliably delivering high bandwidth in a variety of long range, high speed, and severe multipath led the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) to select 802.11a R/A (road access) as this new standard.

    About Atheros Communications, Inc.

    Atheros Communications was founded in May 1998 by leading experts in radio and signal processing from Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley, and private industry. The Company's mission is to provide wireless networking technologies that drive transparent connections between all computing, communications, audio and video devices. Funded by August Capital, Fidelity Management & Research Company, Foundation Capital, New Enterprise Associates and others, Atheros has raised a total of $98.3 million in three rounds of funding. The Company currently employs over 140 people and has filed more than 45 wireless technology patents. For more information, visit www.atheros.com or send email to info@atheros.com.

    Note to Editors: ATHEROS and the Atheros logo are trademarks of Atheros Communications, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders.