Press Release

Texas Instruments Announces NightDriver System's Role in Baja 1000 Win

11/21/96

Texas Instruments 'NightDriver' System Aids in Baja 1000 Victory: Hall
Racing Team Posts Victory Using New Night Vision System


ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico, Nov. 19 -- The Hall
Racing Team, led by veteran off-road racer Rod Hall won the Full Stock
class at the SCORE Baja 1000 race here on Saturday, November 9, almost
with his eyes closed.  With all the dust, dirt and other visual
impairments he faced due to weather and the dark of night, the Hall's
extra edge this year may be the newest member of their racing team:
NightDriver, a member of the Texas Instruments NightSight(TM) Thermal
Imaging Solutions family.

Rod Hall, the only driver to compete in every race since its
inception, gives much of the credit for his team's victory to the new
night vision system mounted on his team's 1996 Hummers.  "NightDriver
let us see things we normally wouldn't during the race," he said,
citing several specific cases where the system gave him an advantage.

"Normally if we're passed by another car, we'd have to stop and wait
for the dust to clear, eating up precious minutes," Hall added, in
reference to his team's margin of victory of 13 minutes.  "With
NightDriver, we saw right through the dust and kept on driving,
avoiding dangerous obstacles in the road."

The race successfully represents the first public demonstration of
NightDriver in action, and dramatically underscores its ability to
stand up to the most rugged conditions.  TI's director of automotive
night vision systems Stuart Klapper found the weekend doubled
expectations.  "Surviving the desert terrain was our main goal, and we
did that with flying colors.  Helping the team come in first was just
icing on the cake," he said.

The nearly 720-mile race is run non-stop through grueling desert
conditions, and drivers battle dust, elements, animals and rough
terrain among other unseen obstacles.  The system's thermal images
allowed the Hall's three-Hummer team to maintain speed while staying
on course, which is the key to winning the race.  "My son Chad, for
example, really benefitted from NightDriver on Diablo Dry Lake, one of
the toughest parts of the course, as it helped him follow course
landmarks while maintaining his speed of 90 miles per hour," he added.

The NightDriver system is based on the same thermal imaging technology
used by the military for the last 30 years.  Thermal imaging detects
heat emitted from objects, giving users a new level of visual
information useful for driving in hazardous conditions.  It gives the
driver to the ability to see through dust, fog and adverse weather
conditions, even at night.

The lead Hummer used two displays during the race, one for the driver
and one for the co-driver, to help guide them through the course and
double the advantage gained though using the system.  "NightDriver
lets you see further down the road than your headlights. It helped us
see intersections, washouts in the road, animals and other hazards,"
he noted.

At one point, Hall estimates that by using the NightDriver he was able
to see more than a mile down the road on the highway portion of the
race -- an incredible advantage -- enabling him to anticipate and
correct for every dip, bend or slick in the road well before he came
upon them.

Baja Today, Your Garage Tomorrow

The same thermal imaging night vision technology used in the Baja 1000
is also being developed by several automobile manufacturers as a
consumer safety feature.  The night vision system will be offered as a
safety option -- like the passenger-side airbag -- allowing drivers to
3 - 5 times farther than their headlights.  TI began commercializing
the technology in 1990, lowering its costs and making it available to
markets such as law enforcement, marine and stationary security.
Today, the technology is found in a wide range of applications, from
finding lost children in the woods at night, to spotting debris or
swimmers in the water, to detecting heat leaks in industrial settings.

Bill Thompson, executive director of commercial operations for AM
General, manufacturer of Hall's Hummers, rode along for part of the
race and feels the thermal imaging technology would be also successful
in fleet, industrial and commercial driving applications.  "It worked
terrifically during the race, and I can also see the technology being
used in industrial trucks and vehicles as well as consumer
automobiles," he said.  "It would also work just as well in a number
of other markets.  In forestry for detecting brush fires, in search-
and-rescue operations and for border patrol surveillance, this
technology would be a very useful tool."

The successful completion of the Baja 1000 is the first step in
integrating the technology into consumer automobiles, as well as
future off- road applications.

Hall says the NightDriver system is a welcome addition to his team and
he looks to repeat this year's success.  "I'm already working this
into our plans for next year," he added, hoping for the team's 16th
victory.

Texas Instruments NIGHTSIGHT Thermal Imaging Solutions products give
users the power of sight, whether protecting our national and global
security, or enhancing safety on the road or at home.  Just one more
link in the networked society, TI Thermal Imaging Solutions are about
living in a safer world.

Texas Instruments Incorporated , headquartered in Dallas,
Texas, is one of the world's foremost high technology companies, with
sales or manufacturing operations in more than 30 countries.  TI
products and services include semiconductors; defense electronics
systems; software productivity tools; mobile computing products and
consumer electronics products; electrical controls; and metallurgical
materials.

More information about TI is located on the World Wide Web at
http://www.ti.com