CPS and SiGe have decided to collaborate to provide network operators and cellular service providers with a positioning solution for the delivery of seamless, reliable location-based services. Both companies demonstrated seamless coverage with fast location fixes by interfacing a GSM cellular handset equipped with SiGe Semiconductor's SE8901L global positioning system (GPS) receiver IC to a network powered by the CPS Matrix system. The combination of these technologies in an Enhanced GPS (E-GPS) system enables both satellite- and network-based measurements to allow fast all-area, all-segment positioning.
Another two companies getting together are Kineto Wireless, a supplier of UMA Technology, and Royal Philips Electronics. They have decided to work together to bring Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) into mobile phone system solutions.
The UMA Technology from Kineto combined with Philips' Nexperia WiFi-enabled Cellular System Solutions will allow cell phones to roam voice, data and multimedia calls between conventional cellular networks and WLAN access points at home, in the office and at public areas (hot spots).
Not to be left out on the buddying up scenario, Renesas Technology and mobile 'phone software company Symbian has reached an agreement whereby Symbian's open OS for smart phones will be ported to Renesas Technology's silicon platform for 3G mobile phones. This says the companies will enable handset manufacturers to create smaller and differentiated handsets. In its drive to broaden availability of advanced capabilities to mobile phones, Texas Instruments announced an enhanced, cost-efficient GSM/GPRS/EDGE solution for handset manufacturers to bring advanced multimedia features to mainstream mobile phones. Built on TI's OMAP processor architecture, the OMAPV1030 solution is sampling now and is the first product in TI's new OMAP-Vox wireless platform.
InterDigital Communications Corporation used the event to demonstrate its Adaptive Interference Management (AIM) solutions. These products reduce RF interference, enhance network capacity and coverage, extend battery life, deliver higher average data rates and enable equipment manufacturers and semiconductor suppliers to differentiate their WLAN product offerings, says the company.
Frontier Silicon, the fabless maker of semiconductors for digital radio, TV and mobile TV products showed its first tuner chip for digital multimedia broadcasting (T-DMB) applications.
Finally, a new 'Configurable Phone Initiative' to support the development of mobile phones with modular software architectures that are easy to adapt with new applications and user interface features during the life of the design was unveiled at 3GSM by Open-Plug.
Networks, phone makers, IC vendors and application developers supporting the initiative include Modelabs, Philips Semiconductors, France Telecom R&D, Sasken and Jaatayu. Based around the Open-Plug ELIPS component-based Linux framework, phone devices can be configured on demand at production or in the field with new services and applications. This is the first time operators have been offered the opportunity to deploy applications or user interfaces to phones in this way. ModeLabs showed the first configurable phone at 3GSM.
