Chip Delivers 6.4 Gbps Of Network Bandwidth

Said to be the first fully-integrated Internet Protocol (IP) edge router IC capable of delivering wire-speed Quality of Service (QoS) and prioritized forwarding- both features essential for deploying policy-driven converged data and voice IP networks- the Wisper chip can deliver 6.4 Gbps of aggregate bandwidth with integrated 10/100-Mbps Ethernet interfaces. Aimed at regional and central office routers in enterprise networks, Wisper (Wire-Speed Edge Router) also supports connectivity to Gigabit Ethernet and OC-3, OC-12 and OC-48 Packet-over-SONET (PoS) links via the firm’s OptiStream interface, as well as supporting WAN links such as T3/E3 and xDSL and broadband cable via the firm’s EdgeStream interface. As to Wisper’s performance, the chip is said to guarantee QoS at 10-million packet/s wire speeds with a deterministic ingress-to-egress forwarding latency of just 8 µs, helping enable routers using Wisper to provide hard service guarantees for isochronous and mission-critical traffic. Produced using a 0.25-µm, 2.5V CMOS process, Wisper comes in a 520-pin SBGA package. The chip is sampling now with production to commence in Q1 2000.