Date: 25th Apr 2011

Atheros Launches Industry's First HomePlug Green PHY Emulation Platform

Atheros Communications, Inc. has announced Green PHY (HPGP) emulation development kit consisting of a hardware platform based on existing HomePlug AV silicon, adapted to support serial peripheral interface (SPI) ports enabling connectivity to low-cost and low-energy microcontrollers (MCUs). The kit offers emulation firmware and software driver with application programming interfaces (APIs) to support future Atheros Green PHY products.

The PL-14 HPGP development kit targets scalable IP infrastructures for smart grid, smart home, security, building automation, remote health and wellness monitoring, and other machine-to-machine (M2M) applications.

Other Key Facts:
Natively supporting IP communications - leveraging the values of the IP network to connect "islands" of disparate and incompatible systems.
HomePlug Green PHY (HPGP) is a subset standard of the widely deployed HomePlug AV powerline standard. The Green PHY specification enables a low-power, low-energy and robust connectivity solution, while supporting data rates up to 10 Mbps for scalable IP connectivity. The result supports network build-out with short response times for devices used in smart grid and smart home applications, such as appliances, thermostats, electricity meters, plug-in electric vehicles (PEV), and monitoring equipment.
Green PHY products will be fully interoperable with those based on the HomePlug AV and IEEE 1901 standards, which will extend the value of a home's existing powerline infrastructure and bring additional capabilities to a new class of connected devices.
Atheros PL-14 development kit offers SPI ports.
The PL-14 development kit also supports the robust OFDM (ROBO) modes that will be used in forthcoming Green PHY solutions. This feature enables customers to evaluate the true capabilities and range of Green PHY technology at signaling rates of 4, 5 and 10 Mbps.
Atheros to demonstrate Wi-Fi and HomePlug Green PHY solutions to select customers at the Embedded Systems Conference Silicon Valley, May 2-5 in San Jose, Calif. and at the Sensor Expo, June 7 in Chicago, Ill.

Dan Rabinovitsj, senior vice president and general manager, Atheros Networking Business Unit said "Atheros sees a tremendous opportunity to increase the number of IP addresses both in the home and enterprise by moving beyond basic connectivity for PCs, consumer electronics and routers. With our strong portfolio in low-power wireless and wired connectivity technologies and an increasing focus on smart grid and smart home applications, Atheros is optimally positioned to bring value to customers serving this exciting new market. The Home Plug Green PHY kit is a demonstration of our commitment to serve the next wave of growth in home and industrial networking applications."

Mark Hung, research director, wireless, Gartner said "Connectivity is driving technology advancements in computing, mobile and CE, thereby forming the foundation for the smart home. Whether it's by wired, wireless or hybrid networks, there are billions of new devices that will be connected to the Internet. A wealth of information will travel between these devices, whether its energy-efficiency data from household appliances or status updates from an individual's health monitor. In addition, we foresee a lot of innovation occurring in the enterprise and machine-to-machine markets as well."