Micronas joins LIN Consortium (0519)

Freiburg, Germany, July 25, 2005 - Micronas (SWX Swiss Exchange: MASN, Frankfurt: MNSN, Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX), a leading supplier of innovative application-specific IC system and sensor solutions for automotive and consumer electronics, announced it has joined the LIN Consortium. Micronas is currently shipping several millions of embedded microcontrollers as well as hall-effect sensors into automotive applications. By joining the Consortium, Micronas will be able to expand its product portfolio with the integration of the LIN functionality.

"LIN has been employed in automotive applications since 2003, and meanwhile is applied by virtually every manufacturer worldwide. Micronas has been producing CAN-compliant devices for 10 years, and by adding the LIN functionality we will demonstrate our support for the LIN bus", said Peter Zimmermann, Market Manager Automotive ICs at Micronas.

The LIN Consortium was founded by Audi, BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Volvo, and Volkswagen, along with communications specialist Volcano Communications Technologies and semiconductor maker Freescale (formerly Motorola) in 2000. The community's primary objective was to define and implement a low-cost open standard for high-quality serial bus systems in vehicles. Membership has since grown to over 50 companies.

LIN networks complement CAN bus automotive control. While CAN bus is fast and powerful, LIN offers sufficient speed for most body control and especially sensor applications. Micronas will feature it in its CDC16xxF family of microcontrollers as well as in its programmable hall effect sensor family.