Coventor Releases MEMS+(TM), the Next Generation MEMS Product Design Platform

CARY, NC--(Marketwire - November 16, 2009) - Coventor, Inc., the leading developer of MEMS design-automation software, announces the release of the MEMS+ product design platform that now includes tight integration to leading IC design software in a common environment.

Over the past two years Coventor has seen a surge in demand for a comprehensive link between its MEMS design tools and leading mixed signal/analog IC design tools. This market pull is due to the consumerization of MEMS, moving from automotive, inkjet and DLP applications to smart phones, gaming devices and other human machine interface products. MEMS are becoming ubiquitous in consumer electronics.

There is no other MEMS design software product on the market today that is as complete and intuitive as MEMS+. With more than 50% reduction in design entry time over previous MEMS system level design tools, 10 to 100 times faster simulation speeds in comparison to finite element based analysis, and compatibility with existing IC design tools, MEMS+ opens the way for non-MEMS specialists to design MEMS devices into their products. MEMS+ also automates many of the tedious tasks involved in preparing designs for tape-out.

"We are providing an environment that will inspire innovations in MEMS-enabled products we cannot even imagine," said Mike Jamiolkowski, President and CEO of Coventor. "These will touch on healthcare, green energy, as well as consumer products." According to Yole Development market research, the MEMS market is forecast to grow from $6B to $49B over the next 10 years. Consumer electronic products are creating an inflection point in the MEMS market.

Coventor has worked closely with IDMs, fabless companies, and foundry partners to drive the development of MEMS+, and to validate it on diverse MEMS products including accelerometers, gyroscopes, micro-mirrors and RF-MEMS.

Description of MEMS+

The first release of the MEMS+ platform offers:

--  A fully parameterized 3-D design entry canvas (1) to assemble complete
    MEMS devices using MEMS elements such as beams, plates, electrostatic
    combs, etc. that are analogous to transistors, resistor and capacitor in IC
    design.
--  Automatic generation of a parametric 2-D layout cell (PCell (5)), a
    schematic symbol and a simulation model (2). The MEMS or IC engineer places
    the schematic symbol of the MEMS device in an IC schematic (3) and runs
    simulations in an Analog Mixed Signal (AMS) simulator such as Cadence
    Virtuoso Spectre™ (4).  The IC engineer can use the same model for
    coupled MEMS and IC simulations.
--  MEMS simulation results can be visualized back in the 3-D environment
    to verify mechanical behavior. (6)
    

Key Features Benefits of MEMS+

--  Intuitive 3D interface reduces design entry time by more than 50%
--  Automatic MEMS behavioral model generation reduces errors and saves
    time
--  Full parameterization of all MEMS design aspects enables rapid design
    variation studies and optimization
--  Fast simulation runtimes allow for more complete simulation of device
    performance, including transient analyses that are too time consuming with
    FEA
--  Use of the same circuit simulator for MEMS and IC simulation enables
    co-design and optimization of the MEMS device and signal conditioning
    electronics
--  Automatic parametric layout cell (PCell) generation reduces errors and
    time to tape-out
    

The MEMS+ platform represents the culmination of Coventor's many years of experience in developing an extensive MEMS model library under the CoventorWare™ brand. This advanced modeling technology has been validated on a variety of production MEMS including accelerometers, gyroscopes, micro-mirrors, resonators and many more. Coventor's customer list includes majority of the top MEMS design and manufacturers worldwide.

MEMS+ is available now!

About Coventor

Coventor, Inc. is a MEMS design automation company that provides a comprehensive suite of software tools for the development of micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS). Coventor's industry-leading products give its customers an advantage in bringing MEMS-based products to market quickly while reducing costs and controlling risk. Coventor is a privately held company headquartered in Cary, NC with offices in Cambridge, MA and San Mateo, CA. The European headquarters is in Paris, France. Coventor also serves Asia Pacific through regional distributors. More information is available at http://www.coventor.com.

Contact Information: For more information, contact: Josephus van Kuijk, Ph.D. VP Marketing & Business Development Coventor, Inc. 919-854-7500 x115