IMP Slashes Power With Second Family of Maxim Compatible Microprocessor Supervisors

Business Wire, August 12, 1998

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 12, 1998-- -0-

--   Power Reduced by 60 Percent

--   MicroSO Packages Cut PC Board Area Requirement by 50 Percent

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IMP, Inc. (NASDAQ:IMPX) today doubled its Power Management supervisor product family with the announcement of five new low-power Microprocessor Supervisor analog integrated circuits (ICs).

The IMP705, IMP706, IMP707, IMP708, and IMP813L integrate power supply monitoring and microprocessor/microcontroller watchdog functions into compact 8-pin MicroSO packages. In addition, compared to pin-compatible devices available from Maxim Integrated Products, the IMP devices have reduced supply current requirements by 60 percent. Maximum supply current is a low 140 microamperes.

MicroSO packaged devices require just 50 percent of the printed circuit board mounting area of conventional surface mount, small outline (SO) packages.

Microprocessor supervisor ICs monitor power supplies to insure the system microprocessor or embedded microcontroller is adequately powered or has been restarted properly after a power failure or "brownout."

Improper voltages cause unreliable operation, stop the processor, or, even worse, allow the system controller to issue improper commands.

Complex devices like the IMP705/706 and IMP813L go beyond power supply monitoring by integrating functions that monitor processor operation and issue system initialization signals when system failures or "lock-ups" are detected.

Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), computers, controllers, automotive systems, "smart" instruments, and mobile electronic systems such as cellular phones, pagers, portable computers and data terminals are potential applications for these supervisors. Battery powered portable handheld devices will benefit from the 140 microampere maximum supply current specification.

The new IMP supervisor family offers several functional options. Each device generates a reset signal during power-up, power-down and during brownout conditions. Designed to monitor a 5 volt power supply, 4.65 volt and 4.4 volt threshold devices are offered.

A separate power-fail detection circuit with a 1.25 volt threshold can be used to check battery levels or non-5 volt supplies.

All devices in the family have a manual reset input. In addition, the IMP705/706/813L feature a watchdog timer output that goes LOW if the watchdog input is not triggered within 1.6 seconds.

The IMP813L has the same pin-out and functions as the IMP705 but has an active-HIGH reset output. The IMP707/708 have both active-HIGH and active-LOW reset outputs instead of a watchdog function.

The IMP705, IMP706, and IMP813L supervisors monitor the power supply and battery in microprocessor and digital systems. A reset signal is generated whenever the supply voltage drops below 4.65 volts for the IMP705, IMP707 and IMP813L. The IMP706 and IMP708 generate a reset for supply voltages below 4.40 volts.

Product Feature Summary Table -0-

IMP Part No.  RESET Polarity    Manual  Watchdog   Threshold
                                RESET   Function   Voltage
IMP705           LOW              YES     YES       4.65V
IMP706           LOW              YES     YES       4.40V
IMP707           LOW and HIGH     YES     NO        4.65V
IMP708           LOW and HIGH     YES     NO        4.40V
IMP813           HIGH             YES     YES       4.65V

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"IMP plans to offer the best delivery schedules and volume pricing in the industry for these low-power supervisors," said Barry Wiley, IMP Vice President of Marketing, Sales and Applications.

"Our goal is to offer volume delivery schedules of 2 to 4 week from our North American distribution partner, Wyle Electronics. In the Asia/Pacific and European markets, where we have seen delivery schedules from Maxim extending beyond 8 weeks, we plan to give customers a substantial delivery time improvement."

Pricing for the IMP705, IMP706, and IMP813L in quantities of 1,000 is $0.75. The IMP707 and IMP708 are priced at $0.72 in quantities of 1,000. All devices are available in plastic 8-pin DIP, SO and MicroSO packages.

The compact MicroSO package uses 50 percent less printed circuit board mounting area when compared to the common industry standard SO package. Data sheets, samples and production quantities are available now.

Statements in this press release regarding IMP's business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to demand for the Company's products, foundry utilization, the ability of the Company to develop new products, demand by end-users of the products produced by the Company's customers, and the other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

IMP, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets standard-setting analog integrated circuits and specialty analog wafer foundry processes for data communications interface and power management applications in computer, communications, and control systems world-wide.