SANTA CLARA, Calif., FURSTENFELDBRUCK, Germany and YOKOHAMA CITY, Japan, May 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Samplify Systems, Inc., a real-time compression technology company, Schleifring und Apparatebau GmbH, the market leading slip- ring manufacturer to the medical and defense markets, and Tokyo Electron Device Ltd (TED), a leading manufacturer of Xilinx application boards, today announced an agreement for the joint development of the world’s first slip- ring integrating Samplify’s patented Prism CT(TM) signal compression technology for the medical computed tomography (CT) market. Samplify’s Prism CT(TM) compression engine is the first compression technology purpose-built to expand the capacity of CT data acquisition subsystems. By integrating signal compression technology into the slip-ring Schleifring und Apparatebau will not only meet the demands of next generation CT machines, but also offer a cost- effective drop-in replacement for existing machines. TED will supply customized inrevium(TM) application boards for both data acquisition on the rotating gantry, and a PCIe-based data termination card for the host workstation.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080411/AQF028LOGO)
“Schleifring is the clear leader in the market for slip-rings for the CT and defense markets, and TED demonstrates their ability to deliver custom hardware solutions around our technology,” said Tom Sparkman, Samplify CEO. “We have seen great interest from CT manufacturers in our compression technology, and partnering with Schleifring and TED will accelerate our ability to deliver real hardware-based compression solutions to them.”
“Samplify’s lossless compression technology is an important tool to help our slip-ring customers meet their exploding data requirements for future CT or radar platforms, while lowering costs on existing platforms,” said Kurt Dollhofer, Managing Director, Schleifring. “Whether a CT manufacturer wishes to increase slice count, improve detector density, increase rotation rates, or employ multiple source voltages and focal points, Samplify’s compression technology enhances the value proposition of our slip-ring portfolio.”
“This is but the first example of the synergy between Samplify’s compression technology and our FPGA and board level design capabilities delivering customized hardware solutions for our customers in the medical equipment and wireless markets,” said Atsushi Tokushige, Corporate Director and VP of PLD Solutions, TED. “We are pleased to be working with Schleifring as our first inrevium customer in the European market.”
Computed tomography systems employ an x-ray source and an array of x-ray detectors, organized into rows and “slices,” which rotate around the patient in a helical manner. With each x-ray detector feeding a high resolution analog to digital converter channel, high end CT machines require hundreds of thousands of detectors whose aggregate data requirement exceeds 10 Gbps. The slip-ring is the communication mechanism between the rotating electronics and the external workstation. Slip-rings are also employed in defense applications for rotating radar antenna arrays and for rotating tank turrets.
Samplify’s Prism CT(TM) compression algorithm is available in RTL or netlist form for leading FPGA families. A single instance of the compression engine can support sample rates in excess of 200 Msamples/sec, or over 40,000 x-ray detectors. Multiple instances can be parallelized to support higher detector counts. The Prism CT algorithm provides lossless compression of x- ray detector data in a variety of block-floating point formats. It also provides a near-lossless compression mode which achieves higher compression ratios, while preserving signal fidelity within the region of interest. Samplify’s Prism CT(TM) decompression algorithm is also available as a dynamic link library under Windows XP and can support samples rates in excess of 100 Msps on a Xeon processor.
A prototype of the solution supporting transmission rates up to 6.25 Gbps will be demonstrated in TED’s booth in the Xilinx Partner Pavilion at the Japan Embedded Systems Exposition and Convention (ESEC), May 14-16, 2008 at the Tokyo International Exhibits Convention Center (Tokyo Big Sight). First customer demonstrations supporting up to 8.5 Gbps are targeted for end of second quarter 2008. Samplify’s Prism CT(TM) for FPGA is available at sales@samplify.com.
About Samplify Systems:
Samplify Systems, Inc., a Silicon Valley startup, provides the only real- time compression algorithm for high speed sampled data systems. Delivering simply the bits that matter(TM) Samplify’s Prism(TM) compression algorithm provides a cost-effective alternative to brute force hardware approaches to transport and store data within systems. Samplify targets real-time embedded applications in the medical, defense, communications, and industrial markets. Samplify’s Prism(TM) algorithm is available in netlist form for leading FPGA families, and as a Windows software application. Samplify Systems is a privately held company based in Silicon Valley, with funding from Charles River Ventures and Formative Ventures.
About Schleifring und Apparatebau:
SCHLEIFRING und APPARATEBAU GmbH, headquartered in Furstenfeldbruck, Germany, is the leading developer and manufacturer of electrical slip ring systems and non-contacting rotary joints for the transmission of power, electrical signals, Databus-signals, optical signals, RF signals as well as media (compressed air, cooling fluids and other) from a stationary to a rotating plane and vice versa. In the medical CT slip ring business Schleifring is the world leader with more than 90% delivery to all current CT systems in connection with the patented GigaCAP technology. This capacitive datalink offers up to 10 Gbps unidirectional data transfer per link. In fact, in any sphere of world-wide industry and in all areas of military design on land, sea, air and space there are slip ring systems “made by SCHLEIFRING.”
Visit the website at http://www.schleifring.com/en/Products/Technologies/Non- contacting._transmission/capacitive.php.
About Tokyo Electron Device Ltd:
Tokyo Electron Device (TED) is an affiliate of Tokyo Electron Limited (TEL), one of the world’s leading semiconductor manufacturing equipment suppliers. TED has sold its technology as a specialized electronics trading company inside Japan about 40 years, and now the company is applying its knowledge, technology and service capability to establish its inrevium(TM) product line in the global industrial market. For more information on inrevium(TM) products, visit the website at http://www.inrevium.jp/eng/
CONTACT: Company, Allan Evans, VP Marketing of Samplify Systems, Inc.,
+1-408-260-4011, aevans@samplify.com; or Media, Nancy Sheffield of Tsantes
Consulting Group, +1-408-426-4906, nsheffield@tsantes.com; or Ronald
Suchanecki, Sr. Business Manager, Medical Systems of Schleifring und
Apparatebau GmbH, +49 8141 403-159, rsuchanecki@schleifring.de; or Yoko
Fukui of Tokyo Electron Device Limited, +81-45-474-7024,
fukui.y@teldevice.co.jp
Web site: http://www.samplify.com//
