The demand for smaller, low-cost, high-performing, innovative devices with versatile connectivity is driving the need to consolidate multiple connectivity protocols in a single chip. The integrated Ceva-Waves Links family leverages the newly rebranded Ceva-Waves portfolio of wireless connectivity IPs, formerly known as RivieraWaves. The Links offering supports the latest wireless standards to address the surging demand for connectivity-rich chips targeting Smart Edge devices in the consumer, industrial, automotive, and personal computing markets. These include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), and IEEE 802.15.4 (for Thread / Zigbee / Matter), to offer a range of qualified, easy-to-integrate, multi-protocol wireless communications subsystems, each featuring optimized co-existence schemes and adapted to various radios and configurations.
ABI Research predicts that the move from module-level integration to on-die chip integration will generate 1.6 billion Wi-Fi plus Bluetooth combo chipset shipments annually by 2028. "Increasingly, wireless connectivity chips are required to handle multiple standards to meet the evolving needs and diverse use cases of consumer and industrial devices. The Ceva-Waves Links family offers a significant value proposition to semiconductor companies and OEMs, lowering the risk and investment required to integrate multi-protocol wireless connectivity into chip designs. Moreover with support for UWB, the Links family offers innovative micro-location and radar sensing features for truly advanced smart edge devices," says Andrew Zignani, Senior Research Director, ABI Research.
"The Ceva-Waves Links wireless connectivity IPs build on our extensive portfolio that already powers more than 1 billion devices annually and has enabled us to establish a strong and diversified customer base across consumer and industrial IoT applications," adds Tal Shalev, Vice President and General Manager of the Wireless IoT BU at CEVA. "With many customers designing chips employing multiple wireless standards, Links is a natural extension, leveraging our technology and expertise to dramatically reduce the technology barrier but yet delivering a tailored, optimal solution that provides the high-performance, low latency and low-power connectivity required."
The first member of the Ceva-Waves Links family, the Links100, is an integrated, low power, Wi-Fi / Bluetooth / 15.4 communications subsystem IP for connected applications. It combines Wi-Fi 6 optimized for cost-sensitive applications, and adds Bluetooth 5.4 Dual Mode, supporting advanced LE Audio with Auracast, and a comprehensive suite of Bluetooth profiles. It also combines IEEE 802.15.4 for Thread, ZigBee, Matter smart home applications. These systems are also optimized for co-existence and efficient concurrent communications, featuring a pre-integrated low power multiprotocol radio in a TSMC 22nm process. The Ceva-Waves Links100 is currently being deployed by a leading OEM.
Upcoming Links platforms may include advanced Wi-Fi 6/6E/7 with MLO, for a variety of use-cases, from power-efficient IoT to high-speed data streaming; next generation Bluetooth for Channel Sounding and High Data Throughout; UWB, supporting FiRa 2.0, CCC Digital Key 3.0, and Radar, for innovative micro-location and sensing features. All solutions will feature pre-integrated radios with optimized co-existence schemes for each specific configuration, including partner technologies to address a wide range of configurations and foundry process nodes.
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