HONG KONG – February 26, 2013—Altera Corporation (NASDAQ: ALTR) today expanded its FPGA-based solutions for smart energy systems with the introduction of a High-availability Seamless Redundancy (HSR) and Parallel Redundancy Protocol (PRP) reference design targeting smart grid substation automation equipment. The IEC 62439-3-compliant reference design was developed in collaboration with Flexibilis Oy, a supplier of networking equipment and technology for wired and wireless applications, and features the Flexibilis Redundant Switch (FRS) intellectual property (IP) implemented on Altera® low-power, low-cost Cyclone®-class FPGAs or Cyclone V SoCs. The reference design simplifies the development and implementation of high-reliability, mission-critical communications systems for smart grid substations.

“A key trend in developing a smarter power grid is bidirectional communication and real-time control of equipment used in transmission and distribution substations on the power grid,” said Jason Chiang, senior strategic marketing manager for Altera’s Industrial Business Unit. “Our FPGA-based HSR/PRP reference design enables equipment manufacturers to build flexibility, performance, reliability and product longevity into their systems while lowering system cost and providing a future-proof design.”

The Flexibilis HSR/PRP IP included in the reference design is a triple-speed 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet Layer 2 switch that can scale from 3 to 8 ports and is compliant with the IEC 62439-3 standard. The IP is optimized for use with Altera’s low-power, low-cost Cyclone IV FPGAs, Cyclone V FPGAs, and Cyclone V SoCs, which support an integrated dual-core ARM® Cortex™-A9 processor subsystem. Cyclone V SoCs enable customers to reduce component costs by implementing the HSR/PRP switch along with the associated software stack running on the FPGA’s ARM processor subsystem. For timing synchronization, the HSR/PRP solution supports IEEE 1588 Precision Time Protocol (PTP) Version 2. Altera and Flexibilis are exhibiting the FPGA-based HSR/PRP reference design in the Altera booth at Embedded World 2013, Hall 4, Booth 436.

“The IEC 62439-3 standard is evolving rapidly, and the flexibility of FPGAs provides an ideal solution based on our FSR IP,” said Heikki Ala-Juusela, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Flexibilis. “Altera’s highly integrated FPGAs and SOCs enable users to lower their total cost of ownership while leveraging the performance of the devices to process Gigabit Ethernet traffic. This HSR/PRP solution future-proofs designers’ substation automation systems by ensuring communication with the next generation of intelligent electronic devices.”

The FPGA-based HSR/PRP reference design extends Altera's reach into the smart energy market. Altera's programmable solutions provide developers of smart grid equipment with a way to increase system performance and scalability while embracing evolving standards.

Easy HSR/PRP Ethernet Switch on FPGA
Altera and Flexibilis support easy implementation of FPGA-based HSR/PRP Ethernet switches. The integration of Altera FPGAs and FRS IP enables the easy and cost-effective implementation of highly reliable mission-critical communication systems in smart grid substations without licensing negotiations, up-front licensing fees, or per-unit royalty reporting. For additional information about Altera solutions for smart grid applications, contact your local Altera sales representative or visit www.altera.com/smartgrid .

About Flexibilis
Flexibilis develops FPGA-based communication products and intellectual property (IP). Its main business is licensing IP cores to device manufacturers. Flexibilis also develops custom FPGA designs and software for domestic and international customers. Flexibilis is a privately held company headquartered in Tampere, Finland.