Teradyne Announces a New Generation Image Sensor Test System, IP750; Teradyne Receives Orders for More Than 30 Systems

CHIBA, Japan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 2000--Teradyne Japan Division (JD) has officially announced today the IP750, a new generation image sensor test system, at the Semicon Japan `2000 held at the Makuhari Messe, Chiba, Japan. The IP750 is parallel-testing CCD and CMOS image sensor devices at the show (Booth# B705, Hall 9). Mr. Hidenori Oishi, JD's image sensor test system product manager, says that Teradyne has already received more than 30 system orders from multiple customers both Japan and elsewhere.

The IP750 is a new generation image sensor tester based on Teradyne's J750 VLSI test system, which has the 100MHz digital tester capability, and added the state-of-art hardware and software architecture that answer the needs for testing CCD/CMOS image sensor devices, which requires complex functional testing.

The IP750 incorporates the Windows NT based IG-XL as the test development environment, which allows users for quick test program development and maintenance. Furthermore, the IP750 features the unique Integrated Parallel (IP) architecture, where complete parallel processing features are built in several different architecture levels, in both hardware and software. The IP architecture for example includes the DSP (Digital Signal Processing) functions of image data, which runs on the PC under multi-processor, multi-threaded program execution environment.

The IP750 is a highly integrated tester, which puts power of a complete 100MHz digital tester and image sensor tester into the same space previously required for just the test head. The industry-first zero-footprint design allows for maximum use of the test floor space. Teradyne also provides integration supports for handler, prober and illuminator, not only for tester when a customer installs the IP750, therefore the customer can make sure that the system will be integrated into the test process quickly and efficiently.

Teradyne's Japan Division has the world-largest shipment volume and installed base in the image sensor device test market in the world. The IP750 has been designed and developed by the Japan Division. In image sensor testing, test engineers face a set of test techniques which is totally different from other semiconductor test techniques. The Japan Division has more than 15 years of experience in this area, therefore is able to provide a total support by experienced engineering staffs, toward the volume production of the customer's new devices.

About Teradyne

Teradyne (NYSE: TER) headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts USA is the world's largest supplier of automatic test equipment, related software and high performance interconnection systems for the electronics, telecommunications and Internet industries. 1999 sales were $1.8 billion and there are currently more than 10,000 Teradyne employees worldwide. Teradyne products are used to test semiconductors, circuit assemblies, telephone lines and broadband networks. Teradyne's backplane assemblies and high-density connectors are used in the communications and computing systems central to the Internet infrastructure. More than 70% of the company's business is driven by Internet growth.

In Japan, Teradyne's sales/support offices are located at Tokyo and Osaka. The Japan Division is located at Kumamoto, Kyushu island, and is developing and manufacturing test systems for Japanese and world-wide test markets. Teradyne's Web site is http://www.teradyne.com (English), or http://www.teradyne.co.jp (Japanese).