Infineon and BMW M GmbH Are Cooperating To Develop A High-Performance Engine Control Unit For The Next BMW M Series

Neubiberg, Germany – February 12, 2008 – Infineon Technologies AG (FSE/NYSE: IFX) today announced to collaborate closely with BMW subsidiary BMW M GmbH on the development of a new engine control unit for the next BMW M series of cars. Infineon’s role will center on integrating its microcontroller chips (MCUs) into the system and on providing technical support.

The engine in the new BMW M series, like its predecessors, will have outstanding performance specifications, yet it will also reduce fuel consumption and meet an entire range of current worldwide automotive emissions standards, including EURO5 and US-LEV2. Accomplishing this, calls for highly innovative engine control and BMW M GmbH will be using 32-bit flash microcontrollers from the Infineon AUDO FUTURE product family, based on Infineon’s proprietary TriCore® processor architecture.

The TriCore processor architecture unites the capabilities of a microprocessor, a microcontroller and a digital signal processor (DSP) on a single chip. The microprocessor operates at high clock speeds to deliver the computing power needed to process instructions fast. It is supported by the microcontroller and its intelligent peripherals. The DSP, optimized to perform mathematical functions, helps additionally to ensure that instructions are executed quickly.

Besides this processor architecture, which is optimized for real-time processing, the AUDO FUTURE product family includes intelligent peripherals, like the MultiLink Interface (MLI). Designed specifically to meet the advanced requirements of highly sophisticated engine control systems, the interface can connect multiple AUDO microcontrollers to one another and enables them to share data at rates of up to 37.5 Mbit/s. It plays a crucial role in high-performance powertrain systems where the system “intelligence” is spread across multiple microcontrollers. These capabilities make Infineon’s TriCore microcontroller exceptionally well-suited for controlling complex engine management systems with a multiprocessor architecture of the kind planned for the new BMW M series.

“The 32-bit flash microcontroller from the Infineon AUDO FUTURE family meets our high performance and functionality requirements and offers us an ideal platform for our next generation of control units,” said Herbert Bayerl, who heads engine control unit development at BMW M GmbH.

“We are proud of our cooperation with BMW M GmbH. Our TriCore microcontrollers deliver real-time performance as yet unmatched by any other microcontroller today,” said Jochen Hanebeck, senior vice president and head of the Microcontrollers unit at Infineon’s Automotive, Industrial and Multimarket business group. “This is thanks not just to the AUDO products’ higher clock speeds, but also to the architecture with its high-performance bus systems and intelligent peripherals.”

Hanebeck also pointed to a 2007 benchmark study carried out by the Embedded Microprocessor Benchmark Consortium (EEMBC), an independent research organization, in which an Infineon TriCore produced the highest score ever achieved by a component operating in this frequency range. The EEMBC thoroughly tests microcontrollers from a number of vendors at least once a year.

Information on the EEMBC results: http://www.eembc.org/press/  
Additional information on Infineon microcontrollers and automotive product portfolio is available at www.infineon.com/microcontrollers and www.infineon.com/audo-future and www.infineon.com/automotive

Infineon Technologies AG, Neubiberg, Germany, offers semiconductor and system solutions addressing three central challenges to modern society: energy efficiency, communications, and security. In the 2007 fiscal year (ending September), the company reported sales of Euro 7.7 billion (including Qimonda sales of Euro 3.6 billion) with approximately 43,000 employees worldwide (including approximately 13,500 Qimonda employees). With a global presence, Infineon operates through its subsidiaries in the U.S. from Milpitas, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore, and in Japan from Tokyo. Infineon is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: IFX).