Intersil

This page covers the following companies: Digital Ocean → CHOICE Microsystems → Harris → Intersil → No Wires Needed → GlobespanVirata → Conexant.

Timeline

 * 1995: Digital Ocean starts development of WLAN MAC for AT&T WaveLAN division
 * 1996: Digital Ocean starts development of WLAN MAC for Aironet (later Cisco)
 * 1996: Digital Ocean becomes CHOICE Microsystems
 * 1996: Harris first Wi-Fi chip (HSP3824 802.11 Baseband PHY)
 * 1999: Harris acquires CHOICE Microsystems (CW10 802.11b MAC)
 * 1999: Harris rebrands its semi. division to Intersil
 * 2000: Intersil acquires No Wires Needed B.V.''
 * 2003: Intersil sells its WLAN division to GlobespanVirata
 * 2003: Conexant and GlobespanVirata merge

For later chipsets, see Conexant.

Harris chipsets

 * Harris/Intersil PRISM II/2.5/3
 * PRISM I and PRISM II chipsets
 * Harris HSP3824 Baseband Processor

PRISM I

 * HFA3824 - BBP (DSSS)
 * HFA3724 - QAM
 * HFA3624 - RFIC
 * HFA3524 - DS
 * HFA3424 - LNA
 * HFA3925 - PA

PRISM II

 * HFA3841 - MAC • DS
 * HFA3861 - BBP • DS
 * HFA3861A - BBP • DS
 * HFA3861B - BBP • DS
 * HFA3783 - QAM • DS
 * HFA3683(A) - RFIC • DS
 * HFA3983 - PA • DS

PRISM 2.5

 * HFA3842 - MAC • DS
 * HFA3842A - MAC • DS
 * HFA3842B - MAC • DS
 * HFA3863 - BPP • DS


 * ISL3873 - MAC/BBP (PCMCIA/USB) • DS
 * ISL3873A - MAC/BBP (PCMCIA/USB) • DS
 * ISL3874 - MAC/BBP (PCI) • DS
 * ISL3874A - MAC/BBP (PCI) • DS
 * ISL3783 - QUAD IF (QAM) • DS
 * ISL3685 - RF/IF (CONV) • DS
 * ISL3984 - PA (RMPA-2455) • DS
 * ISL3183 - VCO (GEN 748MHz)

PRISM 3

 * ISL3871 - MAC/BBP (PCMCIA) • DS
 * ISL3871A - MAC/BBP (PCMCIA) • DS
 * ISL3872 - MAC/BBP (PCI) • DS
 * ISL3684 - QAM/DS/RFIC (CONV) • DS
 * ISL3684A - QAM/DS/RFIC (CONV) • DS
 * ISL3984 - PA • DS
 * ISL3985 - PA • DS
 * ISL3084 - VCO

Digital Ocean

 * Detailed timeline in this court document:
 * http://www.digocean.com - former WWW home of Digital Ocean
 * (via archive.org, Nov. 1996)
 * All pages captured by archive.org on the digocean.com domain
 * Digital Ocean's High-Speed Craft for 802.11 Voyages - ''SETH
 * Chip MAC'' in 128-pin TQFP chip pkg. (same as HFA3841 / HERMES)
 * NOTE: At the time of this article the MAC controller was called SETH, it has since been renamed "PROTEUS" (block diagram)

Choice Microsystems

 * http://www.choicemicro.com - presumably the former and short lived WWW home of Choice Microsystems (via archive.org, Sep. 1999)
 * Press release regarding acquisition by Harris

No Wires Needed (NWN)

 * Intersil acquires No Wires Needed B.V. on May 2000
 * NWN Poldhu - Intersil ISL3856 (rebranded)
 * NWN Swallow - Swallow 550/1100 (Parrot 1100)

Conexant
WLAN chipsets history:
 * PRISM chipset developed by Harris Semiconductor
 * PRISM2 chipset by Intersil unveiled on August 24, 1999
 * Harris Semiconductor changed its name to Intersil Corporation on July 16, 1999
 * Intersil's Wireless Networking was bought by GlobespanVirata on August 28, 2003
 * Conexant (formerly Rockwell) merged with GlobespanVirata on November 3, 2003

Patents

 * US 5371734 A: Medium access control protocol for wireless network
 * (Published Dec. 6, 1994, Digital Ocean Inc. (Michael A. Fischer) )
 * The microcontroller, in its presently preferred form, is a Motorola 68HC16 microprocessor.


 * CA 2154897 C: Medium access control protocol for wireless network
 * (Published Sep. 21, 1999, Choice Technology Inc. (Michael A. Fischer) and others)