Accelerated Technology Announces First Commercial RTOS and Development Tools for Altera's Nios II Embedded Processors

MOBILE, Ala., May 19, 2004 - Accelerated Technology®, the Embedded Systems Division of Mentor Graphics Corporation (Nasdaq: MENT), today announced the first commercial real-time operating system (RTOS) and development tools support for the new Nios II embedded processor family from Altera Corporation. The Nucleus® software and the code|lab® tools provide a royalty-free solution from which Nios II processor developers can build their embedded applications for networking and telecommunications markets, as well as automotive, digital entertainment and industrial control applications entirely from start to finish.

The Nucleus PLUS real-time kernel, the code|lab embedded development environment (EDE) and the code|lab Debug debugging software round out Accelerated Technology's complete embedded offering for the new Nios II family of embedded, soft-core processors.

The Nucleus PLUS real-time kernel, the basis for the Nucleus family of products, is reliable, efficient and scalable. The addition of the code|lab software extends the offering by providing the necessary development tools to simplify the application design process and improve time-to-market for system-on-a-programmable-chip (SOPC) developers -- providing Nios II processor users with a first-class embedded software development environment and debugger. 

"The 32-bit Nios II family of processors build on the unrivaled success of the original 16-bit Nios CPU, providing mainstream processing horsepower to address a wider range of embedded applications," said Craig Lytle, vice president of Altera's intellectual business unit. "Our partnership with Accelerated Technology maintains a consistent and powerful set of software tools for Nios II designers to develop complex application code." 

"The Nucleus software and the code|lab tools were very successful for us on the Nios core. We expect that the 32-bit Nios II family of processors will allow customers to build applications that are even more complex and higher performing, thus increasing the demand for our complete solutions," said Robert Day, director of marketing, Mentor Graphics Embedded Systems Division.

Support for the code|lab products for the Nios II processor includes the Nucleus PLUS real-time kernel, code|lab EDE, an embedded development environment, and code|lab Debug, a multitasking debugger.

About the Nios II Family of Embedded Processors
Altera's Nios II family of soft-core embedded processors is optimized for programmable logic and SOPC integration. With three Nios II cores and multiple field-programmable gate array (FPGA) device families to choose from, developers can accommodate a wide range of performance and price points. The Nios II cores are general-purpose RISC processors that can be combined with user logic and programmed into an Altera FPGA. The processor features a 32-bit instruction set, 32-bit data path, and configurable instruction and data caches. Nios II embedded processors are royalty free when used in Altera PLDs and HardCopy(tm) devices. An ASIC license for OEM applications is available for an additional charge. For more information, visit www.altera.com/nios.

Availability and Pricing
The Nucleus embedded software is sold in source code format and without royalty fees. Available now, licenses for the Nucleus software begin at $12,495 and licenses for the code|lab Embedded Developer Suite start at $3,495 per seat. For more information, please contact Accelerated Technology at 800-468-6853 or info@acceleratedtechnology.com.

About Mentor Graphics
Mentor Graphics Corporation (Nasdaq: MENT) is a world leader in electronic hardware and software design solutions, providing products, consulting services and award-winning support for the world's most successful electronics and semiconductor companies. Established in 1981, the company reported revenues over the last 12 months of about $675 million and employs approximately 3,700 people worldwide. Corporate headquarters are located at 8005 S.W. Boeckman Road, Wilsonville, Oregon 97070-7777; Silicon Valley headquarters are located at 1001 Ridder Park Drive, San Jose, California 95131-2314. World Wide Web site: www.mentor.com.

Accelerated Technology, Embedded Systems Division of Mentor Graphics Corporation, is located in Mobile, Alabama with sales offices and distributors worldwide. By providing embedded systems developers with a focus on service, well-documented source code and industry-leading non-royalty-based Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) software including kernels, middleware, prototyping software, development tools and modeling software, AT's suite of products shorten time-to-market and provide a complete solution for engineers.  For more information, please visit www.acceleratedtechnology.com or email us at info@acceleratedtechnology.com.

Mentor Graphics, Accelerated Technology, Nucleus and code|lab are registered trademarks of Mentor Graphics Corporation. All other company or product names are the registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective owners.

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