TOKYO, Japan - OMRON Corporation (TSE: 6645, US: OMRNY), a global leader in electronic components, sensing and control technologies, announced that it will release the world's first commercial polymer antenna for Ultra-Wideband (UWB communications see note 1) targeted toward high-definition (HD) and other telecast quality video transmission applications. Shipping in mass production volume to High Definition television (HDTV) as well as related DVD and projector equipment manufacturers is scheduled to start in spring 2007. The new antenna will be unveiled for preview at OMRON's booth in the CEATEC JAPAN 2006 exhibition to be held at Makuhari Messe, near Tokyo, October 3-7, 2006.

OMRON's latest UWB antenna addresses a clear market need as growing numbers of consumers worldwide upgrade to enjoy the superior HD viewing experience. HDTVs and related DVD players and scalers equipped with this antenna enable consumers to experience telecast quality HD video in their homes, while eliminating the cost and inconvenience of unsightly cables and wires.

Viewing HD content wirelessly requires stable and reliable video transmission. Multiple Input, Multiple Output (MIMO see note 2) wireless technology that optimizes chipset design with antenna, to prevent typical jitters and flickers, can provide this reliability. In particular, demand has been increasing from HDTV ODMs and OEMs for a high-performance antenna optimized with the UltraMIMO technology (see note 3) developed by Silicon Valley based, Tzero Technologies, a leading provider of UWB chipsets for high-quality, wireless, video transmission. Now, in a world-first, OMRON has met this need with a polymer antenna that maintains flatness in gain and omni directivity (see note 4) within standards-based UWB guidelines.

"The antenna is an important part of any wireless solution," said Dan Karr, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Tzero. "OMRON provides an exceptional implementation - optimized for the challenging application of video transmission - that should meet the needs of even the most demanding consumer device manufacturer."

Previously, on June 1, 2006, OMRON launched the WXA-N1SL SMD Polymeric Antenna for Ultra-Wideband (UWB) applications as the first in a series of wireless, high-frequency Wi-PlaDsTM devices (see note 5). By applying its proprietary molding technology to polymer, which lends itself to versatile shaping and mass production, OMRON plans to develop a variety of wireless products under the Wi-PlaDsTM brand, including antennas to suit a wide range of device configurations.

OMRON Develops World's First Commercial Ultra-Wideband (UWB) MIMO Antenna for High-Definition Video Transmission