Taipei, Taiwan: February 10, 2004 – System General today announced the release of the AP600 series automated programming system. The AP600 is a reliable automatic programmer that requires very little operator intervention.

The AP600 maximizes throughput by building on System General’s high-performance 9600 universal programmer. “According to the latest benchmarks released by major semi-houses, the 9600 is the fastest universal programmer available,” says Alex Yang, Director of the Instrument Business Division. “With the AP600 we can now offer our customers a superior automatic programming system that takes full advantage of the 9600’s capabilities.” The 9600 programmer can download large files in seconds through its USB interface.

The gantry of the AP600 travels at high speeds in order to reach a throughput of 800 UPH. High-speed pick-up heads on the gantry allow the system to rapidly complete each device removal/insertion routine. With up to 9 programming sites, the AP600 can generate consistent throughput regardless of the target device size.

The design philosophy of the AP600 is to provide a one-piece-flow programming workstation so that all programming tasks can be finished with minimal human intervention. The handler comes standard with a tray-to-tray interface. An automatic tray stacker and interfaces for tape or tube device packages can be added optionally.

The AP600 is equipped with one downward vision camera plus an upward CCD PRS system for accurate insertion alignment. An efficient alignment mechanism helps reduce Teach overhead for each programming task. The upward CCD corrects the offset of the pick-up head on its way to the socket.

With up to 448 pin drivers, the AP600 can easily be upgraded to support 32/64 bit wide flash memory devices. Its current sensing capability is precise enough even to meet the rigorous demands of Anti-Fuse parts.

More Features
The AP600 operates using a network-oriented Windows OS JOB management system. Optional features include an automatic tray stacker for accommodating up to 20 JEDEC or Non-JEDEC trays and subsystems for laser marking and labeling. Subsystems for supporting tape and tube I/O media are also available.

Applications
The AP600 is ideally suited for programming 32MB to 128MB flash memory devices commonly used in PDAs, mobile phones, and other similar devices. It can also be used for Microcontrollers, FPGA, and most other programmable devices.

Pricing & Availability
The AP600 is currently available. Please contact your nearest sales representative for the latest information.