Based on what happened in 2013, we think 2014 is going to be a great year for embedded instrumentation. Momentum in the industry in general and for ASSET's tools specifically is really building because more engineers are realizing the value of non-intrusive, software-driven debug, validation and test from the inside out. By that I mean, from the inside of chips outward.
For example, the ecosystem surrounding the IEEE P1687 IJTAG standard for embedded instrumentation is already growing rapidly. Tools companies like Synopsys, Mentor and ASSET have demonstrated their interoperable IJTAG tools for SoCs, boards and systems. And the standard will soon be ratified.
For ASSET, our acquisition of Arium during the second half of 2013 with its software debug and trace tools for Intel and ARM is going to change the embedded instrumentation playing field in 2014. Over time, we'll merge many of the capabilities of the Arium SourchPoint(TM) debugger into our ScanWorks(R) platform for embedded instruments.
Users will still have the standalone debugger, but our goal is to be the first to provide one platform that combines hardware validation and test with software debug and trace. Bringing together powerful software capabilities with our other capabilities like the validation of high-speed serial I/O buses, processor-based structural and functional test, non-intrusive boundary-scan structural test and others creates a lot of exciting possibilities for ASSET in 2014.
