e.Digital Corporation (fka EDIG)

[gernb1]

Speech recognition solution deployed in OMAP processors
Business Wire (July 2, 2002)

ATLANTA, Jul 2, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Today, ART Advanced Recognition Technologies, Inc., acknowledged global pioneer of natural Human User Interface technologies for the mobile world, announced that it has ported its latest speech recognition solution, the smARTspeak XG(TM), to the OMAP(TM) family of high-performance, ultra-low power application processors from Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI).

From the leading independent producers of speech and natural handwriting recognition software, the smARTspeak XG brings phonemic recognition to wireless mobile devices for the first time. Providing embedded, speaker independent name dialing and other command functions, the XG is an evolution of the smARTspeak NG previously ported to the OMAP platform.

TI's widely adopted, scalable OMAP platform delivers optimal performance and power consumption to basic, multimedia-enhanced and high-end 2.5G and 3G wireless devices. Since the smARTspeak XG's embedded software solution was especially designed to provide increasing functionality within the same resource-limited environment, it was perfectly placed to help the OMAP platform address the challenges of running the advanced applications demanded by next-generation mobile phones, smartphones and other mobile Internet appliances.

"Mobile device users will enjoy a greater degree of freedom with advanced speech and handwriting recognition such as that provided by ART," said Paul Werp, worldwide director of marketing for TI's OMAP platform. "Speech and handwriting recognition technology on 2.5 and 3G mobile devices will enhance the way mobile users communicate. ART's smARTspeak XG's embedded solution using TI's OMAP platform will significantly assist in differentiating device functionality."

"We're sure that advanced device manufacturers and application developers will quickly discover the dynamic opportunities that ART's innovative smARTspeak XG opens up to the high performance of TI's OMAP platform," said Eran Aharonson, ART's President. "With our experience of seamlessly integrating ART's embedded software into TI's leading wireless platform -- and the fact that it was specifically designed to support the same popular operating systems such as Symbian OS, Microsoft Windows CE; Palm OS -- they can now take even fuller advantage of the powerful new technology in the OMAP platform's open, easy-to-use programming environment."

About the smARTspeak XG

The smARTspeak XG is the first embedded speaker independent name dialing solution designed for wireless mobile devices. Based on phonemic identification, the XG needs no training to perform accurate name dialing, no matter how command sentences are structured. Thus 'Call John Smith in his office' or 'John Smith - office' both provide the same accurate response. Updating the smARTspeak NG platform, the XG offers the previously popular modular features of speaker dependent name dialing, speaker independent continuous digit dialing, speaker independent command & control and trainable continuous digit dialing for custom languages.

Allowing near infinite out of the box freedom, the XG -- being truly speaker independent -- now means the same device can respond with equal accuracy to the commands of multiple users. Thus the smARTspeak XG is another step towards the ultimate user experience.

About the OMAP Developer Network

ART Advanced Recognition Technologies, Inc. is a member of TI's OMAP Developer Network, a group of software developers writing wireless applications for mobile Internet devices. OMAP developers enjoy a variety of tools and support to enable rapid application development for leading operating systems and programming languages plus the opportunity to collaborate with a range of developers designing applications such as multimedia, security, location based services, mobile commerce and gaming. OMAP developers also benefit from TI's fully open OMAP platform, which has been selected by Nokia, Sony, Ericsson, Palm, NEC, Fujitsu, Hewlett Packard, Sendo, HTC and others for their 2.5 and 3G wireless devices. For more information about the OMAP Developer Network, please visit http://www.ti.com/sc/omapdevelopers.

About ART Advanced Recognition Technologies, Inc.

Established in 1990, ART Advanced Recognition Technologies, Inc., is the acknowledged pioneer and market leader in Natural User systems of embedded Speech and Handwriting Recognition for mobile devices. Having generated over a decade of software innovation, today it develops and markets technologically superior solutions for the control and command of mobile devices by the human voice and natural handwriting. Through its range of proprietary technologies based on unique, signal-processing algorithms, ART provides next-generation human user interface solutions for cellular handsets, smartphones, mobile communicators, PDAs and handhelds, and automotive systems.

Today, ART's embedded software-only solutions are deployed in dozens of product lines from industry leaders such as Acer, Casio, Franklin, GVC, Hitachi, Hutel, Konka, LGE, Inventec, Maxon, Mitsubishi, NeoPoint, Panasonic, Philips, Quanta, Samsung, Siemens Automotive and others. ART has strategic and technological partnerships with industry leaders including Agere Systems, Analog Devices, DSP Group, e-SIM, Microsoft, Motorola, OTM Technologies, Parthus, Pegasus, Persay, Symbian, Texas Instruments and TTPCom.

Based in the United States, with sales offices on the East and West Coasts, ART maintains a wholly owned Israeli subsidiary -- ART Ltd. -- where research and development are conducted. ART is active in the US, European, and Asian markets.

For more about ART see: http://www.artcomp.com.

smARTspeak XG(TM) and smARTspeak NG(TM) are trademarks of ART Advanced Recognition Technologies, Inc. Other product or service names mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners.

CONTACT: ART Advanced Recognition Technologies, Inc.

Roy Timor, [phone], ext. 139

[e-mail]

or

Gabi Artzi, [phone]