Texas Instruments
1930 Geophysical Service Inc., a small oil and gas company, was established.
WWII Began applying signal processing technologies to submarine detection, then radar
1946 Established an electronics equipment laboratory and manufacturing unit.
1950s Change of name to Texas Instruments Incorporated
1954 Invented the silicon transistor
1958 Jack Kilby of TI invented the integrated circuit, revolutionizing the semi-conductor industry and paving the way for all modern electronics.
1967 Developed the first electronic hand-held calculator. Focussed on developing faster, smaller and more powerful semiconductor chips. The Apollo Lunar Exploration Module containing TI components lands on the moon during this decade.
Introduce the first single-chip microcontroller (MCU) combining all the elements of computing onto one piece of silicon, which was used in appliances, consumer electronics and industrial equipment. TI engineers also invent a single-chip speech synthesizer.
1973 TI calculators supplied by Ryman.
1974 The Sinclair pocket calculator - the Scientific - was the first twelve-function calculator to be built on a single chip, produced by Texas Instruments. Retailed at £49. [1]
1980 TI introduced its first commercial single-chip digital signal processors and produced a microprocessor optimized for high-speed digital signal processing.
1985 TI invented the digital micro-mirror device which provided the foundation for the award-winning DLP technology (Emmy® 1998) and DLP Cinema® (Academy® Plaque 2009).
TI takes embedded processing to the next level with the creation of the MSP430™ MCU –
c.1990 New family of chips introduced designed for low cost and high power efficiency; introduced the first applications processor designed specifically for mobile phones. Also introduced graphics chips for the calculator industry.
1997 Texas Instruments Defense Systems & Electronics group was a leader in the Paveway laser-guided weapon program, as well as other guided missile programs, airborne radar and electro-optics for the US military. The group was sold to Raytheon which had complementary interests.[2]
TI expanded its focus on analogue and embedded processing technologies, providing semiconductor technologies for a diverse set of applications.
2007 Launched the first family of single-chip digital cellphone solutions.
2009 Opened Kilby Labs in Dallas to explore breakthrough and emerging technologies.
2011 Acquired National Semiconductor in anticipation of developing the next-generation of signal-processing technology.
See Also
Sources of Information
- [2] History of TI