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SEAWEED SYSTEMS ANNOUNCES THE SELECTION OF ITS DO-178B CERTIFIABLE 3D OPENGL SUBSET API BY ROCKWELL COLLINS

SEATTLE, Wash. - Mar. 12, 2003 /Send2Press Newswire/ -- Seaweed Systems, Inc., a leading developer and supplier of OpenGL(R) and X Window System embedded graphics driver products today announced its selection by Rockwell Collins for the F-35 program. Seaweed will deliver its DO-178B Level A certifiable, SeaWind/178B-3D CertAssist product to Rockwell Collins' Kaiser Electronics business. Seaweed Systems' software will form an integral part of the avionics platform for the aircraft.

The JSF program calls for Rockwell Collins to supply a state-of-the-art, common display processor to drive three F-35 displays. Two of the displays are Multi-Function Displays (MFDs) and the third is the Helmet Mounted Display (HMD). The modular open system approach taken will allow the displays to adapt to the commercial market and be easily upgradeable throughout the life of the F-35 program, reducing acquisition and ownership costs. The Seaweed Systems driver software is the layer that will provide Lockheed Martin-developed avionics applications access to the capabilities of the graphics device via the open standard graphics language OpenGL(R). This approach allows the program to incorporate upgraded hardware downstream with minimal impact on the developed application software and allows application development to proceed in parallel with certifiable driver development.

"The F-35 is such a high-profile and significant program. We are delighted at the selection of our 3D CertAssist product as part of the common display processor for the F-35 displays. We worked very hard during the highly competitive proposal and selection phase with 3DLabs, our graphics device partner on this program." said Robert Schulman (President, Seaweed Systems).

"Our selection by Rockwell Collins and the whole F-35 displays team is a vote of confidence for Seaweed and 3DLabs. The F-35 displays team put forward an incredibly demanding set of technical and safety requirements and we worked closely with the whole team to try and provide the best solutions to those cutting-edge requirements. The main distinguishing factors in our success on the program were the facts that our certifiable OpenGL(R) driver;

(i)has already been delivered to other customers, offering an already-demonstrable and low-risk approach,

(ii)has been written from scratch specifically for demanding avionics applications of this type, offering the right feature set,

(iii)has been written from scratch to ensure the immediate availability of a complete set of certification artifacts that were generated as part of the development process and not reverse-engineered after the fact,

(iv)has been architected to be efficient in operation, readily certifiable and easy to maintain.

These qualities made it ideally suited to the program where safety-critical certification was a requirement and program risk and schedule were key factors. The F-35 program is a real breakthrough that will see the latest COTS graphics hardware and software technology being used in the world's most advanced combat cockpit. It will also see these systems being developed and delivered to the most stringent safety standards for airborne systems."

About Seaweed Systems, Inc. Seaweed Systems provides software products and consulting services in the embedded X Window System and OpenGL(R) markets. Seaweed Systems' customers, which include BAE SYSTEMS, Boeing, EADS, Lockheed Martin, DY4, Elbit Systems, Ericsson Avionics, General Dynamics, Rockwell Collins, Honeywell, L-3, NASA, Northrop Grumman, Radstone Technology, Raytheon and IS&S, benefit from Seaweed's unmatched price, performance, feature set and implementation schedules in the real-time embedded space. They also benefit from the strong working relationships established between Seaweed Systems and other leading COTS suppliers in this arena such as 3Dlabs, Wind River, Green Hills and Radstone Technology. These relationships ensure that customers are provided with the most complete and advanced product solution possible for both certifiable and non-certifiable developments. Additional information is available at www.seaweed.com

Certain matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could affect the Company's abilities to achieve its objectives and cause actual events to differ materially from expectations.

Seaweed Systems is a trademark of Seaweed Systems, Inc. OpenGL(R) is a trademark of SGI Inc. All other trademarks are acknowledged.

URL: www.seaweed.com

Source of news: Seaweed Systems, Inc.