South Side-based specialized chip developer Akustica Inc. said yesterday that it had raised $15 million in financing.

The firm, which specializes in so-called MEMs technology, for micro-electromechanical systems, is developing tiny speakers and microphones for use in such devices as cell phones, personal digital assistants and laptop computers.

The latest round of venture capital financing is in addition to $12.5 million Akustica had previously raised since being founded by Chief Technology Officer and Carnegie Mellon University engineering professor Ken Gabriel and Chief Executive Officer James Rock in early 2002.

Rock said the new financing, led by local firm Rangos Investments and Palo Alto, Calif.-based Mobius Venture Capital, would be used to help the firm bring its first product to market -- an analog microphone chip designed for cell phones.

Akustica has landed one major customer that Rock declined to name and plans to begin shipping large commercial volumes of the product later this year. It currently is producing and shipping prototype and trial quantities of its microphone to cell phone makers.

The new round of financing also will be used to further develop the firm's second product, a more-advanced digital microphone chip that cell phone makers are expected to adopt in their products in the future, Rock said. "Our prospective customers are increasingly interested in all digital components for their products," he said.

Rock said he plans to continue aggressively hiring, meeting its pledge to fill engineering and operations positions that will grow the firm from 35 to nearly 130 at its SouthSide Works offices by 2007.