World's Lowest Cost Multi-Standard DVB-T, DAB/DAB+ and FM TV and Radio Reference Design
10 February 2010

Elonics the RF semiconductor company and Realtek Semiconductor Corp., one of the world’s leading network and multimedia IC providers, have combined forces to create a premium performance, multi-standard DVB-T, DAB/DAB+ and FM  TV and Radio reference design.  This proven platform can be adopted by manufacturers as an external USB dongle or internal USB Minicard. 

What makes this reference design best in class is its ability to receive both digital TV and  radio. The same hardware is used to receive all standards by seamlessly reconfiguring the personality of the devices using the supplied software drivers.  The device operates in both VHF and L band frequencies. It has low power consumption (~650mW fully active) and the ultra low component count creates appealingly low production costs.

“With high sensitivity performance (-98dBm QPSK, C/R  1/2, DVB-T, 8MHz), the design is proven to work even in the weakest signal environments. This significantly increases reliable geographic operability making it the preferred option for anyone wanting consistent high performance channel choice,” said Julian Hayes, Elonics Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

“Most Notebooks lack the convenience of DTV and Radio reception ability,” said Realtek’s Executive Vice President Jessy Chen. “We are pleased to cooperate with Elonics to easily and cost-effectively introduce a new world of entertainment options to the standard notebook computer via our multi-function RTL2832U USB2.0 demodulator.”

Manufacturers can bring their end product rapidly to market as all necessary hardware and full software support is included in the reference design. This includes WHQL certified drivers plus Windows 7.0 and WMC AQ support. Player software is from Arcsoft and Newsoft Technology which is compatible with Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7.0.

The production-ready TV and radio USB design contains Elonics E4000 CMOS RF Tuner that uses DigitalTuneTM technology to enable high performance and multi-standard capabilities.  The companion Realtek RTL2832U is a Digital TV and Radio USB2.0 demodulator with DVB-T and FM/DAB/DAB+  reception ability.

The reference design surpasses Nordig 2.0, D-Book 5.0 and ETSI 300-744 requirements and can be used for PCs of any size (including portable notebooks and netbooks). It is available in a number of different form factors and feature options.  The USB dongle comes in a number of different sizes from 31mm x 18mm including USB connector.

 

Features of the DVB-T, DAB/DAB+ and FM Radio USB Dongle or Minicard:

Production Ready TV and Radio USB Dongle or Minicard
• E4000 CMOS RF Tuner
• Realtek RTL2832U DTV and Radio USB 2.0 Demodulator

Multiple TV and Radio Systems Supported
• DVB-T
• DAB/DAB+
• FM Radio

Frequency supported for DAB
• VHF & L band

Ultra Low Component Count
• Low Cost Passive Components for Optimal Performance
• Single Crystal Solution
• Simple PMU Design

Fast Time-to-Market
• Schematics and Gerber Files
• Full Documentation Package

Full Software Support
• WHQL Certified Drivers
• Windows 7.0 and WMC AQ Support
• Player Software from Arcsoft and Newsoft Technology

 

Benefits of DVB-T, DAB/DAB+ and FM Radio USB Dongle or Minicard:

 High Sensitivity Digital TV Design (DVB-T, 8MHz)
• -98dBm QPSK, C/R  1/2
• -80dBm 64 QAM, C/R 7/8

Low Power Consumption
• ~650mW Fully Active

 

Typical Applications DVB-T, DAB/DAB+ and FM Radio USB Dongle:

• PC-TV

 

 

About Elonics - “Wireless Silicon for a Digital Age”
Elonics Ltd. is a fabless mixed-signal semiconductor company specialising in the design and development of multi-band radio frequency (RF) IC products. Founded in 2003 and based in Livingston, United Kingdom, Elonics has developed an innovative radio frequency architecture called DigitalTune™ that is the foundation for a family of re-configurable CMOS RF front end products.

Elonics innovative technology allows manufacturers to design high performance multi-band radio transceivers with unrivalled power consumption and low system cost.  Elonics products are targeted at high volume portable consumer electronics applications that require wireless multi-media connectivity where size, performance, price and power consumption are paramount.  Elonics’ first product family is the E4000 series of silicon tuner solutions targeted at the reception of multi-standard digital TV and radio including DVB-T, ISDB-T, T-DMB, DVB-H, ISDB-T, DMB-T, DAB and FM radio. 

About Elonics’ DigitalTune™ multi-band tuner technology
Conventional TV and radio tuners are intrinsically inflexible. Each broadcast standard has traditionally been served by separate radio receivers comprising an RF tuner and a digital demodulator. This makes them unable to meet the new challenges of today’s cost conscious multi-tasking and multi-standard consumer products. The ideal solution is a single flexible RF tuner capable of receiving signals ranging from low MHz to GHz. The Elonics’ DigitalTune™ multi-band tuner technology does exactly that, replacing the need for multiple tuners with a single re-configurable RF CMOS IC.

At the heart of Elonics tuner is DigitalTune™, a patent pending radio frequency architecture that uniquely allows each stage of the RF signal processing to be adjusted under digital control. This strategy has a number of benefits over traditional tuners that typically use analogue control voltages to manage the RF signal gain. As well as providing superior programmability and flexibility, it can be used to adjust the performance of the tuner for optimum linearity or noise figure according to the signal conditions. DigitalTune™ also helps overcome some of the inherent process limitations of CMOS, and allows Elonics to utilise its benefits to lower power consumption and silicon cost.

About Realtek
Realtek Semiconductor Corp. is one of the world’s leading IC providers. Realtek designs and develops a wide range of IC products for communications network, computer peripheral, and multimedia applications. Products include 10/100/1000M Ethernet Controllers/PHYs, 10/100/1000M Ethernet Switch Media Converter/Gateway Controllers, Wireless LAN Controllers & AP/Router SoCs, DSL Chips, VoIP Solutions, AC’97/High Definition Audio Codecs, Clock Generators, Card Reader Controllers, Web Camera Controllers, LCD Monitor/ATV/DTV Controllers, and Digital Media Processors. With advanced design expertise in RF, analog, and mixed signal circuits, and with strong manufacturing and system knowledge, Realtek offers full-featured, high-performance, and competitive total solutions. More information on Realtek can be found on our web site: www.realtek.com.

Further information:
Julian Hayes, Elonics Ltd., Alba Centre, Alba Campus, Livingston, EH54 7EG, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1506 402 360. Email: julian.hayes@elonics.com

Press information:
Ann Gowans, Elonics Ltd., Alba Centre, Alba Campus, Livingston, EH54 7EG, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1506 402 360. Email: ann.gowans@elonics.com

Website: www.elonics.com