E4's second generation is due at the beginning of next year, and it is for HDTV encoding...................
techweb.com
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August 25, 1997, Issue: 1072
Section: Semiconductors
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C-Cube's digital codec targets HDTV market
By Mark Hachman
Silicon Valley- C-Cube Microsystems has laid the foundation for OEMs to include low-cost MPEG-2 codecs in PCs and set-top boxes beginning in 1998.
While the majority of suppliers concentrate on improving their video decoders by integrating more functionality, C-Cube has anticipated the high-definition-television (HDTV) market with its DVx digital video codec, which enables designers to encode and decode video in real time. The single-chip codec also combines encoding functions that have required a combination of discrete chips from other suppliers.
Finally, C-Cube has attempted to alter the status quo by encoding directly into the MPEG-2 format, rather than the motion JPEG format used by other suppliers.
Typically, encoding and decoding video have been separate functions performed by separate chips. Because of the nature of the MPEG-2 standard, the procedure for decoding MPEG-2 video has been well defined, according to Bob Saffari, senior marketing manager at C-Cube Microsystems, Milpitas, Calif.
"On the other hand, the sacrifices made to ensure easy MPEG-2 decoding have meant that there are numerous means to encode video, some of them more expensive than others. However, the variety also leaves room for innovation."
For now, C-Cube has designed the DVxpert 5110, which encodes broadcast-quality MPEG-2 data in the 4:2:0 profile, designed for buyers at HDTV broadcasting studios. A DVxpert 6210 4:2:2 encoder does partition some of the functions into a second chip. C-Cube executives plan to have a single-chip 4:2:2 codec by the beginning of next year.
In 1998, the company plans to tweak the architecture to allow PC OEMs to design machines allowing end users to create video content. "Through this chip, we can liberate digital video from the professional space and move it into the [consumer] PC," said Joe Sutherland, product marketing manager at C-Cube.
At that point, the company expects that single-chip architecture will be a key component in reducing cost, Sutherland said. However, the fact that the chip encodes directly into the MPEG-2 bit stream will save storage costs as well.
In the 4:2:0 format, C-Cube can achieve the variable bit rate (required by DVDs) at only 4 Mbits/s, Saffari said.
"At 8 megabits per second, we can produce content that is indistinguishable from the original uncompressed video," he said. "This means that a user can store his video on a hard drive or rewritable DVD and not need a server or RAID subsystem."
Both DVxpert products include C-Cube's PerfectView technology, which ensures a clear image through prefiltering, error masking, and inverse telecine processing.
The DVxpert products are sampling in 352-pin BGAs, and will begin production in the fourth quarter. In 10,000s, the DVxpert 5110 is $1,500; the DVxpert 6210 is $2,500.
Copyright r 1997 CMP Media Inc. |
