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Volume 57 (June 22, 2006)

EMMA, for Leading Digital Broadcasting Worldwide

As digital broadcasting becomes more widespread, the EMMA Series of system LSI chips are contributing to the compatibility of HDTV broadcasting with key digital AV appliances, namely the set-top box (STB), the digital TV and the DVD recorder.

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"Enjoy higher image quality that creates a sense of presence and CD-quality sound!"

Digital broadcasting is now in operation throughout the world. In Japan, TV stations began terrestrial digital broadcasting in late 2003. In North America, digital broadcasting started in 2004 and eventually forced an increase in digital tuner installations and in Plug & Play compatibility with cable TV. In Europe, DVB-H.264 (HDTV) broadcasting service began in 2006, and now the demand for digital TV is expected to increase worldwide (Figure 1).

The key digital AV appliances for digital broadcasting are the set-top box (STB), the digital TV and the DVD recorder. For these products, NEC Electronics is offering the EMMA Series of HDTV broadcast-compatible system LSI devices.

The EMMA2RH, a typical product of the EMMA Series, is a system LSI chip for DVD recorders that support the digital broadcasting era. The single-chip device integrates the digital broadcast receiving function and DVD recorder function, incorporates a high-performance stream processor and is capable of recording two analog broadcasts and digital broadcasting simultaneously. The integration of multiple functions on a single chip reduces the number of system components and the area of the circuit board, and thereby reduces system costs.

In the development of these LSI devices, it was no easy matter to integrate the HDTV broadcast receiving function and DVD recorder function on a single chip, as both involve complex hardware and software. In the case of recording three programs, including a digital broadcast and two terrestrial analog broadcasts, for example, over 100 kinds of streams must be processed simultaneously. To process such a complex signal at high speed, the EMMA2RH device incorporates 12 CPU cores, including a 64-bit application CPU and a 32-bit CPU for real-time processing, so that the various units can process instructions in parallel (Figure 2). In addition, software development efficiency can be raised and the development period shortened by integrating the software for those various cores. The EMMA products have been highly rated, and recently received the "Third Manufacturing Component Award" (sponsored by the Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun with support from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry) for electrical and electronic products in Japan.

In addition to the EMMA2RH, other devices in the EMMA Series, such as the EMMA2SL/S for set-top boxes and the EMMA2HL for digital TVs, have been adopted as LSI chips for typical digital home appliances by many customers throughout the world. We are also proceeding with development of products for the next-generation DVD standards and plan to expand the line-up of world-leading products for digital broadcasting (Figure 3). In addition to supplying products, we are also conducting technical support for digital AV in Japan, Europe, North America and other major regions around the world. For the China market, which is expected to grow in the future, we have established the China Digital AV Application Center (CDAC) and plan to move forward with worldwide support (Figure 4).

Masao Hirasawa, General Manager of the Digital AV Systems Division, describes the EMMA Series in the following way.

"Offering semiconductor devices for digital home appliances is one of the core businesses for NEC Electronics, and it is an area to which we are committed. As a line-up of ASSP (application-specific standard products) for digital home electronics, the highly rated EMMA Series has been adopted by customers for use in STB, digital TVs, DVD recorders and other such products. Products for more advanced functions have successively appeared in the digital home appliance market and the product life cycle is becoming shorter. While there is no end to the difficulties of development, we continue to develop products that contribute to higher functionality and lower costs in the hope of making our lives more convenient and richer."

NEC Electronics will continue to strive for the development of products and technology to draw us into the digital HDTV era.

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