PR947
Fujitsu Microelectronics Europe
Fujitsu Releases Full HD H.264/MPEG-2 Encoder/Transcoder ICs
Industry-leading low power to drive full High Definition products
Langen, Germany, 9th June 2009 — Fujitsu Microelectronics Europe (FME) is pleased to announce its latest solutions in the form of two IC packages for encoding and transcoding between Full High Definition (HD) H.264(*1) and MPEG-2(*2) streams. The MB86H57 (15 x 15mm) and MB86H58 (27 x 27mm) encoder/transcoder ICs include memory-in-package and feature low power consumption of only 1W in full transcoding operation.
The devices can be deployed for conversion between MPEG-2 and H.264 AVC streams up to full HD (1920 x 1080i) as well as between audio formats and can also be used as MPEG-2 (SD) or H.264 AVC (QVGA, SD & HD) encoders.
The industry-leading low power consumption combined with the small form factor of the MB86H57 allows the devices to be used in applications such as video adapters for wireless transmission in home networks or portable recording devices. In addition to the transcoding function, the new ICs include encryption engines allowing secure transmission of the output streams for digital rights management (DRM) based applications.
Fujitsu has improved the low power consumption technology used in its earlier H.264 Full HD Codec ICs using proprietary video encoding algorithms developed by Fujitsu Laboratories, maintaining high video compression performance by reducing processing load. This technology has been well proven in the market in various products in the consumer arena as well as in battery-powered applications.
Target Applications
- PC grabber cards
H.264 encoding supporting flexible video resolutions via PCI I/F or PCI Express I/F - Portable digital video recorder (DVR)
HD video encoding into mass storage devices (HDD, CF, SD, etc.) - Personal video recorder (PVR)
Transcoding feature from MPEG-2 HD/SD or H.264 HD content received by an STB into H.264 SD or less resolution, in order to store it on USB sticks for portable video players - Home Networking
Transcoding of HD content received at main STB at home to H.264 SD or MPEG-2 SD that can be transmitted via streaming to client-STBs in a multi-room system
Key Features
- Industry-leading low power consumption and small form-factor
Fujitsu Microelectronics’ proprietary transcoding technology has enabled the company to create a Full HD H.264/MPEG-2 transcoder with industry-leading low power consumption. Using Fujitsu’s 65nm process technology the power consumption in Full HD transcoding operation is just 1.0W including one 512Mb FCRAM™(*3)-in-package. In addition, the MB86H57 small form-factor option will allow the creation of innovative portable and mobile products. - Necessary functions for recording digital broadcasts in a single chip
Both ICs integrate all the necessary functions for systems developed to record digital broadcasts, including security functions and an interface to digital TV demodulators. - H.264/MPEG-2 bi-directional transcoder functionality
Building on the functionality of the previous generation product, MB86H52, to transcode from MPEG-2 to H.264, these new ICs also transcode from H.264 to MPEG-2 SD. With this additional capability the new devices support the majority of formats used worldwide. The combination of transcoding and time re-stamping allows the audio operation to be adjusted to customer needs. - Interfaces to connect peripheral ICs
Both products contain a variety of interfaces for improved connectivity. As a host interface to connect to an external CPU, there is a 16-bit parallel interface and a TS interface for video streaming. In addition, the MB86H57 and MB86H58 have serial, PCI, PCI Express and USB interfaces. Connection to external ROM is also possible, enabling high-speed boot-up for equipment deploying the ICs.
Availibility
Engineering samples are expected to be available for the end of July 2009 and mass production will start in Q1/2010.
Leveraging Fujitsu’s expertise in image and video processing related technologies and products, Fujitsu Microelectronics will continue to strengthen its video processing ICs for the recorder and STB markets, focusing on video processing Application-Specific Standard Products (ASSPs).
Key specifications
Glossary and Notes:
*1. MPEG-2: A video compression format (codec) that is part of the MPEG standard for video compression. MPEG-2 is widely used in DVDs
and other video products.
*2. H.264: Refers to MPEG4 AVC/H.264, a video-encoding format (codec) noted for offering more compression than MPEG-2 and other earlier
formats. Jointly defined by the International Telecommunication Union, Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) and
International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission (ISO/IEC), it is the most recent
international standard for video compression.
*3. FCRAM™ (Fast Cycle RAM): Fujitsu Microelectronics’ proprietary RAM core architecture featuring high-speed and low power consumption.
About Fujitsu Microelectronics Europe
Fujitsu Microelectronics Europe (FME) is a major supplier of semiconductor products. The company provides advanced systems
solutions to the automotive, digital TV, mobile telephony, communications, networking and industrial markets. Engineers from
design centres dedicated to microcontrollers, graphics controllers, mixed-signal, wireless, multimedia ICs, ASIC products
and software development, work closely with FME's marketing and sales teams throughout EMEA to help satisfy customers' systems
development requirements. This solutions approach is supported by a broad range of advanced semiconductor devices, IP, building
blocks and software.
For more information, please see: FME Homepage
All company or product names referenced herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Information provided in this press release is accurate at time of publication and is subject to change without advance notice.
