Sigma Designs and Japanese IP set-top box (STB) specialist Celrun are demonstrating a Linux-based STB supporting WiMedia Ultra-wideband (UWB) networking, this week at the IPTV World Forum in London. The Celrun 900H uses Sigma's SMP8634 media processor and “Windeo” UWB chipset, and runs a 2.4-series kernel.

target=”new” href=”/ldfiles/misc/celrun_900h_stb.jpg”>(Click for larger view of the Celrun 900H)

Sigma/Celrun IPTV World demo (Click to enlarge)

The companies say their respective products can stream compressed high-definition video wirelessly over an extended range. Non-line-of-sight applications are said to be possible, thanks to “Intelligent Array Radio” (IAR) technology.

The 900H is based on Sigma's SMP8634 SoC (system-on-chip), clocked at 300 MHz. The SMP8634 shipped about a year ago, billed as the first SoC for HD-DVD players and set-top boxes to integrate hardware media decoders for “all major formats,” including H.264, WMV9/VC1, and MPEG-2. In addition to Linux, the chip is available with Windows CE support; however, Sigma's BlueRay and STB reference designs based on the SMP8634 come with Linux OSes.

Sigma SMP8634
(Click to enlarge)
The 900H also incorporates Sigma's “Windeo” UWB chipset, which comprises a B7CW201 baseband processor along with an B7CW101 RF chip that contains three integrated radios.

Sigma's UWB chipset block diagram
(Click to enlarge)

Celrun 900H ports
(Click to enlarge)

Additional features and specifications, as listed by Celrun, include:

• Sigma 8634 host processor @ 300MHz
• I/O:
  • 32-bit PCI v2.1
  • IDE(ATA/ATAPI-4/UltraDMA)
  • Ethernet 10/100Mbps
  • USB2.0Host (2Port/Rear)
  • I2C Master/Slave Interface
  • I2S Interface up to 20Mbps
  • Two UARTs
  • Local bus interface supports 802.11 chips (USB wireless dongle)
• Video Interface:
  • YCbCr/RGB digital Video
  • YCbCr/RGB analog video with optional Macrovision protection(480i, 576i, 480p, 576p YPbPr output mode)
• HDMI
• S-Video (NTSC/PAL, Macrovision protection)
• CompositeNTSC/PAL, Macrovision protection
• Audio Interface:
  • Two audio DSPs
  • I2S Audio(Stereo RCA I/O)
  • Five I2S serial digital outputs (optical/coaxial)
  • Digital serial S/PDIF
• Audio In:
  • Mic In (mini phone jack)
• Video Decoding:
  • MPEG-1
  • MPEG-2 [email protected] MPEG-2 SDTV(HDTV): 20(40)Mbps Max
  • MPEG-4.2 [email protected](720p)N/A
  • MPEG4.10(H.264)[email protected](H.264), SDTV(HDTV)
  • [email protected]
  • [email protected]
  • WMV9/[email protected] and VC-1 [email protected]/VC-1 SDTV(HDTV): 20(40)Mbps Max
  • JPEG Decoding (H/W accelerated Baseline)
• Video Processing:
  • 2D graphics accelerator
  • 32-bit OSD (on-screen display)
  • OpenType font rendering acceleration
  • Optional deinterlacing of interlaced sources
  • Arbitrary scaling of video graphics up to 1920×1080
  • Alpha Mixing
• Streaming formats:
  • ISMA MPEG-4.2
  • MPEG-2,MPEG-4
  • WMV9 with DRM
  • MPEG-4.10(H.264) VC-1 over MPEG-2 transport
• 80GB hard drive
• ATSC Tuner (analog & digital NIM Tuner, VSB/QAM multi-tuner)
• Power Adaptor and cables
• IR remote control

Sigma's Mini-PCI Windeo Reference Design Kit (Click for details)

Sigma has previously offered a Windeo reference design built around a mini-PCI card form factor; however, it is not clear whether the Celrun 900H uses such a card, or integrates the Windeo chipset on its main board.

Celrun VP of Marketing BJ Lee stated, “The ability to connect the hub to the IP set-top box wirelessly offers Celrun TV consumers greater flexibility and ease of operation. We have been working on UWB technology for several years.”

Availability

The Celrun 900H appears to be a finished device. However, no availability or pricing details were provided.

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