1998-03-12 , E/IC-853/65

Philips Semiconductors, the largest European semiconductor manufacturer, today announced a revolutionary new chip-set for digital satellite broadcast set-top boxes that reduces the number of ICs required for QPSK down-conversion and demodulation from four or five ICs down to only three. Based around the company's unique TDA8060 Zero-IF Down Converter, this 3-chip set can handle any DVB or DSS broadcast in the 950 MHz to 2200 MHz frequency band. By eliminating the need for intermediate frequency components such as an IF oscillator, IF mixer and SAW filter, it not only reduces component costs, assembly costs and pc board area, it also eliminates any possibility of IF coupling and leakage causing spurious outputs. The result is significantly better performance at a cost some 20% to 30% lower than existing solutions.

"The Zero-IF principle used in this new chip-set is a major breakthrough in digital satellite tuner design," said product marketing manager Philippe Hermant. "It not only reduces set- top box manufacturing costs but also eliminates one of the most problematic areas for design engineers."

For complete QPSK down-conversion/demodulation of the satellite dish output into an MPEG-2 data stream, the  TDA8060 only needs to be combined with a  TDA8043 or TDA8044 QPSK Demodulator/Forward Error Corrector IC and a low-cost TSA5512 PLL Frequency Synthesizer - making it a true 3-chip solution. Non-critical low-pass filtering is all that is required in the I and Q channels between the TDA8060 and the TDA8043/TDA8044, making the entire circuit alignment-free during manufacture. No 6- bit dual A/D converter chip is required either, as this functionality is integrated into the TDA8043 and TDA8044. Between them, these two demodulator ICs cover worldwide DVB requirements.

To ensure a simple design-in process for this unique chip set, Philips Semiconductors provides tuner manufacturers with a complete reference design in the form of the OM5712 Digital Satellite Tuner Module. The chip-set and the tuner module, both of which are designed and manufactured at Philips Semiconductors' facility in Caen, France, are available now.

Philips Semiconductors, a division of Philips Electronics NV, headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, is the ninth largest semiconductor supplier in the world and the fourth largest supplier of discretes in the world. Philips Semiconductors' innovations in digital audio, video, and mobile technology position the company as a leader in the consumer, multimedia and wireless communications markets. Sales offices are located in all major markets around the world and are supported by systems labs.