1998-03-20 , E/IC-1011/43

Confirming its position as the world leader in integrated solutions for Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT), Philips Semiconductors, the largest European semiconductor manufacturer, has introduced its ABC-Pro family of next-generation single-chip baseband controllers for DECT handsets and basestations. Featuring significant performance enhancements, ABC-Pro chips improve the speech quality, transmission range, standby and talk times of DECT telephones.

Fabricated in a 0.35 micron low-voltage low-power CMOS process and featuring advanced activity control that powers down areas of the chip that are not being used, ABC-Pro chips extend standby times by a factor of 5 to 10. Coupled with improved battery management functions, their reduced power consumption means that DECT phones based around ABC-Pro chips can operate for weeks between recharging or be fitted with smaller and lighter 2-cell battery packs.

DECT telephones using ABC-Pro chips also have better range. Improved burst-mode logic provides more reliable error correction and ensures high-speed synchronization to the data stream even under weak signal conditions, making DECT phones less prone to transmission breaks due to multi-path fading and localized attenuation of RF signal strength. Other range enhancing features include an improved GMSK (Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying) modulator in the transmit channel and support for seamless handover between basestations (mobility) in cellular DECT systems.

ABC-Pro chips also provide 'best in class' speech quality when compared to other DECT controllers. Advanced new algorithms, running in an on-chip DSP that has twice the processing power of the company's previous ABC-chip, achieve advanced echo cancellation and conference calling, while improved analog signal processing ensures that high quality sound is maintained right through from the microphone to the earpiece. Additional new features incorporated into the DSP processing include DTMF detection, soft muting and support for digital answering machine/2-way recording functions.

Two versions of the ABC-Pro are initially being introduced at CeBIT '98 - the PCD50912 for handsets and the  PCD50922 for basestations connected to analog phone lines. In readiness for a new generation of ISDN connected small-office and PABX DECT systems, an ABC-Pro chip with an enhanced IOM-2 interface will be introduced later this year.

All ABC-Pro chips feature an embedded  80C51 compatible microcontroller that achieves greater than 2 MIPS performance at 14 MHz. Compared to RISC based embedded processors, which require a high clock frequency, the relatively low clock speed required by this microcontroller core, together with the low clock speed of the highly parallel DSP architecture, keep power dissipation down to unsurpassed levels. Firmware development for the ABC-Pro's mask programmed on-chip ROM is supported by a range of high level language design tools, plus in-circuit emulators from Ashling.

ABC-Pro chips are packaged in 80-lead low-profile quad flat packs. Samples and demonstration boards are available now. Full-scale production is scheduled to begin during the second quarter of '98.

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.

IOM-2 is a registered trademark of Siemens