Introduction
NEC Electronics offers a range of LSI for interfaces.
Types of Interfaces:
USB
These days it’s very hard to find PCs without USB. Most peripheral devices can be connected to a PC through USB as "Hot Plug and Play." Also, these days, the focus is getting more on other fields as digital AV and embedded devices.
The USB technology of NEC Electronics leads PC vendors to be best players in the world market.
USB Products
- USB2.0 Host Controller
- USB2.0 Hub Controller
- USB2.0 IDE Bridge
- USB2.0 Function Controller
- USB1.1 Hub Controller
Certified Wireless USB
An interface standard that allows wireless connection while inheriting the ease of use and data transfer speed of USB 2.0 is called as Certified Wireless USB.
NEC Electronics has launched the next-generation "Certified Wireless USB" technology into the "Connectivity" market.
Main Features
A high-speed communication technology for short-distance communication via a wide band is used by Certified Wireless USB technology. UWB offers the following merits exploiting the features of USB 2.0:
Wireless transfer rate of up to 480 Mbps, the same as USB 2.0
The data transfer speed across a distance of approximately 3 meters can be availed through Certified Wireless USB. This is a typical range for the connection of personal computers and peripherals. This speed can theoretically reach 480 Mbps which is equivalent to that of the existing USB 2.0 standard. This eases the installation of equipment requiring high-speed transfer of large amounts of data such as printers and external storage. The need to carry around cables for transferring data from portable devices such as portable HDD players and digital cameras to a personal computer is also eliminated.
Same ease of use and convenience as existing USB devices
Existing USB standards and Certified Wireless USB standard have various similarities. By fitting them with a Certified Wireless USB module either internally or externally, existing systems can be adapted to Certified Wireless USB. Thus it is possible to continue using existing drivers in personal computers, etc.
Power saving and low-cost development
The realization of lower power consumption transmission/reception circuits in addition to high-speed wireless communication is allowed by the use of the MB-OFDM (Multi-Band OFDM) method. Certified Wireless USB communication achieves a reduction in circuit scope by limiting the network connection mode to one-to-many, in cases when there are several personal computers and peripherals, by defining beforehand a master/slave relationship among devices such as "host and unlike a wireless system that assumes many-to-many communication. It is possible to continue using existing production lines, allowing for cost saving as well as easy support of future integration, as CMOS technology can be used in the RF processing block.
Security
No special settings are required for host devices that support Certified Wireless USB to communicate with each other. When security settings are not performed, anyone within the transmission range can receive the transmitted data, meaning that data may be stolen or rewritten without the user being aware of this, and thus predetermined countermeasures are required. Certified Wireless USB uses a system based on special procedures between the host and devices in order to ensure a level of security comparable with wired communication.
Main Products
- Certified Wireless USB Host Controller
- Certified Wireless USB Device Wire Adapter
Serial ATA
An advanced storage interface with state-of-the-art specifications is provided to the users by NEC Electronics' Serial ATA Solution. NEC provides various consulting and technical support services to the customers who develop their own sets using this IP core. NEC Electronics delivers flexible solution that meets the needs of the users.
SATA Products
PHY cores (supporting 3 Gbps), link/transport layer cores, and application layer cores are also provided by NEC Electronics. These are all compliant with Serial ATA1.0a/Serial ATA-II Rev.1.2. So, the SATA IP core solution offered by NEC enable both system optimization and short development TAT.
Features of NEC Electronics' Cores
- Compliant with SerialATA1.0/SerialATA-II. The cores are developed through applying the draft specifications in advance (support of SSC (spread spectrum clocking), NCQ, etc.).
- Provision for physical layer (PHY), link layer (Link), transport layer (Transport), and even up to application layer in some cases.
- Application-based cores archived.
Example of Supplied Cores
Serial ATA PHY (physical layer) core
Currently a Serial ATA-II-compliant 1- to 8-channel PHY core (hardware core) with a transfer rate of 3.0 Gbps, is being supplied on a CB12 process chip. The 90m version will also be supplied.
Serial ATA transport I/F core
This is a transport I/F core that combines the above PHY core with a software core that consists of a host-side link layer, transport layer, and registers. This is Ideal for customers who develop their own application layers (DMA, I/F control, etc.).
Serial ATA Register I/F core (Expected to be released in FY2006/1Q)
This is an application layer (control register, FIFO, PIO, and IF controls) has been combined with transport interface. Here, users only need to add DMA controller and on-chip bus to bus interface to centralize the Serial ATA functions.
PCI Express
The next-generation computer bus interface protocol for high-speed data transfer is the PCI Express standard. PCI Express solutions offered by NEC Electronics are designed for a variety of customer needs.
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