MB86C30A incorporates USB and SATA signal communication control circuits, protocol and command control circuits with a high-speed encryption/decryption engine on a single device

Fujitsu Microelectronics America, Inc. is now shipping its first generation USB 3.0-Serial ATA (SATA) bridge IC, built with Fujitsu’s own physical layer device (PHY). The new MB86C30A supports the ultra-fast 5Gbps maximum data-transfer rate of USB 3.0, and incorporates an encryption/decryption engine. Samples are being built using Fujitsu’s 65-nanometer low-power process technology, and are available now.

Compared with USB 2.0 connections, the MB86C30A bridge IC provides an order of magnitude increase in data transfer rates from external storage devices such as hard disk drives to PCs. The new bridge IC incorporates on a single chip the USB communication control circuits, SATA communication control circuits, and protocol control and command control circuits. These circuits are required to construct an external USB storage device and to realize 5Gbps data transfer to a host PC. (For an example of a system using the MB86C30A, visit this URL: http://www.fujitsu.com/downloads/MICRO/fma/pdf/USB30_SysEx.pdf.)

The MB86C30A IC also contains an embedded Advanced Encryption Standard (AES engine to protect confidential data from being stolen, unintentionally leaked or lost, and to protect data following the disposal of storage devices. Hardware encryption does not burden the CPU of the host PC, and provides optimal protection for data. The encryption/decryption engine enables data to be easily encrypted for secure storage in external devices such as hard disk drives without impairing the performance of USB 3.0.

“The new USB 3.0-SATA bridge IC provides customers with an innovative, reliable, optimized chip design in a small package. Pricing is competitive because we are using our own PHY and process technology,” said Davy Yoshida, director of business development of the Embedded Platform Solutions business group of Fujitsu Microelectronics America. “We expect our chip to be embedded in devices to be released by the end of this year.”

“Fujitsu has applied its extensive expertise in low-power CMOS technologies for high-speed interfaces including Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, PCI-express, SATA and IEEE 1394. This IC is the first in the MB86C30 series, which was jointly developed with Fujitsu Laboratories Limited, utilizing their high-speed serial interface technologies, and Fujitsu LSI Solution Limited. Fujitsu Microelectronics plans to strengthen and expand its lineup of USB 3.0 standard products for storage devices.”

Features Full USB 3.0 Performance with Encryption Capabilities

Today, PCs and audio-visual equipment handle an expanding volume of data from digital photos to audio and video files, requiring storage devices to have increased volumes and speeds. The USB 2.0 interface, which is used widely in external hard drives and memory sticks, has had a maximum data transfer rate of 480Mbps. To provide faster speeds for reading and writing high volumes of data the USB 3.0 specification was ratified in November 2008. USB 3.0 supplies as much as 10 times the data transfer rate of USB 2.0, along with improved protocol efficiency and power management techniques. The maximum transfer rate of 5Gbps of USB 3.0 allows 10 to 30 GBytes of video data to be copied to a 3.5-inch hard disk drive in one-third to one-fourth the time USB 2.0 needs.

The MB86C30A bridge IC supports two AES operation modes: Cipher Block Chaining (CBC), a mode for encrypting block data, and XTS, the XEX encryption mode with tweak and ciphertext stealing. Both modes are ideal for hard disks in terms of security, strength and speed of encryption/decryption. Three key lengths are supported – 128bit, 192bit and 256bit. High-speed encryption and decryption processing at a maximum of 300 MByte/sec. provides throughput without impairing the performance of USB 3.0.

Availability

Samples of the MB86C30A manufactured in 65nm CMOS process technology are available now in LQFP 64-pin 7mm x 7mm (0.4mm pitch) packages. Volume pricing is available upon request.

Source: Fujitsu Microelectronics America, Inc.


SAM9G45 ARM9-based Embedded MPU offers 480 Mbps EHCI-compliant HS-USB with on-chip PHy, Ethernet and SDIO for high-speed connectivity, plus LCD and Touch Sensing for intelligent UIs.

Atmel Corporation announced the release of the SAM9G45, the first member of a series of 400 MHz ARM926 embedded MPUs that support second generation Dual Data Rate DRAM (DDR2) and are optimized for industrial applications such as building automation, data loggers, POS terminals, alarm systems and medical equipment. Peripherals include EHCI-compliant high-speed USB with on-chip PHy, dual EBI, 10/100 Ethernet MAC, LCD and Touchscreen controller, programmable 1.8 or 3.3 V I/O supply voltage, and a high data bandwidth architecture.

DDR2 to Replace SDRAM in Embedded Applications. Jacko Wilbrink, Atmel’s director of ARM products explained, “The vast majority of ARM9-based embedded MPUs support only SDRAM memories. The problem is that memory availability is driven by the high-volume PC market and SDRAM is basically obsolete for current generation PCs. DDR2 and DDR3 offer higher memory densities, higher performance, lower cost and lower power consumption than SDRAM. That’s where the market is going. In response to the current economic crisis, many memory vendors are literally shutting down their SDRAM fabs. We expect the supply of SDRAM to dwindle in the foreseeable future. This poses a problem for our customers.

“While the minimum external bus of 300 MHz required for DDR3 is far too high for the majority of embedded MPUs,” Mr. Wilbrink continued, “DDR2 is a good option for designers. We believe that DDR2 is predestined to become the memory of choice for the industrial embedded market, which is why Atmel is aggressively integrating DDR2 support in its ARM9(TM)-based MPUs. Our customers now can migrate their next designs from SDRAM to DDR2, with the AT91SAM9G45 and additional forthcoming DDR2-enabled MPUs.”

Integrated power management with 1.8 or 3.3V supply voltage. Most ARM9-based MPUs were originally developed for the mobile phone market with a 1.8V supply voltage. In order to be used in industry applications, which typically run at 3.3V, they require expensive external power management ICs and level shifters. The SAM9G45 offers integrated power management, slew rate control I/Os with programmable 1.8 or 3.3V voltage levels, in a 0.8mm ball pitch package to simplify industrial control design and reduce cost.

High Connectivity and Support for intelligent UIs. With a processor clock running at 400 MHz, twin parallel External Bus Interfaces (EBI) supporting Dual Data Rate DRAM (DDR2) at 133 MHz and integrating High Speed (480 Mbps) EHCI-compliant USB Host and Device Ports with on-chip transceivers, Ethernet MAC, as well as two interfaces for MMC 4.3 and SDIO/SDCard 2.0, together with an LCD controller with resistive touch screen interface CMOS camera and audio, the SAM9G45 is the ideal platform for embedded applications, that demand high-bandwidth communications, high-density data storage and modern graphical user interfaces.

Distributed Memory, DMA and Dual EBI for Optimal Data Bandwidth. The 12-layer system bus matrix is linked to the Memory Management Unit of the processor core, as well as 8 central DMA channels, 6 high-speed DMAs each dedicated to the video decoder, LCD controller, USB host and device, Ethernet MAC, and image sensor Interface, 21 Peripheral DMA (PDC) channels, dual EBI and small blocks of on chip distributed SRAM to ensure uninterrupted internal and external data flows with minimum processor overhead. The high data speedway architecture enables the SAM9G45 to perform 100Mpbs+ data transfers, user interface rendering in parallel with computationally intensive data processing.

Power Consumption. At 400 MHz and a 1.0V core supply, typical power consumption is less than 300 uW/MHz. In backup mode with the RTC and a timer running plus four 32-bit registers, the SAM9G45 consumes around 8 uA.

EHCI-compliant High Speed USB Host. Data rates of even tens of Mbps are not high enough to provide the ever increasing sizes of log files and the growing sophistication of user interfaces. The 480 Mbps high-speed USB on the AT91SAM9G45 provides a well-understood, easy-to-use vehicle to handle large amounts of data and interconnection both between systems and between the printed circuit boards (PCBs) inside a system. The SAM9G45 USB Host is fully compliant to the EHCI and OHCI standards that guarantee straight forward porting of proven USB host drivers to the AT91SAM9G45.

Comprehensive Eco-system. The SAM9G45 is fully supported by the worldwide ecosystem of industry-leading suppliers of development tools, operating systems and protocol stacks, including Linux distributions, Windows Embedded CE, Mentor Graphics , Fluffy Spider Technology, QNX , Micrium , IAR , Keil , Segger , Adeneo , and TimeSys .

Availability and Pricing

Samples of the SAM9G45 are available now. Production is scheduled for Q4 2009, priced at US$8.60 in quantities of 10k units, under the order code AT91SAM9G45-CU.

Source: Atmel Corporation


Roxio CinemaNow Movie Drive Ideal for Retailers and for Offline Access to Movies

Sonic Solutions and Widevine announced they are enabling the delivery of premium movies on USB flash memory devices. The self-contained CinemaNow USB Movie Drives(TM) will include an integrated media player as well as the necessary video codecs to enable instant high-quality PC playback of movie content offline. Once connected to the Internet, consumers can add the title to their Roxio CinemaNow Digital Locker to access it on other ecosystem devices such as networked Blu-ray Disc players and connected televisions. Sonic expects the first drives to begin appearing at retail in the 4th quarter.

Widevine is providing Hollywood-approved digital rights management technologies to enable secure multiplatform playback while maintaining a convenient and positive entertainment viewing experience for consumers. Widevine and Sonic are collaborating on device-optimized content preparation and delivery.

“Our technologies are helping to ensure consumers get the Hollywood new releases they want along with the playback flexibility they crave,” said Brian Baker, Widevine CEO. “The CinemaNow USB Movie Drives will be an ideal solution for Netbook and mobile phone manufacturers that want to enhance and differentiate their product offerings with premium entertainment.”

Once consumers connect to the Internet, the title on the USB Movie Drive is added to their Roxio CinemaNow Digital Locker where it can then be viewed on as many as four additional CinemaNow-compatible devices. Rather than delivering the same file used for USB playback, a unique file is delivered that has been optimized for the capabilities and display characteristics of the selected device.

“Delivering content on USB drives is the latest example of how Roxio CinemaNow is enabling access to digital Hollywood hits across the broadest possible range of devices,” said Dave Habiger, president and CEO, Sonic Solutions. “Teaming with industry leaders such as Widevine is allowing us to overcome the technical hurdles of digital rights management and platform optimization behind the scenes, so all the consumer experiences is convenient, hassle-free entertainment viewing.”

The Roxio CinemaNow USB Movie Drives are expected to be available at retail locations nationwide later this year. Sonic is also targeting bundling agreements with mobile phone manufacturers and netbook PC makers.

Sonic has relationships with more than 250 content providers and a content portfolio that includes entertainment from all major Hollywood studios and independent distributors. Roxio CinemaNow offers a massive selection of premium video entertainment for rental or purchase, including new releases from major Hollywood studios often on the same day the DVD is available in stores. CinemaNow’s cloud-based media services power devices from multiple manufacturers, forming a connected ecosystem that consumers can use to seamlessly choose, move and view video entertainment.

The CinemaNow ecosystem currently includes PCs, connected TVs, set top DVRs, Blu-ray Disc and mobile media players from leading manufacturers such as Archos, Dell, HP, LG, Microsoft, Nintendo, Pioneer, Samsung and TiVo. As well as being available on a range of consumer electronics, Roxio CinemaNow is currently powering internet movie stores for Lionsgate, Warner Bros. and Blockbuster.

Source: Sonic Solutions


Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation announced the successful commercial production of a 130nm family of DisplayLink USB graphics chips designed by DisplayLink and manufactured at SMIC.

These new products — the DL-125, DL-165 and DL-195 — make it possible to easily connect additional monitors using USB 2.0-connected docking stations, monitors, mini-monitors, projectors, and adapters. The new silicon and software solution provides a high level of integration for USB graphics devices, supports higher HD display resolutions, and has software and hardware advances that increase overall performance for smoother video playback and interactivity over previous DisplayLink DL-100 series products.

“Thanks to SMIC’s full range of services and support, we can have commercial production ramp-up in high volume to meet the rapidly growing market’s demand together with an ideal cost-performance ratio,” said DisplayLink’s Dennis Crespo, executive vice president of marketing and business development. “As our business continues to expand, we anticipate our collaboration with SMIC will continue to strengthen.”

“SMIC is honored to provide foundry services to DisplayLink, whose rapid development exemplifies the overall growth of the niche consumer electronics fabless design industry,” said Chiou-Feng Chen, Vice President of Marketing and Sales. “By combining SMIC’s manufacturing expertise with DisplayLink’s system and design capabilities, we are able to better serve customers by achieving high standards in quality and cost-performance ratio.”

The new technology is already deployed in Samsung’s new SyncMaster LapFit LD190G and LD220G USB companion monitors and the Lenovo USB-to-DVI Monitor Adapter. For more information and availability of other DisplayLink USB graphics products, visit http://www.displaylink.com/shop.

Source: Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation


LucidPort Technology has started shipping the USB300, a single chip USB 3.0 to SATA-II bridge designed for external storage devices.

The USB300 links a SATA disk, hard disk (HDD) or solid state disk (SSD), to a USB host at Full Speed, Hi-Speed, or SuperSpeed. It works with both existing mass storage drivers (BOT) and the new USB Attached SCSI (UAS) driver. It also features AES 128/256 encryption, numerous general purpose IOs with pulse width modulation, and SATA Native Command Queuing (NCQ) support.

The USB300 is the world’s first commercially available USB 3.0 device. It substantiates the promise of SuperSpeed USB to significantly increase the throughput of USB devices. Using the standard Windows Mass Storage driver, the USB300 consistently transfers data at 210 Mbytes/sec to the SATA disk. UAS drivers increase this performance.

SuperSpeed USB delivers ten times the performance of Hi-Speed USB 2.0 while offering backward compatibility with the billions of USB-enabled PCs and peripheral devices in use today. “The market expects USB 3.0 to be fast,” said Reid Augustin, VP, Product Development at LucidPort. “The USB300 meets that challenge by making the full SATA-II bandwidth accessible from USB.”

LucidPort will demonstrate the USB300 at the Intel Developer’s Forum in September.

Source: LucidPort Technology, Inc.





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