Communications: Twin Tuners With Optimized Video Interfaces Facilitate STB Designs

Sept. 20, 2004

Twin-tuner modules for set-top boxes (STBs) and television sets with dual program reception (picture-in-picture) help simplify personal-video-recording (PVR) system design. The twin-tuner design does away with bulky and expensive cable. The tuner interfaces, which are optimized for dual-tuner applications, simplify the cabling and board layout requirements. The TD1316AS/IVP-2 and TD1316A/SRV-2 handle digital DVB-T and analog terrestrial TV signals. Low-noise amplifiers, very low-noise MO phase-locked loops, switchable 7/8-MHz surface-acoustic-wave filters, and gain-controlled IF amplifiers are incorporated in the modules. Late 2004 should see the arrival of similar modules for DVB-C-compliant cable systems.

Royal Philips Electronicswww.rfsolutions.philips.com

About the Author

Dave Bursky

Technologist

Dave Bursky, the founder of New Ideas in Communications, a publication website featuring the blog column Chipnastics – the Art and Science of Chip Design. He is also president of PRN Engineering, a technical writing and market consulting company. Prior to these organizations, he spent about a dozen years as a contributing editor to Chip Design magazine. Concurrent with Chip Design, he was also the technical editorial manager at Maxim Integrated Products, and prior to Maxim, Dave spent over 35 years working as an engineer for the U.S. Army Electronics Command and an editor with Electronic Design Magazine.