Just In Time For Summer Cruising: Chipset Boosts Car Radio Reception

Superior noise suppression is promised by the U4255BM receiver IC and U4256BM frequency synthesizer, a pair of AM/FM devices for automotive radio front ends. Specially suited for car radios with additional digital functions like Radio Data System, the chips feature software-controlled IF bandwidth adjustment for maximum reception quality and a receiving-condition analyzer said to be capable of identifying disturbing signals. Both are controlled via a 3-wire bus and can be easily connected together. U4255BM performs both AM and FM tuner functions, while U4256BM frequency synthesizer has three DACs and is for automatic alignment of the tuner during final radio assembly. Reference design demo boards with application software are available.