Nuvation Introduces Four Video Reference Designs Based on Texas Instruments' DaVinci Technology

New reference designs accelerate time-to-market for video security, video conferencing, and broadcast video applications.

DALLAS -- Feb. 27, 2008 -- Today at the worldwide Texas Instruments Developer Conference (TIDC), Nuvation, a leading Electronics Design Services firm, is introducing four reference designs based on TI's DaVinci(TM) technology. The reference designs are:

• an IP Camera with Power-over-Ethernet (IPCam PoE),
• an Intelligent Video Server (IVS),
• a video security Multichannel Video Front-End (McVFE), and
• an ultra-high performance, Scalable Video Platform (SVP).

Engineering evaluation units are available for purchase and the reference design source files can be licensed from Nuvation. Nuvation also offers project-based and China Offshore Development Center (CODC) electronic design services.

Nuvation's new IP Camera 'PoE' reference design joins Nuvation's IP Cam 'Mini' reference design introduced at last year's TIDC, with the PoE version sporting a new form factor with enhanced features, COGS and thermal characteristics. Nuvation's IP Camera PoE utilizes TI's TPS23750, a PoE 802.3af-compliant PD controller with integrated DC/DC converter. With the optional PoE board installed, power can be transmitted with the data over Ethernet and thus requires no external power adapter to be connected to the IP Camera. Nuvation's IP Camera reference designs also incorporate Pixim's Orca imaging chipset with revolutionary Digital Pixel System® (DPS) technology which improves image quality and color accuracy, critical for positive subject identification in video surveillance applications.

Nuvation's Intelligent Video Server (IVS) is a reference design for a 1-channel audio/video streamer which can adapt a standard CCTV analog camera into an Internet Protocol (IP) streamer. PoE is also incorporated in the IVS reference design.

The IP Camera and IVS reference designs compress real-time, full-color 720x480 (D1) video over Ethernet at up to 30 frames per second as well as optional video analytics intelligence. The reference designs utilize TI's TMS320DM644x processor which is a highly integrated, DSP-based system-on-chip (SoC) featuring an ARM926 processor in addition to the TMS320C64x+(TM) DSP core. They support configurable software implementations from TI and third parties including H.264, MPEG-4/H.263, MPEG-2, MJPEG, G.711, and video analytics. The IP Camera and IVS reference designs incorporate an embedded Real-Time Linux Operating System as well.

Nuvation's new Multichannel Video Front End (McVFE) reference design is geared for video security OEMs that need to merge multiple video streams for encoding in TI DaVinci(TM) devices. The McVFE reference design supports up to 16 analog video channel inputs and utilizes four TVP5154 quad-channel low power video decoders with independent scalers and a low-cost Xilinx Spartan-3A FPGA streaming to a DM6467 DVEVM based on DaVinci technology. Nuvation is demonstrating McVFE here at TIDC with full release scheduled for Q2 '08.

Nuvation is also unveiling its new Scalable Video Platform (SVP) reference design, an advanced video development platform for OEMs working with arrays of TI DaVinci DSPs and/or DSP-FPGA co-processing architectures. Nuvation's SVP features four (4) TI TMS320DM6467 DaVinci digital media processors, a TMS320DM648 DaVinci digital media processor, an expandable Xilinx Virtex-5 LXT FPGA socket, and other advanced video functionality. SVP is being demonstrated here at TIDC running a concurrent HD MPEG-2 decode and MPEG-2 to H.264 transcode. General release is targeted for Q2 '08.

"We are extremely impressed with the features and performance of TI's DaVinci technology," said Chris Hallahan, Nuvation's VP of sales and marketing. "The market has been embracing TI's DaVinci platform and is always seeking greater time-to-market acceleration. Leveraging our family of reference designs, we can enable OEMs to reach volume production release in a few months rather than typical new product development cycles of 18 months or more."

Reference designs can be licensed by OEMs for their in-house engineering departments to gain a head-start on product development. As applicable to the design, Nuvation licensee packages can include engineering specification documents, DSP and MCU executables and firmware source code, device drivers, FPGA netlists and source code, schematics, layout databases, gerbers, bills of material, mechanical CAD files, test utilities, manufacturing diagrams, and other design source files. Engineering evaluation units are available for purchase from Nuvation for OEMs to test applications and to validate design approaches. Nuvation is also recognized as a leading Electronics Design Services firm for custom product development.

Nuvation's IP Camera mini, IP Camera PoE, and Intelligent Video Server reference designs are available for purchase and license today. McVFE and SVP are being demonstrated today and will release in Q2 '08. Contact sales@nuvation.com for more information.

About Nuvation

Nuvation is a leading Engineering Design Services (EDS) firm that helps companies accelerate electronic product development roadmaps. Established since 1997, Nuvation's design centers in San Jose, CA, USA; Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and Shanghai, China are recognized for breadth and depth of talent, execution culture, and predictable, repeatable design methodologies. Nuvation's clients include industry leaders in Communications, Broadcast Video, Medical Devices, Defense/Security, Consumer Electronics, Video Security, Test & Measurement, and Semiconductor markets. More information is available at http://www.nuvation.com.

About the Texas Instruments Developer Network

Nuvation is a member of the TI Developer Network, a community of respected, well-established companies offering products and services based on TI analog and digital technology. The Network provides a broad range of end-equipment solutions, embedded software, engineering services and development tools that help customers accelerate innovation to make the world smarter, healthier, safer, greener and more fun.