Big Fish Semiconductor's U2 5.2 Audio SoC enters mass production with Dolphin Design's Audio IPs

Grenoble, 21 July 2022 -- Dolphin Design, an advanced chip design company and leader in Edge Computing and AI platforms for the Internet of Things (IoT), and Big Fish Semiconductor have entered into a close and long-term partnership. Big Fish Semiconductor’s U2 BLE 5.2 Audio AI SoC (TSMC 40nm uLP process ultra-low power audio chip), now in mass fabrication, is the first outcome of this partnership. The high-performance recording capabilities of U2 BLE 5.2 Audio AI SoC are indeed made possible thanks to sADC-uLP-ANC.03, Dolphin Design 24-bit delta-sigma audio ADC. Dolphin Design’s high-fidelity ADC combines superior audio performances, with small area and ultra-low power consumption.

Dolphin Design’s latest generation of Audio converter IP enables True Wireless Speakers (TWS) Bluetooth headsets such as the U2 SoC from Big Fish Semiconductor. Credits: BigFish Semiconductor & Dolphin Design

With its U2 BLE 5.2 Audio AI SoC, Big Fish Semiconductor enables the development of a new generation of more integrated products, primarily targeting TWS. Dolphin Design’s mixed-signal ADC IP – named sADC-uLP-ANC.03 – combines all needed features to empower a True Wireless Speaker. It is made of three mono ADCs cores -two for voice recording and one for noise recording -, Programmable Gain Amplifiers and Automatic Gain Level adjustment, and a low noise voltage regulator, all together with low latency decimation filters. With a breakthrough latency as low as 3us from input to output, best-in-class noise cancellation can be achieved.

Furthermore, the extremely low power consumption – as low as 230µA – of sADC-uLP-ANC.03 ADC contributes to a longer usage before battery recharge. Overall, the U2 BLE 5.2 Audio AI SoC enables finished products with 33% lower power consumption than high-end TWS Bluetooth headset on the market, whether in music playback mode (U2 is 12 mW vs. 16 mW), call mode (U2 is 19 mW vs. 31 mW), or standby mode (U2 is 0.5 mW vs. 2 mW) with a power consumption of 417 uA in standby mode at 1.2 V (TSMC 40 nm).

Tackling the TWS audio market is a major step that Big Fish Semiconductor is about to take with Dolphin Design’s audio converter IP. It is estimated that by 2022, the market for TWS Bluetooth headsets alone will reach 500 million units sold worldwide[1].

Wang Na, COO at Big Fish Semiconductor, said:” Our brand new U2 5.2 Audio SoC is a game-changer in the TWS Bluetooth headset market with its ultra-low power consumption. But none of this would have been possible without Dolphin Design’s Audio IP. It has a high-fidelity ADC that combines superior audio performance with a small footprint and ultra-low power consumption, which is exactly what we, at Big Fish Semiconductor, were looking for. We are delighted with this partnership with Dolphin Design, which will continue for our future SoC developments.”

Eric Benoit, Director of Marketing & Business Development at Dolphin Design, said: “For several years now, Dolphin Design has invested heavily into the development of high-fidelity audio and voice detection (VAD) IPs. Being part of Big Fish Semiconductor’s success in a very competitive market is a true recognition of the performance and quality of our audio converter IPs. This successful partnership is the result of close collaboration, which started with the delivery of a high-performance IP, and the support to achieve SoC integration down to post-silicon qualification. This success has paved the way to a new step in our collaboration with soon a new chip in a more advanced node.”

[1] Source : https://gadgets360.com/audio/news/global-tws-earbuds-market-growth-2021-apple-xiaomi-samsung-counterpoint-2427981

About Dolphin Design

DOLPHIN DESIGN, a subsidiary of Soitec, is an innovative and fast-growing semiconductor company.

It employs more than 180 people, including 140 engineers who design the key functions of an integrated circuit – called “IP blocks or platforms” – or even the complete integrated circuit – called ASIC or System-on-Chip (SoC). Our company has unique know-how in optimizing energy efficiency, which earned us the honor of being one of the 1000 companies worldwide to receive the Solar Impulse label.

Alongside our customers, which today number more than 600 companies, we focus on long-term, human and ingenious collaborations that enable billions of people to use energy-efficient electronic equipment’s or devices every day. Whether our customers are targeting consumer electronics markets, including IoT, multimedia, AI and 5G, or automotive and aerospace markets, we help them unleash their creativity to make their products more competitive while being more responsible with their energy consumption.

Our mantra to our customers is simple: “Tell us your biggest dream. Dare the impossible. We make it happen”.

For more information, please visit https://www.dolphin-design.fr/

About Big Fish Semiconductor

Big Fish Semiconductor is a chip design company focusing on AI and IoT chips. It is also one of the few high-tech enterprises in the world with SoC design, system software research and development, Modem communication technology research and development, software and hardware system integration and whole machine design capabilities. With the technological accumulation and first-mover advantage of mobile phone SOC chip, Big Fish completed its separation and independence in 2019, established its headquarters in Nanjing, set up its R&D center in Beijing, and embarked on a new track of artificial intelligence and Internet of Things. Holding the idea of “chip is application, Big Fish positioned itself as a solution provider”, creating a vertically integrated Internet of Things ecological chain to meet the needs in different scenarios. Aiming at the Internet of things market, it has made a breakthrough in building U1 NB lot Internet of Things chip, U2 Bluetooth 5.2 TWS headset chip, S1 high-performance image transmission kit, etc., which could be applied to a whole range of equipment including location applications sensitive to volume and power consumption, TWS headset, wireless microphone, conference telephone microphone, guide machine, UAV image transmission, high-end bridge equipment, etc.

Big Fish has brought together top experts from Xiaomi, Motorola, Ericsson, AMD, Samsung, and other enterprises. Using its many years of experience accumulated in this industry, Big Fish is determined to create the world’s leading innovative products, work with our customers and partners to jointly promote the progress of the industry, and connect everything with chips.