TI delivers new multicore-based cognitive radio solutions for the emerging TV white space market

Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) is offering developers a comprehensive portfolio of cognitive radio solutions, based on its TMS320C66x DSP generation. Cognitive radio, a collective term referring to Super Wi-Fi, Wi-Far, Wireless Regional Area Networks (WRAN), IEEE 802.11af, 802.22 and TV white spaces, is geared towards optimizing the use of available spectrum and expanding global access to the Internet. Azcom Technology, a member of TI’s Design Network, is also designing LTE and IEEE 802.22 standard boards based on TI’s wireless infrastructure SoCs, enabling faster and easier development of cognitive radio applications. For more information on TI’s cognitive radio solutions, please visit TI’s multicore page.

TI’s KeyStone-based TMS320TCI6614 and TMS320TCI6612 System-on-Chips (SoCs), which encompass a mix of radio accelerators, network and security coprocessors, as well as fixed-and floating-point digital signal processors (DSPs) and an ARM® RISC processor, provide the ideal foundation for layers 1, 2 and 3 and transport processing for cognitive radio. TI’s new TMS320C665x processors are also well suited for cognitive radio and consist of three fully pin compatible low-cost, power optimized solutions for developers migrating from single core to multicore. The TMS320C6657 features two 1.25-GHz DSP cores, delivering up to 80 GMACs and 40 GFLOPs, while the C6655 and C6654 single core solutions deliver up to 40 GMACs and 20 GLOPs and 27.2 GMACs and 13.6 GFLOPs, respectively. Under normal operating conditions, the C6657, C6655 and C6654 power numbers are at 3.5W, 2.5W and 2W, respectively.

Azcom Technology, a leading provider of services and solutions in the wireless communications domain, announced that they are developing a high-performance platform designed to meet the White Space Alliance’sTMWi-Far specification for cognitive radio applications. The platform comprises of a hardware board based on TI’s power and cost-efficient TMS320TCI6614 wireless infrastructure SoC and complete PHY / MAC layer stacks. Azcom’s platform enables the TV white space market to support devices from a distance of over 10 kilometers, a major upgrade from current Wi-Fi spots that support devices from a distance of up to 10 meters. And with built-in PHY and MAC layer stacks, developers no longer need to worry about DSP processing as it is all taken care of in the layer 1, making the design process easier and quicker for developers of cognitive radio applications.

“We have been developing solutions for the cellular base station market for more than 16 years, making our involvement in the TV white space market a natural extension of our existing business,” said Ajit Singh, managing director, Azcom Technology. “Working together with TI, we are among the few solutions providers that are equipped with the right skill sets to do a complete system development covering baseband, RF, PHY and higher layer stacks.”

Reducing the digital divide, TI and Azcom join the White Space Alliance™

TI and Azcom recently joined the WhiteSpace Alliance to further promote the development, deployment and use of standards-based products which extend broadband capabilities via TV band spectrum. The evolution and success of using whitespace spectrum is heavily contingent on the global standardization of IEEE, 3GPP and IETF standards. Through the implementation of these standards, the WhiteSpace Alliance is helping make Wi-Far a reality, which will enable consumers to enjoy the benefits of using a stronger network than existing Wi-Fi spots, especially in rural areas where broadband wireless isn't available. For more information, visit www.whitespacealliance.org.