Kenwood, Fraunhofer IIS, and STMicroelectronics Reveal Prototype of a Digital Radio Mondiale Receiver

September 9,2006 - STMicroelectronics, provider of technologies for digital radio, in cooperation with Kenwood and the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits, have unveiled a fully working prototype of a Digital Radio MondialeTM (DRMTM) receiver that they believe will pave the way to the development of a low-power Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) for DRM applications such as fixed and portable radios, car receivers, software receivers, and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs).

Standardized by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), Digital Radio Mondiale is a universal, open standard digital radio system with FM-like sound quality available to markets worldwide for long-wave (LW), medium-wave (MW), and short-wave (SW) frequencies. According to STMicroelectronics, in addition to providing substantially better audio quality and interference-free reception, the DRM system benefits listeners with new multimedia content such as track title, artist, and station name, which can be displayed on DRM receivers to enhance the listening experience.

Unlike digital radio systems that require a new frequency allocation, DRM claims to merely use more efficiently the existing Amplitude Modulation (AM) broadcast frequency bands (below 30MHz). The DRM signal fits into the AM broadcast-band plan and can be easily carried by many existing AM transmitters, resulting in a simple, inexpensive upgrade to the previous transmission infrastructure.

“Working closely with Kenwood and Fraunhofer IIS, and collaborating with them from the early stages of the project, allows us to provide a complete, fully functional infotainment solution for Digital Radio Mondiale that will excite the radio market in the coming years,” said Riccardo Ferrari, General Manager, Digital Broadcasting Radio Division, Automotive Product Group, STMicroelectronics. “The prototype uses an existing ST chipset and a field programmable gate array (FPGA), so conversion of the prototype into a marketable solution would be straightforward, as the same hardware and software IPs can be easily integrated into a dedicated DRM ASIC.”

www.digital-radio-show.com – Mobile TV Forum and Digital Radio Show 2007