TI DSP Solutions:
Your spectrum to success
By Rich Templeton, President, Semiconductor Group
You can hardly talk these days about systems or end equipments without having digital signal processors (DSPs) pop up in the conversation. DSPs are used in everything from simple toys to sophisticated military guidance systems, from antilock brakes to high-speed hard disk drives. They provide the processing muscle for digital cellular telephones and the new x2 56K bits-per-second modems. In the digital design community, DSPs have become ubiquitous.
Naturally, as the pioneers in DSP technology, we see this increasing reliance on DSPs as a great thing. We're also the world's second largest analog company, and, of course, analog is the gateway to the digital world. In selected end-equipment markets like digital cellular, we combine our expertise in DSPs, analog, software and systems knowledge to provide system-level solutions.
Further, TI has the largest network of third-party providers supporting our DSP families. Worldwide, TMS320 university labs are teaching future design engineers how to apply TI DSPs to new markets such as digital motor control. Our complete offering of development tools also facilitates rapid design cycles.
This continuum of DSP Solutions from TI -- the DSP cores, the analog interface, the systems and software knowledge, the third parties and more -- provides designers with powerful choices for next-generation designs.
DSP cores
You have heard a lot about TI's new 'C6x family of high-performance DSPs. With its Very Long Instruction Word architecture, it has 10 times the performance of any previous DSP.
As important as this device family is, though, it is just part of the TI product lineup. In fact, TI has the largest range of DSP cores in the industry. Our customers can choose the low system cost of fixed-point devices or the ease of use inherent in floating point. They can select DSPs tailored to a variety of applications. This range of capability and complexity is extremely difficult for our competitors to replicate.
TI has unmatched expertise in ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) methodology. Our TImeline Technology not only allows us to achieve high levels of integration in specialized silicon, it also helps us create multifunction, DSP-based standard devices. We also lead in bringing peripherals, such as memory, onto the chip to help the DSP core work faster and more efficiently.
Systems skills and software modules, along with research and development, also set TI apart. For example, to accompany the breakthrough 'C6x devices, TI created a C compiler three times more efficient than other tools on the market and developed the industry's first assembly language compiler.
Analog and mixed-signal
TI has the industry's broadest array of designers developing mixed-signal and analog chips. In fact, according to Dataquest, we're No. 2 worldwide in the analog market. Complex mixed-signal devices translate the data of our senses into digital language so the DSP can do its work in refining and correcting the information. Then, they take the DSP output and turn it back into analog data that can display video on a screen, play music through stereo speakers or control a motor.
Leadership in end-equipment markets
With our DSP cores and analog chips as the foundation, we've created leadership positions in selected end equipments such as wireless (e.g., digital cellular), mass storage (e.g., hard-disk drives) and networking (e.g., ThunderSWITCH Ethernet switches). Our knowledge of the end-system is a powerful differentiator to help our customers design next-generation systems.
Building for the future
TI is dedicated to the DSP market. So much so that we've dedicated $100 million to a venture capital fund to accelerate market development efforts linked to digital signal processing. And we've dedicated another $25 million to an educational fund to train the DSP designers of tomorrow.
Taken together, we believe this spectrum from TI will make us your continued source for DSP Solutions. We're committed not only to maintaining our lead for you, but to extend it.
