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NEC develops wireless system for high-definition video
By Paul Kallender

NEC Corp. has developed a wireless system that can transmit uncompressed high-definition (HD) video signals and could eliminate the need for cables when connecting HD-capable products, the company said on Tuesday. Systems based on the technology could be available in 2007.

Over the next few years more and more products using HD video will emerge, said Hidenori Shimawaki, chief manager of NEC's System Devices Research Laboratories located in Shiga prefecture, western Japan.

With the products will come a need to interconnect them with a system that doesn't degrade the HD picture.

At present, most systems compress the HD signal, which can be around 1G bps (bits per second) in bandwidth, to a fraction of its size to allow for transmission between devices. However, with each compression and subsequent decompression of the signal some data can be lost and so the picture quality can be reduced slightly.

A new system called HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) can transfer uncompressed HD signals between devices via a cable. And while consumer electronics makers are beginning to offer HDMI-compatible equipment, there is not yet a suitable wireless technology that is capable of transmitting uncompressed HD signals, Shimawaki said.

Wireless LAN and similar technologies can suffer interference issues when several devices are connected and they do not have the bandwidth to carry the uncompressed HD signal. UWB (ultra wideband) technology offers higher bandwidth and can transmit HD signals without compressing them but works over a relatively close range and is yet to be commercialized.

NEC's prototype transmitters and receivers have overcome such speed, range and interference hurdles, according to Shimawaki.

In the system, the HD signal is converted into a 1G bps data stream, which is enough to carry the signal between devices without the need for compression and decompression. The technology works to a range of about 7 meters, which is enough to work well in most living rooms, Shimawaki said.

The signal uses the unlicensed 60GHz band, which is largely unused and has few interference issues, he said.

The transmitters and receivers developed by the company measure 70 millimeters by 50 millimeters by 15 millimeters. NEC plans to make these smaller and may offer the technology to other consumer electronics companies, according to Shimawaki.

"The technology could be embedded in other devices, or it could be sold as an optional unit," he said.

Posted April 6, 2005 03:59 PM |