Building a Digital-to-Analog Converter Box with Toshiba TC90407XBG-Based Solutions

Introduction
The last major change in the way we watch television occurred in the 1950s when television broadcasting switched from black and white to color broadcasting. Currently, we are in the midst of another major shift, the transition from analog to digital transmission that will culminate with the end of analog transmission on February 17, 2009 per Congressional mandate. Digital TV always provides a crisp picture as it eliminates analog-TV artifacts such as snowy pictures or ghost images. In addition, digital TV encompasses a higher resolution format that is commonly known as high-definition TV (HDTV). High-definition (HD) pictures have five to six times the resolution of analog-TV pictures and thus provide a significantly higher quality viewing experience. Over the last few years, many TV broadcast stations started broadcasting digital TV and pay-TV services such as cable TV or satellite TV have followed suit with upgraded digital-TV/HDTV services. However, many U.S. households still receive over-the-air analog TV and, with the changeover, a considerable number are expected to require converter boxes to translate digital signals into analog equivalents. This paper examines the changing environment, the technical requirements to build a government-compliant converter box and describes Toshiba’s production-ready solutions to enable ODMs and OEMs to take advantage of this attractive market opportunity.

Government Actions Drive Demand for Converter Box
In the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005, the United States Congress mandated that the Federal Communications Commission terminate licenses for all full-power TV stations in the analog television service and require the end of broadcasting in analog TV service by February 18, 2009.1 The purpose of this conversion to digital TV service is to free up bands of the scarce, valuable broadcast spectrum for use by safety and emergency services as well as enable new advanced, innovative wireless services.