Lattice Semiconductor Corporation

Silicon Image Gmbh

Lei Ming

Jiong Huang

Gyudong Kim

Young Il Kim

Shrikant Ranade

Alexander Peysakhovich

Jason Wong

Conrad Arlo Maxwell

Qiang Yuan

Stephen Jeffrey Smith

Hyuck Jae Lee

David Kuo

Kai Shen

Bill Huang

Ross Gordon

Hiroaki Sakita

Mikhail Amchislavsky

Stephen J Smith

A source device and a sink device may be connected using an interface cable comprising at least first and second physical channels. The first physical channel may be used to transmit video data unidirectionally from the source device to the sink device. In addition, the second physical channel may comprise an audio return channel wherein audio data can be transmitted unidirectionally from the sink device to the source device at a first rate. In addition, the second physical channel may also transmit bidirectional control data between the source and sink devices at a second rate slower than the first rate. The audio data may be overlaid on the control data, wherein the audio data is transmitted using differential signaling, while the control data is transmitted using common mode signaling.

Transmitting common mode control data over audio return channel

Example embodiments herein relate to methods of transmitting and receiving audio signals. A method of transmitting an audio signal includes: receiving the audio signal including frames having left and right subframes containing audio data of a first number of bits; encoding the left and right subframes into a parity code of a second number of bits; generating serial data by combining the parity code and audio data; and transmitting the serial data over an audio transmission media having a bandwidth of a third number of bits, a sum of the first and second number being below the third number. A method of receiving an audio signal includes: receiving a serial signal combining a parity code; decoding the serial signal by calculating a syndrome based on the parity code; detecting an error by comparing the syndrome with the audio data; and generating a corrected audio signal by correcting the detected error.

Method of transmitting and receiving audio signals and apparatus thereof

Example embodiments disclosed herein relate to a method of transmitting an audio signal and also a method of receiving an audio signal. The method of transmitting the audio signal includes: receiving the audio signal including a plurality of frames having a left and right subframes containing audio data of a first number of bits; encoding the left and right subframes into a parity code of a second number of bits; generating serial data by combining the parity code and the audio data; and transmitting the serial data over an audio transmission media having a bandwidth of a third number of bits, a sum of the first number of bits and the second number of bits being below the third number of bits. The method of receiving the audio signal includes: receiving a serial signal combining a parity code; decoding the serial signal by calculating a syndrome based on the parity code; detecting an error by comparing the syndrome with the audio data; and generating a corrected audio signal by correcting the detected error.

A source device communicates multimedia data to a sink device over a multimedia channel of a multimedia link. The source device comprises an interface to a full duplex control channel of the multimedia link. The source device also comprises first arbitration logic to control transfer of control data with the sink device via the full duplex control channel. The first arbitration logic ignores requests to receive inbound control data from the sink device while the source device is transmitting outbound control data to the sink device. The sink device, on the other hand, comprises second arbitration logic to control transfer of control data with the source device via the full duplex control channel. The second arbitration logic stops transmitting outbound control data via the full duplex control channel responsive to receiving a request to receive incoming control data from the source device.

Inter-device conflict resolution on a multimedia link

An apparatus for interfacing with a multimedia communication link comprises a half-duplex translation layer circuit operating in half-duplex and a full-duplex link layer circuit to communicate over a control bus of the multimedia communication link in full duplex. The apparatus further comprises an arbitration circuit communicatively coupled between the half-duplex translation layer circuit and the full-duplex link layer circuit, the arbitration circuit to control data flow between the half-duplex translation layer circuit and the full-duplex link layer circuit. The arbitration circuit provides interface and signaling rules for transmitting packets from the half-duplex translation layer circuit to the full-duplex link layer circuit, receiving packets via the full-duplex link layer circuit at the half-duplex translation layer circuit, and resolving conflict arising due to bidirectional data flow at the arbitration logic.

Arbitration signaling within a multimedia high definition link (MHL 3) device

Embodiments of the invention are generally directed to communication bridging between devices via multiple bridge elements. An embodiment of an apparatus includes a transmitter element to transmit data, and multiple bridge elements, the bridge elements including a first bridge element to receive data from the transmitter element and a second bridge element to provide data to a receiver. The bridge elements provide for one or more of translation of one or more commands for an operation from the transmitter element, wherein translation of commands includes handling of a command intended for the receiver, and pre-fetching of one or more data for the operation from the receiver.

Communication bridging between devices via multiple bridge elements

A multimedia system for data communications. A source device communicates data over a full duplex control channel of a multimedia communication link. The source device has a first link layer that retries unsuccessful data communications over the full duplex control channel until a first maximum retry limit of the first link layer is reached. A sink device communicates data over the full duplex control channel of the multimedia communication link. The sink device has a second link layer that retries unsuccessful data communications over the full duplex control channel until a second maximum retry limit of the second link layer is reached, where the second maximum retry limit is different than the first maximum retry limit.

Retry disparity for control channel of a multimedia communication link

A multimedia system for data communications. A source device communicates over a full duplex control channel of a multimedia communication link using time domain multiplexed (TDM) frames having n time slots per frame. The source device allocates a first time slot position to a virtual channel for data transmission by the source device over the full duplex control channel. A sink device communicates over the full duplex control channel of the multimedia communication link. The sink device allocates a second time slot position to the virtual channel for data transmission by the sink device over the full duplex control channel. A timing of the second time slot position is offset from a timing of the first time slot position by substantially n/2 time slots.

Phase relationship control for control channel of a multimedia communication link

Embodiments of the invention are generally directed to transmission of multiple protocol data elements via an interface utilizing a data tunnel over a control channel. An embodiment of an apparatus includes a transmitter or receiver for the transmission or reception of data; a processing element for handling the data of the apparatus; and a connector for the transfer of the data, the connector to connect to a data channel and to connect to a control channel. The processing element is to provide for transfer of data of a first protocol in the control channel, the transfer of data via the control channel including the use of one or more generic commands of the first protocol for the transfer of data of a second protocol. Data of the second protocol is optimized before the data of the second protocol is sent over the first protocol, and the data transfer in the data channel and data transfer in the control channel are simultaneous at least in part.

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Lei Ming