Designed Specifically For Home Entertainment Networking

Consumers around the globe are using more electronic entertainment devices, enjoying more digital home appliances and consuming more digital content than ever before. Yet a frustration building among them is the difficulty of connecting their devices together. Consumers want more applications, more interaction and more control over their devices and content. And they long for an easy way to share content across their 3 primary screens (TV, PC, and mobile).

Consumer Electronics (CE) manufacturers are attempting to introduce products that provide these value-added features. However, a big hurdle is the interface technology associated with these devices. In order to get the interactive features desired, consumers must contend with at least three different types of interface cables: a multimedia cable for video & audio (HDMI), a networking interface (Ethernet) and a point-to-point data interface (USB). For both consumers and CE manufacturers this is overly complicated and diffi cult to manage.

The Digital Interactive Interface for Video & Audio™ (DiiVA™) was created to offer a new home entertainment networking solution that integrates entertainment content in multiple data formats into a single cable. Uncompressed video, audio, USB, Ethernet, device control, content protection, power delivery and power management are coordinated throughout the DiiVA network. As a result, DiiVA streamlines and simplifies the interface technology in the home, providing ease-of-use and helping users maximize their multimedia entertainment experience.

DiiVA’s enormous bandwidth and bidirectional data channel coupled with its networking protocol allow any DiiVA-equipped TV to access and control any DiiVA-equipped source device, enabling mobile, PC and CE networks to converge and communicate within a home and establish a personal domain that provides for the flexible yet secure distribution and playback of content. DiiVA.

Navigation Comparison	DiiVA for Home Entertainment Networking DiiVA technology combines a reliable, high-speed, bi-directional data channel with an uncompressed video and audio channel. While point-to-point interfaces such as USB and HDMI contain only a Physical and Link layer, DiiVA combines the Physical and Link layers with additional Networking and Transport layers to make DiiVA devices network-capable for use in personal domains. DiiVA networking allows uncompressed video, multichannel audio, USB, Ethernet, content protection and commands to be sent from any source to any display in the network. For consumers this means a single DiiVA port on their digital television is capable of connecting and controlling multiple devices on the network. Examples of new features enabled by DiiVA include: High-Definition & 3D movies on a DiiVA-equipped Blu-ray player can be accessed from any DiiVA-equipped TV in the house Video games can be played from any DiiVA-equipped TV because the USB controllers for the game can be connected directly to the USB port on the TV, instead of to the game console Mobile devices can be charged through the DiiVA connection while outputting HD audio and video and synchronizing data to any source on the DiiVA network Applications on PCs can be launched from TVs. Unused devices on the network can be intelligently powered down automatically enabling power savings. Since video, audio and data are sent simultaneously, digital TVs and other CE devices connected through DiiVA networks can offer user-friendly interactive interfaces for consumers to make viewing choices based on content thumbnails rather than the connection. With DiiVA—which enables a secure home network and a personal domain—content can be securely shared between devices within the home network such as a TV, mobile phone or PC.

Technology Comparison

At the core of DiiVA’s technology is a high-speed, serial link I/O that runs at 4.5Gbps per differential pair. 

Uncompressed Video (1-3 lanes) - Up to three differential pairs can be used to send uncompressed video with a maximum bandwidth of 13.5 Gbps. By comparison, 1080p video at 8-bit color and 60Hz refresh consumes about 4.5 Gbps. So DiiVA is future-ready, capable of handling video transmissions well beyond 1080p resolution, high refresh rates and 3D video.

Hybrid Channel (1 lane) - DiiVA enables a high-speed, bi-directional hybrid data channel that can operate at over 2 Gbps in each direction simultaneously. The link itself runs at 4.26 Gbps in a single direction and operates in half-duplex mode. The hybrid channel is shared among three sub-channels:

• Bi-directional audio sub-channel
• Command sub-channel
• Bulk data sub-channel
  

All sub-channels can operate simultaneously and the DiiVA protocol includes error checking routines to guard against data loss. Protocols such as USB and Ethernet can be sent through the bulk data sub-channel, enabling true data sharing between devices.

DiiVA as a Green Technology – Applying proven concepts to deliver power over data wires (as with telephone wires and Power over Ethernet), the DiIVA specifi cation has provisions to send power through the cable. With four twisted pairs in a standard DiiVA cable, DiiVA can deliver a total of 5W from a single device to adapters, repeaters and mobile devices (two twisted pairs can send 2.5W of power - 500mA @5V). Power over DiiVA (PoD) can also power the DiiVA interface portion of devices in standby mode, so the DiiVA interface can remain active even when intermediate DiiVA devices are in standby.

The Power over DiiVA protocol benefits users by detecting unused devices on the network that are powered on and automatically putting them in standby mode to save energy. When a device in standby mode is selected, a command is sent through the DiiVA network to turn the device on while powering down other unused devices. This type of aggressive power management can help reduce overall power consumption of CE devices as wasted power for unused devices left on is a shared problem for households around the world.

DiiVA Architecture

DiiVA Cable & Connector
Standard DiiVA works over 4 differential pairs and is suitable to operate over a single CAT6 cable. As a result, DiiVA keeps costs low as CAT6 has reached economies of scale through wide use by other applications.

To avoid potential confusion, the DiiVA Specification has defined a new unique connector. The connector has 13 pins (8 signal, 5 ground) in a single row.

The DiiVA consortium is also working on a mobile connector which can operate with 2 differential pairs (1 pair for video and 1 pair for bi-directional data). The mobile profile connector will be compatible with full profile DiiVA and is capable of simultaneously transmitting uncompressed video and audio with data while receiving power. The mobile DiiVA specification is targeted for release later in 2010.

DiiVA 1.1 Specification Overview

DiiVA charter members (called Promoters) include leading CE and home appliance manufacturers Changhong Electric Co., Haier Co., Hisense Electric Co., Konka Group, Panda Electronics Co., Samsung Electronics, Skyworth Group, Sony Corporation, SVA Information Industry Co., TCL Corporation, and chip developer Synerchip Co., Ltd.

Providing further industry backing, the organization of Chinese CE manufacturers, the China Video Industry Association (CVIA) has agreed to fully support the DiiVA standard. CVIA’s leadership in the Chinese electronics industry and abroad aids the consistent adoption of DiiVA as it becomes a global industry standard—ensuring interoperability among the many brands implementing this technology.

The following industry leaders have joined as Contributors, providing technical input to the DiiVA specifi cation:

• CE: LG Electronics, Panasonic, Sharp,
  Toshiba, Wanlida (Malata),
  XOCECO (PRIMA), Zinwell
• Mobile: Nikon
• Semiconductor: MediaTek, Himax
• Test Equipment: Tektronix
• Connector: Foxconn, JAE