NEWS MARCH 2009
Cirrus Logic licenses Cambridge Mechatronics' Digital Sound Projector technology
Cambridge, UK, March 23rd, 2009, Cambridge Mechatronics Limited (CML), a leading developer of electronic actuator Intellectual Property for high volume consumer applications, today announced that Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) has licensed its Digital Sound Projector technology.
Cirrus Logic of Austin, Texas, a leading supplier of analog and digital-signal processing ICs, plans to implement CML’s Digital Sound Projector technology (based on phased actuator arrays) into its audio DSP product lines that target consumer home theatre applications, such as soundbars and flat-panel TVs. Through CML’s Digital Sound Projector technology, Cirrus Logic customers will be able to build single speaker enclosure sound systems that deliver real 5.1 surround sound from digital media formatted by either Dolby Laboratories or DTS.
The essence of CML’s Digital Sound Projector technology is that each of the 5.1 channels is allocated its own sound beam, two of which are specifically directed so that the sound bounces off the walls and ceilings such that it comes to the listener from behind, thus providing the rear surround sound. Another component of the Digital Sound Projector technology is that it can be automatically calibrated for any particular location. To date, CML has been awarded 15 international patents for inventions related to its Digital Sound Projector technology with many more pending.
CML and its earlier licensee, Yamaha Corporation, are universally credited with having co-invented the soundbar genre of loudspeaker in 2005. The worldwide market for soundbars is forecast by research firm IMS to be 16 million units by 2013. The YSP range of soundbars built by Yamaha using CML’s Digital Sound Projector technology provides the user with real 3-D surround sound without the trouble, expense and ugliness of placing and wiring 5 or more separate speakers in the room.
"As a recent product class entry in consumer electronics, soundbars are the fastest-growing segment in home audio today, and CML's Digital Sound Projector technology enables our customers to develop soundbars that deliver an unmatched cinematic surround-sound experience," said Terry Ritchie, director of Marketing for DSP products at Cirrus Logic.
Both CML and Cirrus Logic are committed to further reducing the cost of the Digital Sound Projector implementation, largely through silicon integration. This will further accelerate the penetration of Digital Sound Projector technology into the 100 Million-unit Flat Panel TV (FPTV) market. Already three FPTV vendors, Mitsubishi(USA), Grundig and Beko are shipping products with sound systems based on CML’s Digital Sound Projector technology.