The RT182 HDMI 2.1 optical communication chipset launched by Rafael Microelectronics leads the industry and passed the high-speed data lane test through official HDMI certification laboratory, conforms to the industry’s mainstream HDMI 2.1 standard. RT182 supports optical high-speed non-interference data communication up to hundreds of meters. It is used in 8K TV and medical diagnosis and other vedio transmission applications that require high-definition non-destructive images.

The RT182 chipset supports latest HDMI 2.1 standard, and its standardized ultra-high-speed HDMI cable can support a transfer rate up to 48 Gbps, including uncompressed 8K@60Hz and 4K@120Hz video signals. When a HDMI 2.1 cable length exceeds 5 meters, an active optical fiber cable (AOC) is required to ensure the transmission quality. RT182 chipset adopts TSMC advanced CMOS process, which can provide 48Gbps transmission bandwidth with low power consumption and high reliability. The power consumption of the transmitter is less than 200mW, and the receiver can extract power from the signal directly without additional power supply. Its power consumption is less than 300mW. The chip is designed to be backward compatible with HDMI2.0 RT180, which can reduce the development cost of the manufacturer’s photoelectric module (OE module) for time to market. In the future, the RT18X series will support new USB4 and other higher-speed transmission applications.

Ted Sun, CEO of Rafael Microelectronics, said that “The RT182 chipset has ultra-high receiving sensitivity and trans-impedance gain, which can match various PD optical receivers on the market, and has the ability to drive VCSELs, which can achieve speeds up to 12G bps in a single lane. It supports multi-lane transmission up to 300 meters, and enables different types of active optical fiber cable applications  for 4K/8K TV audio and video and VR headset.  In addition to applications such as glasses/helmets, it can also be used for computer display device connections in corporate office environments, as well as public facilities such as airport station flight schedules and other indoor and outdoor large signage applications.

In the 5G era, consumers will be able to experience high-speed and massive Internet services, including advanced applications such as remote office, telemedicine, virtual reality, and automatic safe driving. Optical communication technology has become an important key to high-speed data connections. Chen Jiaxiu, Vice President of Rafael Micro-Optical Communications, said, “The RT182 chipset has passed the high-speed data transmission certification test of the official certification laboratory through the advanced RF chip design capabilities and patented technology of Rafael Microelectronics. It can also provide high-quality video signal transmission under supply conditions. The finished product has passed a complete compatibility test and is suitable for the latest 8K video transmission. The optical transmission has the characteristics of high speed, no interference, safety, privacy, and non-eavesdropping. The series of products will be applicable to high-end markets such as high-definition medical image transmission and in-car high-speed communication systems that are resistant to engine surge noise.”

High-frequency RF technology capabilities have always been the competitive advantage of Rafael microelectronics. The RT182 chipset has been verified by a third-party standard certification laboratory and fully meets the functional indicators. It is compared with the industry’s existing 89 different brand TVs, set-top boxes, computers and tablets, etc. The machine product is compatible. The RT182 chipset has been mass-produced and supplied to provide equipment and cable manufacturers with the best active optical fiber communication solutions.

About Rafael Microelectronics, Inc.

Rafael Microelectronics is a chip design company with high-end broadband RF technology (Broadband RF) as its core technology, and continues to extend its product applications to data communication and high-speed optical communication chips. The product line includes 4K/8K TV RF receiver chips and set-top box RF receivers. Chips, satellite low-noise downconverters and multi-signal switchers, high-speed optical communication chips, and IoT communication radio frequency chips, etc.

Rafael Microelectronics is a listed company in Taiwan. Its product marketing faces the global market and continues to focus on technological innovation and R&D investment. It has become one of the largest broadband RF chip companies in Asia. The Rafael product line has a complete product range, providing customers with different solutions for high performance and price advantages; the performance, quality and engineering services of each product line have been highly recognized by customers. For more company information, please refer to the company website: http://www.rafaelmicro.com/

Contact person: Chen Jiaxiu
E-mail: cashew.chen@rafaelmicro.com

Hsinchu, Taiwan, January 15, 2021 – Andes Technology, a global leader in 32/64-bit RISC-V CPU core solutions, and Rafael Microelectronics, a leading provider for RF IP and wireless communication subsystem cores, are announcing a strategic partnership to bring a wireless IoT connectivity solution based on RISC-V cores to the industry.

Wireless subsystem IPs from Rafael Microelectronics are complete solutions that enable protocols of IoT connectivity to run on AndesCore™ ultra-compact N22 processor. Rafael Microelectronics offers Bluetooth^® Low Energy version 5.0/5.1/5.2, Zigbee version 3.0 and full frequency band of sub gigahertz subsystems with radio designs targeting on various process nodes. The N22, a highly efficient and low-power 2-stage pipeline RISC-V CPU core, can work tightly with Rafael’s wireless subsystems to provide full control of MAC layer, Network layer and Application layer functions efficiently. The configurable wireless subsystem IPs also supply a wide-range selection of data link control for IoT devices.

“We are proud to deliver Bluetooth^® Low Energy, ZigBee, WiSun and various communication IPs to SoC makers who need embedded connectivity solutions”, says Ted Sun, CEO at Rafael Microelectronics and he continues; “Combining Rafael’s RF and communication IP technology with Andes’ N22 RISC-V CPU core, we proudly offer customers our low-power, cost-effective and high-sensitivity radio solutions for their competitive wireless SOCs.”

“Wireless connectivity embedded in SOC becomes more essential for power and cost sensitive applications,” said Dr. Charlie Su, CTO and Executive VP of Andes Technology. “We are excited that the integration of our RISC-V processor core N22 with Rafael Microelectronics’ wireless subsystem IPs brings highly competitive IoT connectivity solutions to SoC vendors.”

These wireless subsystem solutions are perfect for IoT related applications and are available now from Rafael Microelectronics.

About Andes Technology

Fifteen years in business and a founding Premier member of RISC-V International. Andes is a leading supplier of high-performance/low-power 32/64-bit embedded processor IP solutions, and a main force to take RISC-V mainstream. Andes’ fifth-generation AndeStar™ architecture adopted the RISC-V as the base. Its V5 RISC-V CPU families range from tiny 32-bit cores to advanced 64-bit cores with DSP, FPU, Vector, Linux, dual-issue and/or multicore capabilities. The annual volume of Andes-Embedded SoCs is exceeding 2 billion since 2020, For more information, please visit www.andestech.com

About Rafael Microelectronics

Founded in 2006, Rafael Microelectronics is a recognized market-leading RF IC company with focus on TV and satellite tuners products. With its strong competence in RF technology, Rafael initiated RF IP and wireless subsystem IP business for IoT markets in 2017. The RF IP and wireless subsystem IP solutions from Rafael Microelectronics include Bluetooth ® Low Energy, Dual Mode Bluetooth ®, IEEE 802.15.4 radio, ZigBee, WiSun and custom RF IP development. Rafael also supports related communication firmware and test methodologies. Due to complexity of integrating RF communication function into a SOC, Rafael also offers Turn-Key service for Wireless SOC design service based on Andes cores. Rafael is a publicly traded company with headquarter located in Hsinchu, Taiwan. For more information please visit: www.rafaelmicro.com

Rafael Microelectronics held an investor seminar on November 19 to update the performance of this year and future market prospects.

Rafael Microelectronics CEO Ted Sun said that the cumulative consolidated revenue in the first half of the year was NTD395 million, and the EPS was NTD1.98. From July in the second half of the year, the momentum of shipments has become significantly stronger. First 3 quarters accumu;lated revenue is NTD 744million, with net profit NTD112.3 million, EPS NTD4.50. In addition to the existing TV business, set-top box, satellite receiver business return to normal, adding dual-mode wireless, high-speed optical communication transmission and other new products. Due to the rapid demand for SoC chips with RF (radio frequency) functions in the market, the customized chip design service business launched this year, including RF IP license and ASIC design service  business. Rafael Micro has received customer orders from major international manufacturers. This IP Authorization and ASIC commissioned design business will play an important role in the company’s long-term growth in 2021 and beyond.

Ted said that the macro and micro business has returned to normal level before the epidemic, and the turnover has reached a record high in the third quarter of this year. It is expected that similar momentum can be maintained in the fourth quarter. Rafael Micro will continue to explore overseas markets in non-Chinese regions. It is expected that there is still considerable room for growth in revenue from the global set-top box and 8K TV market. At the same time, in 2021, the high-speed optical communication and wireless Internet of Things (IOT) market around 5G infrastructure will become a new source of revenue. Rafawel Micro has established strong core competitiveness in RF radio frequency and high-speed optical communication chip design technology, and is cautiously optimistic about its business in 2021.

In the TV receiver market, global TV shipments were 62.05 million units in the third quarter. Rafael Micro shipment volume was 28.32 million, accounting for 46% of the global market share, an increase of 12% over 2019. The new “Multi-Tuner” product that meets the Japanese 4K/8K TV standard has entered mass production design in a South Korean factory and is expected to be launched in the second half of 2021.

In the STB market, “Dual-Tuner”, the only solution leading the world, has been adopted in emerging markets, contributing substantially to revenue, and the growth trend will continue in 2021. In the future, the non-Chinese market is expected to reach 25% of product line revenue, which will help diversify the risk of excessive market concentration. In the satellite receiver market, LNB shipments were affected by the epidemic in the first half of this year, while the market conditions in the second half of the year have gradually stabilized. We are optimistic about the growth momentum in the first half of 2021. The share of LNB in ​​overseas high-end markets continues to increase, and new LNB product solutions have been sent to European customers for verification.

In terms of customized chips, due to the rapid growth of emerging demand for SoCs with RF (radio frequency) functions in the market, customized chip design services have been launched this year, including RF IP and ASIC business. This ASIC business will play an important role in the company’s long-term growth in 2021 and beyond.

In the IOT communication market, Rafael Micro launches Bluetooth 5.0/Sub-GHz dual-mode low-power wireless transceiver chip to be mass-produced in the fourth quarter. Its design is highly customizable and can be matched with the microprocessor selected by customers. Flexible implementation of standard software or software agreements for special applications developed by customers. RF KGD/IC supporting the new IOT standards Wi-SUN/ ZigBee and BT5.0 will be launched in 2021, and more than a dozen customer commissioned design orders have been obtained. These new products will provide important growth momentum for Rafael Micro in 2021.

In the optical communications market, 10G PON transmission chips and HDMI/DP transmission chips have been in mass-production and shipped. With the emergence of 5G mobile communications, cloud data centers, and home office trends that drive huge demand for network bandwidth, governments, telecom companies, and data centers in various countries are stepping up efforts to promote larger bandwidth optical fiber communication networks. The latest 100G ultra-high-speed optical communication chipset has begun to send samples to major customers for verification, providing large-scale data center switches and high-speed network connections to servers.

About Rafael Microelectronics, Inc.

Rafael Microelectronics is a listed company in Taiwan. It faces the global market and continues to focus on technological innovation and R&D investment. It has become one of the largest broadband RF chip companies in Asia. Rafael Microelectronics is a high-speed transmission chip design company, with high-end broadband RF technology (Broadband RF) as its core technology, extending product applications to high-speed optical communications, data communications and wireless Internet of Things, while providing customized chip design services. . The Rafael Micro has a complete product range, providing customers with different solutions for high performance and cost advantages; the performance, quality and engineering services of each product line have been highly recognized by customers.

For more company information, please refer to the company website: https://www.rafaelmicro.com/