Lattice, Valens Semiconductor announce new reference design for surveillance camera market

HILLSBORO, USA: Lattice Semiconductor Corp. and Valens Semiconductor announced a new and comprehensive HDBaseT camera reference design solution. The HDBaseT reference design is targeted at the surveillance market. Up to two cameras can be supported with the output being a HDBaseT CAT5 cable containing both uncompressed video streams.

The HDBaseT reference design is powered from the power over Ethernet (POE) CAT5 cable. By offering the surveillance market a solution that does not require compression at the camera or a local power supply, Lattice and Valens are driving down the cost of megapixel security cameras.

The HDBaseT camera reference design solution can accept multiple 1080p sensor cameras and transmit uncompressed high definition video over a single 150 meter CAT5e cable to the DVR, as well as power and various controls. As opposed to IP cameras, this camera is simpler, less expensive and provides an excellent image quality with zero latency. It facilitates the implementation of enhanced video analytics in the DVR with best monitoring quality in real time. This architecture simplifies installation and does not require any special configuration or maintenance, and therefore is ideal for analog and PTZ camera replacement or upgrade.

Valens' HDBaseT chipset enables long-reach wired connectivity of uncompressed HD content via a standard single LAN cable. In addition to the security surveillance market, the capability to transmit uncompressed video also adds value in the consumer electronics and professional AV markets. In fact, Valens' HDBaseT chipset delivers significant value to the entire home entertainment ecosystem, as it can transmit HDMI audio video content in an uncompressed format too.

The low power, low cost, mid-range LatticeECP3(TM) FPGA device is perfect for multiplexing the video streams and formatting the data to the Valens HDBaseT Tx driver. The LatticeECP3 device has the necessary memory blocks, FPGA logic, SERDES and configurable I/O to implement a variety of applications. The LatticeECP3 device provides manufacturers the flexibility to adapt and format their interfaces to leverage the Valens HDBaseT bandwidth capability.

"We are excited to work with Valens Semiconductor and to offer customers a cost effective, compelling technology," said Ted Marena, director of Business Development. "We look forward to supporting end customers in the security and surveillance space as well as the consumer electronics market."

"We are delighted to collaborate with Lattice and together offer another unrivaled HDBaseT-based architecture that offers an easy to install and simple to use solution for the surveillance market," said Eli Ofek, VP Products at Valens Semiconductor, "We are confident that this collaboration will define the next generation of standard cameras for the surveillance industry."