Sigma Designs
Encyclopedia
Sigma Designs is an American public corporation that designs and builds high-performance system-on-a-chip
semiconductor technologies for Internet-based
set-top box
es, DVD player
s/recorders, high-definition television
s, media processors, digital media adapters, portable media player
s and home connectivity products. In addition to platform processing and home network
hardware, Sigma Designs also offers engineering support services and customized integrated circuit
development.
The company develops products for the following connected media platforms: IPTV
(video over IP) set-top boxes, TV media players (such as Blu-ray), HDTVs, multimedia players, digital media adapters, portable media players, and home network
ing products, such as HomePlug
AV, HomePNA
and G.hn
. Sigma Designs owns the intellectual property and is one of two chip makers for the Z-Wave
home control technology. Sigma has alliances with other technology companies, including Microsoft
, and their products are found in stand-alone full HD multimedia players.
, with locations in Canada
, Denmark
, France
, Israel
, Japan
and Singapore
.
Sigma Designs began making boards for computers. Its products were used in many of the first Blu-ray since 2005. Sigma media processors also have more than ten year history in the IPTV market.
In late 2007 Sigma Designs released the first 1080p
(Full HD) capable media player chipset, the SMP863x. It spawned a series of stand-alone media players from early 2008 onwards.
Sigma Designs' products are sold worldwide through a direct sales force and distributors. Sigma's Common Stock, publicly traded since 1986, is listed on the NASDAQ National Market under the symbol SIGM.
.
On December 18, 2008, Sigma Designs announced the acquisition of California-based Zensys, a company that provides the wireless mesh network
ing technology Z-Wave.
On October 14, 2009, Sigma purchased Israeli home-networking chip maker CopperGate for $160 million in cash and stock. CopperGate technologies included HomePNA and HomePlug AV networking technologies. Sigma has since updated HomePlug AV to include ClearPath, an award-winning technology which significantly increases throughput.
(SoC) products to deliver entertainment and control to consumers:
. The 2011 technology offered VXP video processing to clean up artifacts and picture quality on High Definition and 3D content.
On July 9, 2010, Sigma Designs announced its media processors were used by French company, Free Inc., to deliver the first 3D broadcasts of the World Cup, as well as Europe’s first ongoing 3D content.
In June 2011, Sigma announced an “Ultra-Thin Set-Top Box” reference platform named Skini that provides over-the-top content
along with over-the-air and cable functionality.
protocol for home control. Z-Wave is a wireless radio frequency
communications technology designed for control and status reading applications in residential and light commercial environments. Z-Wave has an alliance and more than 500 interoperable products in a certification program. On May 23, 2011, Sigma announced Japanese manufacturer Mitsumi
as a licensed second source for Z-Wave technology. The company secured Verizon as a partner, with the telecom giant expected to roll out home control and security services through Z-Wave in the fall of 2011.
code. Sigma Designs was contacted and confirmed that a programmer had based REALmagic on Xvid, but assured that all GPL code would be replaced to avoid copyright infringement. When Sigma Designs released the supposedly rewritten REALmagic codec, the Xvid developers immediately disassembled it and concluded that it still contained Xvid code, only rearranged in an attempt to disguise
its presence. The Xvid developers decided to stop work and go public to force Sigma Designs to respect the terms of the GPL. After articles were published in Slashdot
and The Inquirer
, in August 2002 Sigma Designs agreed to publish their source code.
System-on-a-chip
A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...
semiconductor technologies for Internet-based
Internet access
Many technologies and service plans for Internet access allow customers to connect to the Internet.Consumer use first became popular through dial-up connections in the 20th century....
set-top box
Set-top box
A set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
es, DVD player
DVD player
A DVD player is a device that plays discs produced under both the DVD-Video and DVD-Audio technical standards, two different and incompatible standards. These devices were invented in 1997 and continue to thrive...
s/recorders, high-definition television
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
s, media processors, digital media adapters, portable media player
Portable media player
A portable media player or digital audio player, is a consumer electronics device that is capable of storing and playing digital media such as audio, images, video, documents, etc. the data is typically stored on a hard drive, microdrive, or flash memory. In contrast, analog portable audio...
s and home connectivity products. In addition to platform processing and home network
Home network
A home network or home area network is a residential local area network . It is used for communication between digital devices typically deployed in the home, usually a small number of personal computers and accessories, such as printers and mobile computing devices...
hardware, Sigma Designs also offers engineering support services and customized integrated circuit
Integrated circuit
An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit is an electronic circuit manufactured by the patterned diffusion of trace elements into the surface of a thin substrate of semiconductor material...
development.
The company develops products for the following connected media platforms: IPTV
IPTV
Internet Protocol television is a system through which television services are delivered using the Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats.IPTV services...
(video over IP) set-top boxes, TV media players (such as Blu-ray), HDTVs, multimedia players, digital media adapters, portable media players, and home network
Home network
A home network or home area network is a residential local area network . It is used for communication between digital devices typically deployed in the home, usually a small number of personal computers and accessories, such as printers and mobile computing devices...
ing products, such as HomePlug
HomePlug
HomePlug is the family name for various power line communications specifications that support networking over existing home electrical wiring. Several specifications exist under the HomePlug moniker, with each offering unique performance capabilities and coexistence or compatibility with other...
AV, HomePNA
HomePNA
The HomePNA Alliance is an incorporated non-profit industry association of companies that develops and standardizes technology for home networking over the existing coaxial cables and telephone wiring within homes.-Overview:HomePNA does not manufacture products, although its members do...
and G.hn
G.hn
G.hn is the common name for a home network technology family of standards developed under the International Telecommunication Union's Standardization arm and promoted by the HomeGrid Forum...
. Sigma Designs owns the intellectual property and is one of two chip makers for the Z-Wave
Z-Wave
Z-Wave is a proprietary wireless communications protocol designed for home automation, specifically to remote control applications in residential and light commercial environments...
home control technology. Sigma has alliances with other technology companies, including Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
, and their products are found in stand-alone full HD multimedia players.
History
Sigma Designs was founded in 1982 and is based in Milpitas, CaliforniaMilpitas, California
Milpitas is a city in Santa Clara County, California. It is a suburb of the major city of San Jose, California. It is located with San Jose to its south and Fremont to its north, at the eastern end of State Route 237 and generally between Interstates 680 and 880 which run roughly north/south...
, with locations in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
.
Sigma Designs began making boards for computers. Its products were used in many of the first Blu-ray since 2005. Sigma media processors also have more than ten year history in the IPTV market.
In late 2007 Sigma Designs released the first 1080p
1080p
1080p is the shorthand identification for a set of HDTV high-definition video modes that are characterized by 1080 horizontal lines of resolution and progressive scan, meaning the image is not interlaced as is the case with the 1080i display standard....
(Full HD) capable media player chipset, the SMP863x. It spawned a series of stand-alone media players from early 2008 onwards.
Sigma Designs' products are sold worldwide through a direct sales force and distributors. Sigma's Common Stock, publicly traded since 1986, is listed on the NASDAQ National Market under the symbol SIGM.
Acquisitions
On February 8, 2008, Sigma Designs completed its acquisition of Canadian manufacturer Gennum’s VXP image processing business. This technology was used in video projectors. In January 2011, Sigma announced it was adding the VXP technology to its SMP8910 system-on-a-chipSystem-on-a-chip
A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...
.
On December 18, 2008, Sigma Designs announced the acquisition of California-based Zensys, a company that provides the wireless mesh network
Wireless mesh network
A wireless mesh network is a communications network made up of radio nodes organized in a mesh topology. Wireless mesh networks often consist of mesh clients, mesh routers and gateways.The mesh clients are often laptops, cell phones and other wireless devices while the mesh routers forward traffic...
ing technology Z-Wave.
On October 14, 2009, Sigma purchased Israeli home-networking chip maker CopperGate for $160 million in cash and stock. CopperGate technologies included HomePNA and HomePlug AV networking technologies. Sigma has since updated HomePlug AV to include ClearPath, an award-winning technology which significantly increases throughput.
Product divisions
Sigma Designs provides system-on-a-chipSystem-on-a-chip
A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...
(SoC) products to deliver entertainment and control to consumers:
Media and Video Processing
Sigma Designs offers media and video processing technology, with the SMP8910 SMP8670 processors, introduced at the 2011 Consumer Electronics ShowConsumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
. The 2011 technology offered VXP video processing to clean up artifacts and picture quality on High Definition and 3D content.
On July 9, 2010, Sigma Designs announced its media processors were used by French company, Free Inc., to deliver the first 3D broadcasts of the World Cup, as well as Europe’s first ongoing 3D content.
Home AV Networking
Sigma Designs' AV Network products include:- HomePNAHomePNAThe HomePNA Alliance is an incorporated non-profit industry association of companies that develops and standardizes technology for home networking over the existing coaxial cables and telephone wiring within homes.-Overview:HomePNA does not manufacture products, although its members do...
and HomePlugHomePlugHomePlug is the family name for various power line communications specifications that support networking over existing home electrical wiring. Several specifications exist under the HomePlug moniker, with each offering unique performance capabilities and coexistence or compatibility with other...
AV products use existing wires in homes (coaxial cableCoaxial cableCoaxial cable, or coax, has an inner conductor surrounded by a flexible, tubular insulating layer, surrounded by a tubular conducting shield. The term coaxial comes from the inner conductor and the outer shield sharing the same geometric axis...
, phone lines, or AC power lines) and deliver as much as 200 Mbit/s of throughput. These are marketed with what the company calls ClearPath technology which avoids noise on typical power lines. As of November 2010, Sigma Designs shipped more than 20 million HomePNA chipsets.
- Sigma announced G.hnG.hnG.hn is the common name for a home network technology family of standards developed under the International Telecommunication Union's Standardization arm and promoted by the HomeGrid Forum...
products in October 2010 claimed to be capable of delivering up to 3 Gbit/s. These were marketed under the name ClearPath Extreme.
In June 2011, Sigma announced an “Ultra-Thin Set-Top Box” reference platform named Skini that provides over-the-top content
Over-the-top content
In the fields of broadcasting and content delivery, over-the-top content means on-line delivery of video and audio without the Internet service provider being involved in the control or distribution of the content itself...
along with over-the-air and cable functionality.
Home Control
Sigma Designs develops and markets the Z-WaveZ-Wave
Z-Wave is a proprietary wireless communications protocol designed for home automation, specifically to remote control applications in residential and light commercial environments...
protocol for home control. Z-Wave is a wireless radio frequency
Radio frequency
Radio frequency is a rate of oscillation in the range of about 3 kHz to 300 GHz, which corresponds to the frequency of radio waves, and the alternating currents which carry radio signals...
communications technology designed for control and status reading applications in residential and light commercial environments. Z-Wave has an alliance and more than 500 interoperable products in a certification program. On May 23, 2011, Sigma announced Japanese manufacturer Mitsumi
Mitsumi
is a Japanese manufacturer of consumer electronic components, founded in 1954.-Products:One of the company's most noticeable product lines are video game console controllers...
as a licensed second source for Z-Wave technology. The company secured Verizon as a partner, with the telecom giant expected to roll out home control and security services through Z-Wave in the fall of 2011.
Xvid controversy
In July 2002, Sigma Designs released an MPEG-4 video codec called the REALmagic MPEG-4 Video Codec. Before long, people testing this new codec found that it contained considerable portions of XvidXviD
Xvid is a video codec library following the MPEG-4 standard, specifically MPEG-4 Part 2 Advanced Simple Profile . It uses ASP features such as b-frames, global and quarter pixel motion compensation, lumi masking, trellis quantization, and H.263, MPEG and custom quantization matrices.Xvid is a...
code. Sigma Designs was contacted and confirmed that a programmer had based REALmagic on Xvid, but assured that all GPL code would be replaced to avoid copyright infringement. When Sigma Designs released the supposedly rewritten REALmagic codec, the Xvid developers immediately disassembled it and concluded that it still contained Xvid code, only rearranged in an attempt to disguise
Obfuscated code
Obfuscated code is source or machine code that has been made difficult to understand for humans. Programmers may deliberately obfuscate code to conceal its purpose or its logic to prevent tampering, deter reverse engineering, or as a puzzle or recreational challenge for someone reading the source...
its presence. The Xvid developers decided to stop work and go public to force Sigma Designs to respect the terms of the GPL. After articles were published in Slashdot
Slashdot
Slashdot is a technology-related news website owned by Geeknet, Inc. The site, which bills itself as "News for Nerds. Stuff that Matters", features user-submitted and ‑evaluated current affairs news stories about science- and technology-related topics. Each story has a comments section...
and The Inquirer
The Inquirer
The Inquirer is a British technology tabloid website founded by Mike Magee after his departure from The Register in 2001. In 2006 the site was acquired by Dutch publisher Verenigde Nederlandse Uitgeverijen...
, in August 2002 Sigma Designs agreed to publish their source code.
See also
- System-on-a-chipSystem-on-a-chipA system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...
- G.hnG.hnG.hn is the common name for a home network technology family of standards developed under the International Telecommunication Union's Standardization arm and promoted by the HomeGrid Forum...
- Home networkHome networkA home network or home area network is a residential local area network . It is used for communication between digital devices typically deployed in the home, usually a small number of personal computers and accessories, such as printers and mobile computing devices...
- Media processor
- IPTVIPTVInternet Protocol television is a system through which television services are delivered using the Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats.IPTV services...
- Home PNA
- HomePlug AV
- Z-WaveZ-WaveZ-Wave is a proprietary wireless communications protocol designed for home automation, specifically to remote control applications in residential and light commercial environments...