A
A-GPS (assisted GPS): an augmentation to Global Positioning Systems (GPS) where the mobile phone network can provide the almanac and ephemeris data. By using the mobile phone network, the GPS receiver does not need to decode data from the satellites, thus both speeding up acquisition of a fix and allowing fixes to be made in areas where GPS signals are too weak to allow decoding of data but are nonetheless strong enough to be used to measure time of arrival (see also GPS)
acquisition time: the time it takes a GPS receiver to acquire satellite signals and determine the initial position
A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Profile): This profile defines how high quality audio (stereo or mono) can be streamed from one device to another over a Bluetooth® connection
Android: Android is a software platform for mobile devices based on a Linux kernel, initially developed by Google and later the Open Handset Alliance
aptX®: CSR's proprietary low-latency, high-quality audio coding technology for high performance wireless audio transport applications such as Bluetooth stereo/A2DP
attach rate: represents the percentage adoption of additional products or technologies on to the primary or hosting product
B
baseband: describing that part of a radio telecommunication system in which information is processed before modulating on to, or after demodulating off, a radio frequency (RF) carrier wave
BiCMOS or Bipolar CMOS: is a process which combines bipolar junction transistors on complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. The combination utilises the high speed, high gain and low output characteristics of the bipolar technology with the high density logic gates of the CMOS technology. It has advantages for RF performance, reduced power consumption and low noise circuits
bipolar: bipolar refers to the enhancement of the conduction of current within a transistor that enables the control of a larger electrical current thereby providing an amplified signal
BlueCore®: means the CSR family of single chip CMOS based (see below) Bluetooth® solutions which integrate onto one chip the radio frequency (RF), baseband and communications protocol stack
Bluetooth®: is an open wireless protocol for exchanging data over short distances from fixed and mobile devices
Bluetooth® low energy, Bluetooth® LE, BLE or BTLE: is designed to work side-by-side with and complement Bluetooth. It operates in 2.4 GHz ISM band. Devices using Bluetooth low energy will be smaller and more energy efficient than their classic Bluetooth counterparts
Bluetooth® v3.0 + High Speed: In April 2009, Bluetooth® v3.0 + High Speed (HS) was launched to support a higher speed, alternative media access controller and physical layer (PHY). Classic Bluetooth retained the control to ensure power consumption is minimised, but a higher speed radio is activated as and when needed to transfer large files quickly. Currently HS supports 802.11 radios, but in future may evolve to support the much higher speed UWB
Bluetooth® v4.0: see Bluetooth low energy
Bluetooth® Smart: see Bluetooth low energy
C
cellular: derives from cellphone and means a mobile phone or other device which communicates through a network of radio cells
CMOS: Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor technology: a semiconductor process technology that uses planar transistors to make chips that consume relatively low power and permit a high level of integration
chip: short for a microchip; semiconductor device or integrated circuit
coexist/coexistence: means the ability of two systems to operate in parallel without interfering with the other
codec: short for coder-decoder. A device or software program capable of encoding and/or decoding a digital data stream or signal. A codec encodes a data stream or signal for transmission, storage or encryption, or decodes it for playback or editing
connectivity: enabling two electronic devices to communicate with each other and transfer data (voice/audio/music/picture/word files) using radio waves
Connectivity Centre: a term first promulgated by CSR in its application to wireless connectivity solutions. The Connectivity Centre brings together many aspects of short-range wireless connectivity products with excellent coexistence capable of operating concurrently without degradation in optimum performance of each of the individual functions
CSP (chip-scale package): a semiconductor package which is as small as the semiconductor chip and is used for small form factor applications such as mobile phones, PDAs and wireless devices
CVC™(Clear Voice Capture): CSR's own digital signal processing (DSP) software technology for enhancing audio quality on wireless products. A modular suite of algorithms includes acoustic echo cancellation and noise suppression that can be applied in a granular fashion and tuned to suit the application
D
DDFA® (Direct Digital Feedback Amplifier): CSR's proprietary digital amplifer technology, a Class-D audio switching amplifier architecture that employs a fast, highly accurate digital feedback loop and which sets new standards in sound quality
design win: CSR records a design win when a product using one of its ICs becomes Bluetooth® qualified
die: another word for chip: often used to refer to the chips whilst they are still an integral part of the silicon wafer or where they have been cut from the wafer but are, as yet, unpackaged
digital: the representation of data by a series of bits or discrete values such as 0s and 1s
DSP (digital signal processor): a specialised microprocessor with an optimised architecture for the fast operational needs of digital signal processing
E
EDR (Enhanced Data Rate): allows for faster data transfer over Bluetooth
eGPS™(enhanced GPS): as the name suggests an enhancement to GPS whereby measurements are made by the GPS receiver on the signals received from the mobile phone network which allow both fine time and frequency assistance to the GPS receiver. This further accelerates acquisition of a fix, as well as allowing, when GPS signals are unavailable, fall-back to a fix made solely from the measurements made on the cellular network (see also GPS)
ERP System (Enterprise Resource Planning System): is a company wide computer software system used to manage and co-ordinate internal and external resources. The system facilitates the flow and management of information to improve data sharing and decision making using a computer network
F
FM or FM Radio: is a radio wave broadcast technology that conveys sound – voice and music – using a carrier wave which varies its frequency during transmission, producing high quality audio clarity and tone
fabless: short for fabricationless, a business model used in the semiconductor industry, where the manufacture (or fabrication) of ICs is subcontracted to a foundry
fabless semiconductor company: company that uses a third party semiconductor fabrication service to manufacture silicon chips as opposed to fabrication facilities owned directly
feature phone: a mobile phone which has added functionality over and above a base model designed specifically to meet the requirements of a particular market segment. Typically these features can include a digital camera, Bluetooth® connectivity, FM radio or MP3 player. These phones are intended to occupy the mid-market segment
firmware: software which interfaces with and typically configures and manages the hardware in a system
flash memory: electronic memory where the contents (usually an applications programme) may be programmed prior to use and which retains its contents irrespective of applied power
foundry: a wafer manufacturing site that makes integrated circuits
G
Galileo: a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) being built by the European Union (EU) and European Space Agency (ESA)
GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems): the standard generic term for satellite navigation systems ("sat nav") that provide autonomous geo-spatial positioning with global coverage
GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System): is a radio-based satellite navigation system, developed by the former Soviet Union and now operated for the Russian government by the Russian Space Forces.
GPS (Global Positioning Systems): a satellite based radio navigation system that allows receiving devices to take an accurate location fix of the device on the surface of the earth. Positions are derived by measuring the time of arrival of signals broadcast from the constellation of satellites, and knowledge of the instantaneous positions of the satellites. (The information required to calculate this being broadcast at a very low data rate by the satellites themselves, and is known as almanac and ephemeris data.)
H
HID (human interface device): any device to interact directly with humans (mostly input)
such keyboard, mouse, joystick, or control devices such as a remote controls
such keyboard, mouse, joystick, or control devices such as a remote controls
host software: software running on the system in which the device is embedded
I
IC (integrated circuit): a semiconductor device consisting of many thousands or millions of interconnected transistors and other components
ISM Bands: ISM Bands or Industrial, Scientific and Medical are radio frequencies reserved around the world for unlicensed use originally intended for industrial, scientific and medical products rather than general communication. Their international unlicensed status makes them suitable for lower power communication systems like Bluetooth®, WirelessLAN etc. and means they are being widely adopted in these areas
L
Location-As-A-Service (Laas): see LBS
LBS (location-based services): are information and entertainment services, accessible with mobile devices through the mobile network and utilising the ability to make use of the geographical position of the mobile device. LBS include services to identify a location of a person or object, such as discovering the nearest banking cash machine or the whereabouts of a friend or employee.
LE: Bluetooth® low energy.
M
MAP-X™: audio processor SoC family
memory: any device that can store data in machine-readable format which may include RAM, ROM and Flash
MEMS (microelectromechanical systems - also written as micro-electro-mechanical, MicroElectroMechanical or microelectronic and microelectromechanical systems): the technology of very small mechanical devices driven by electricity; it merges at the nano-scale into nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) and nanotechnology. MEMS are also referred to as micromachines (in Japan), or Micro Systems Technology - MST (in Europe).
microcontroller (MCU): often defined as being a microprocessor together with its memory and a means of allowing input and output
Module or Multi-chip Module: is a self contained component that comprises a number of integrated circuits (ICs) and discrete components on a substrate to allow the module to be used as if it were a single component.
MP3: a file format which compresses or shrinks voice and music files for transfer between one electronic device to another whilst retaining CD quality audio
non-cellular: as used by CSR means an electronic device which uses Bluetooth but is not a cellular device
N
NFC (Near Field Communication): is a short-range high frequency wireless communication technology which enables the exchange of data between devices over a distance of about four centimetres. Its application includes secure payment transactions using the customers mobile phone or transfer of files for example photo images from a digital camera to a PC
nm (nanometre): is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one billionth of a metre
O
ODM (Original Design Manufacturer): a manufacturer that designs and manufactures equipment for another company who will, in turn sell this to the end-user
OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer): a manufacturer that sells equipment to retail and wholesale outlets
P
PDA (personal digital assistant): a pocket-sized personal computer
package: the package of a semiconductor is the physical and electrical interface between the chip and the system in which it operates
playback: the characteristic of a device to be able to play selected music or video tracks which are stored on that device
PND (Personal Navigation Device): is a portable electronic product which combines a positioning capability (such as GPS) and navigation functions and enables the user to find out where they are located and get directions to move from one place to another
protocol: a method by which two dissimilar systems can communicate
R
RF (radio frequency): frequencies of electromagnetic waves between approximately 3 kHz and 300 GHz
ROM (read only memory)
S
semiconductor: a material, typically crystalline, that can be altered to allow electrical current to flow or not flow in a pattern; common semiconductors are silicon, germanium and gallium arsenide and the term is also used to apply to ICs made from these materials
silicon: a semiconducting material used to make wafers, widely used in the semiconductor industry as the basic material for integrated circuits
short range: Bluetooth® is principally used for communicating over ranges of up to ten metres
smartphone: a generic name for a voice centric mobile phone that also offers advanced capabilities often using a computer-like operating system (OS) to enable PC functionality
sound bar: a special (sometimes wireless) loudspeaker which creates a stereo- or surround-sound effect from a single cabinet, usually much wider than it is high, and mounted above or below a display device, e.g. atop a computer monitor or beneath a television screen.
stereo headset: a mobile headset which connects to a mobile phone, PDA, MP3 player or other device using Bluetooth® and sits on both ears of the user
SoC (System-on-Chip): is a technology that takes all the necessary electronic circuits and parts for a complete system and integrates them into a single circuit (silicon chip)
software stack: is a layered set of software subsystems or components that are combined and integrated to provide a fully functional product or service with structured communication through the stack
software solution: a solution where instructions and data are read from memory (or memories) and then the instructions interpreted and executed by a microprocessor to modify the data in the intended way
Sub-band coding (SBC): is any form of transform coding that breaks a signal into a number of different frequency bands and encodes each one independently
T
Tier One: a description of a leading, normally global manufacturer that supplies products in high volume to end user markets
TTFF (Time to First Fix): the time it takes a GPS receiver to find satellites after the user first turns it on (when the GPS receiver has lost memory or has been moved over 300 miles from its last location)
U
UWB (Ultra WideBand)
urban canyon: is a built up urban environment similar to a natural canyon which interrupts radio signals. It is caused by streets cutting through dense blocks of structures, especially skyscrapers or other tall buildings
V
VAM (value added manufacturers or value added manufacturing): where the value of gross output is greater than the value of intermediate inputs used in production
V&M: voice and music
W
wafer: a disc made of a semiconducting material such as silicon, usually between 150mm (6’) and 300mm (12’) in diameter, in which integrated circuits are manufactured; a wafer may contain several thousand individual integrated circuits
Weightless: a proposed, proprietary, highly secure, open wireless technology standard for exchanging data between a basestation and thousands of machines over white space radio channels
white space: radio frequency bands - moreso in the UHF radio spectrum - allocated to (television) broadcasting services but not used locally
Wi-Fi® (Wireless Fidelity - also known as IEEE 802.11): a data-centric wireless communication standard typically associated with wireless computer networks at home and in the office and public spaces, operating at raw radio rates from 1Mbps to 600Mbps
Wi-Fi® Direct: a standard that allows Wi-Fi devices to connect to each other with no need for a wireless access point
WLCSP (Wafer Level Chip Scale Packaging): the technology of packaging a chip at the wafer level instead of the traditional process of assembling the package after the wafer has been diced into individual chips (see CSP)
Y
yield: when used in connection with manufacturing, the ratio of the number of usable products to the total number of products on a wafer
