DAB module includes iPod docking capability

Frontier Silicon has a reference design that enables audio manufacturers to quickly produce low-cost DAB/FM radios with iPod docking capability. The Jupiter 3 (FS4023) platform is based on Frontier Silicon’s Venice 5 (FS2025) DAB/FM module which now has an integrated docking interface for communication and control of iPods, something that was previously only achievable using a separate microcontroller and DAB module. Jupiter 3 can be used as it is or as a starting point to speed development of custom OEM products, and its making it easy to produce compact DAB/FM radios with iPod docking that could retail for as little as £35.


The Venice series is said to be the world’s best selling family of DAB modules with over four million already deployed in digital radios worldwide. Venice 5 is the current entry-level DAB/FM module, featuring a small footprint, battery life of over 170 hours (note 1), and customisable software allowing manufacturers to deliver rapid product differentiation. The extensive 640 Kbytes of on-chip memory available on its baseband chip (Kino 2) enables valued added functions like FM, clocks, alarms, and timers to be implemented without the need for additional external memory.

Frontier’s customers for DAB solutions include Pure Digital, the brand leader for DAB radios, as well as Roberts Radio, Sony, Philips, Denon, Onkyo and Yamaha. Independent analysts (note 2) estimate that Frontier provided 75 percent of the DAB solutions shipped during 2006.

Frontier Silicon Limited