CableCARD
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A CableCARD is a PCMCIA, Type II PC Card. The CableCARD is used in place of a set top cable decoder box, and plugs into the HD TV to provide the cable decoder function. Other terms include M-Card [Multi-Stream CableCard] or Digital Cable Ready [DCR].
The PC Card PCMCIA specification defines both the Electrical and
Physical specifications for a 68 pin interface residing in one of 3 form
factors, which differ only in thickness;
Type I: dimensions 3.3mm x 85.6mm x 54.0mm (TxLxW), Version 2.1
allows the length to increase 50mm to 135mm
Type II: dimensions 5.0mm x 85.6mm x 54.0mm (TxLxW), Version 2.1
allows the length to increase 50mm to 135mm
Type III: dimensions 10.5mm x 85.6mm x 54.0mm (Tall x Length x
Width)
The implementation of this spec based on the ISA bus is termed the PC Card with a
8/16 bit data bus, 26 address lines, and no bus mastering. PC Card-16
cards use an 8-bit or 16-bit interface that operates at ISA bus speeds
(10 MHz) using an ISA-like asynchronous protocol. All of the PCMCIA
implementations use Plug and Play and have Hot Swapping capabilities. The
16-bit PCMCIA 'PC Card' will operate up to a maximum of 20MBps, or
160Mbps. The actual throughput will depend on the minimum cycle
time and the transfer mode and will never reach the maximum
throughput rates. Back to the main PCMCIA Bus page.
Flash memory cards vs. PC Card format.
| Some TV descriptions indicate the term CableCard, while others indicate Digital Cable Ready [see below]. I was only able to find a few HDTV units from Hitachi which came with a CableCard slot. I see a few from Sony too. The CableCard allows the user to plug cable directly into a TV set without the need for a set-top box [STB]. CableCard slots may also be found on Divigal Video Recorders [DVR] Version 1 of CableCard was 'one-way' only so with out the cable decoder box things like 'pay-per-view' was unavailable. Version 2 released in June should be fixing this problem [I have not yet reviewed it]. As of July 07 according to an FCC ruling; cable companies now have to supply set-top boxes that come with a removable CableCard. The ruling may bring CableCard back from the dead. Digital Cable Ready [DCR], this attribute describes a TV that incorporates a CableCARD slot to facilitate the reception of one-way digital cable content (which may include analog, digital, high-definition and/or premium programming) without the need for a set-top box. A CableCARD is typically provided for a nominal monthly fee by the cable provider. Sets may also use the term Digital Cable Turner. |
The PC Card specification was released in 2001; version 8.0
CableCARD™ Interface 1.0 Specification, OC-SP-CC-IF-C01-050331; March 2005
CableCARD™ Interface 2.0 Specification, OC-SP-CCIF2.0-I11-070615; June 2007
PCMCIA {PCMCIA.org, Personal Computer Memory Card International Association}
STMicroelectronics {Multi-Stream CableCARD interface, DOCSIS 2.0+ cable modem chip with channel bonding}
IC Manufacturers {All other types}
The PC Card uses a 68 pin connector, with two rows of 34 pins, with 0.05 inch spacing [1.27mm]. Female pins are used on the card side, male pins on the system end. The power and ground pins are longer than the signal lines, allowing them to make connect first.
AVX
Comm Con Connectors Inc.
DDK
Electronics, Inc
FCI
Foxconn Electronics
Methode Electronics Inc.
Molex Inc.
OUPIIN America Inc.
Panduit
The table provides the pinout for the 16-bit PC Card.
| Pin # | Signal Name | Pin # | Signal Name | Pin # | Signal Name | Pin # | Signal Name | Pin # | Signal Name |
| 1 | Ground | 15 | WE | 29 | A0 | 43 | VS1/RFSH | 57 | VS2/RFU |
| 2 | D3 | 16 | Ready | 30 | D0 | 44 | Reserved | 58 | Reset |
| 3 | D4 | 17 | Vcc | 31 | D1 | 45 | Reserved | 59 | Wait |
| 4 | D5 | 18 | Vpp1 | 32 | D2 | 46 | A17 | 60 | Reserved |
| 5 | D6 | 19 | A16 | 33 | Wp | 47 | A18 | 61 | Reg |
| 6 | D7 | 20 | A15 | 34 | GND | 48 | A19 | 62 | BVD2 |
| 7 | CE1 | 21 | A12 | 35 | GND | 49 | A20 | 63 | BVD1 |
| 8 | A10 | 22 | A7 | 36 | CD1 | 50 | A21 | 64 | D8 |
| 9 | OE | 23 | A6 | 37 | D11 | 51 | Vcc | 65 | D9 |
| 10 | A11 | 24 | A5 | 38 | D12 | 52 | Vpp2 | 66 | D10 |
| 11 | A9 | 25 | A4 | 39 | D13 | 53 | A22 | 67 | CD2 |
| 12 | A8 | 26 | A3 | 40 | D14 | 54 | A23 | 68 | GND |
| 13 | A13 | 27 | A2 | 41 | D15 | 55 | A24 | -- | --- |
| 14 | A14 | 28 | A1 | 42 | CE2 | 56 | A25 | -- | --- |
Engineering Design Key words: CableCARD, HD, HDTV, Cable TV, PCMCIA, Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, PC Card, PCcard, Interconnect, Electrical layer, Standard, Interface Standard Data Bus, Standard, Specification, Spec, Interface, IC, Physical Interface, Socket Services, Description, Manufacturer, Personal Computer, PC, Pin-out, Pinout, Connector Pins, Small Form Factor, Peripheral
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