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Top Industry Speakers Slated For 11th Annual Digital Engineering Conference
Leading industry speakers will update engineering professionals from all aspects of the consumer electronics industry on cutting-edge digital technologies at the 11th Annual Digital Engineering Conference - the Consumer Electronics Future. The conference, produced by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) and co-sponsored by the IEEE Consumer Electronics Society, will be held in Hasbrouck, New Jersey at the Hilton Hotel, February 29 through March 1, 2000. The event will be co-sponsored by Nextel Communications Inc., Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company, Sarnoff Laboratories, Sharp Electronics, Thomson Consumer Electronics Inc., Turner Engineering and Zenith Electronics. Dale Hatfield, Chief, Office of Engineering and Technology, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will be the keynote luncheon speaker. The conference will provide the more than 200 expected attendees with a technical outlook on digital technologies and the far-reaching impact they will have on the consumer electronics industry for the year 2000 and beyond. Designed to reach engineers, engineering managers and product development managers, conference session topics will focus on electronic program guides, data broadcasting, digital automobile electronics, cable compatibility, flat-panel displays, RF environment for DTV receivers and electronic books. The conference begins with an overview of how information for electronic program schedules is processed then delivered to end users through multiple network channels. Rich Chernock, IBM Research and Aninda DasGupta, Philips Electronics, will follow with explanations of the standards and protocols involved in enabling DTV data broadcasting. Chernock will discuss the implications associated with Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) Data Broadcasting and how data fits into the ATSC broadcast infrastructure. Specifically, he will emphasize data encapsulation and considerations for implementing these protocols while DasGupta will educate attendees on developments in DTV data application software environment (DASE) standards. Representatives from the Automobile Multimedia Interface Collaboration (AMIC), will speak about the automotive industry's vision of the car as a platform for integrated digital networks that provide vehicle operation enhancement, safety improvements and increased driver convenience. A Motorola spokesperson will be on hand to discuss Internet radio, one of the concepts that has emerged from telematics, the growing category of products that wirelessly link drivers with emergency and convenience services. Wael Berrached, Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), will give an overview of the car area network (CAN) bus, the system currently used to connect electronic devices in automobiles. Mark Richer of the ATSC, will moderate a session on the RF environment for DTV receivers. Richer also will give an overview of the ATSC transmission system and VSB system requirements. Paul Snopko, Zenith Electronics, will review VSB receiver performance improvements and Gary Sgrignoli and Ray Hauge of Zenith Electronics, will report on VSB field tests and optimized receiver designs for the EIA-761 digital interface standard respectively. After an informal reception on February 29, Gary Arlen, Arlen Communications and Rich Doherty, The Envisioneering Group, will conclude the day's sessions with an evening panel discussing the current and future state of consumer electronics in the digital universe. Victor McCrary of the National Institute of Standards Technology (NIST), will update attendees on the latest technology developments for electronic books. Attendees will learn about the future of eBooks and the issues facing this emerging product area, including reader expectation, standards development, human interface capabilities and limitations, and copy protection. George Hanover, former CEA Vice President, Technology and Standards, will be at the helm for a mid-morning discussion on the crucial role cable compatibility must play in connecting DTV receivers with cable systems. According to CEA, more than 70 percent of U.S. households receive cable signals and these consumers are the most likely to purchase DTVs. Hanover will give a comprehensive overview of the history and status of cable compatibility standards. Bill Wall, Scientific-Atlanta; Eric Carlsgarrd, Thomson; and Cable Labs staff will expound further on network interface and performance issues for cable. Frank DeMartin, Sharp; David Mentle, Stanford Resources; and Dr. Scott Keneman, Panasonic; will wrap up the conference by giving their perspectives on flat panel displays.