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Figure 3: USB Over IP vs. ExtremeUSB vs. ExtremeUSB over IP

Both the USB over IP and the ExtremeUSB solutions provide “USB extension”, however, the USB over IP solution loses some of the fundamental benefits of USB, namely Plug and Play (no drivers or software required), universality (not all devices work), and OS independence.

USB over IP requires the end user to load software on the host PC. In addition to the hassle this may cause, it may also cause problems with the operating system as the OS is actually altered (USB is no longer functioning as intended) and problems might occur. There is also extra software required for USB over IP to support multiple operating systems in addition to the extra support burdens for ongoing OS updates/upgrades (e.g. Windows Service Packs). Additionally, USB over IP does not support the full range of standard USB 1.1/2.0 devices as it lacks Isochronous support, meaning web cams and some other devices will not work at all. Finally, the USB over IP solution is not media independent today and therefore would require significant development efforts to work for TV 2.0. Nonetheless both USB over IP and ExtremeUSB are options for TV 2.0 depending upon the requirements, flexibility, development time, and support burden acceptable by the solution design team.

USB Extension Architecture and Embedded BOM Costs
The EBOM costs listed in this section are for the additional cost to embed the TV 2.0 solution into an existing video solution such as a media extender or other video device. Total BOM costs if not embedding the solutions listed below will be higher as the total cost of power supplies and other components such as PCBs, enclosures, etc. are not factored in to the calculations (although some of the cost is factored in).

USB over IP
In the USB over IP architecture, the PC Box outlined in Figure 2 would not be required, instead USB over IP software would be installed by the user on their PC. The embedded BOM cost of the USB over IP solution thus comprises of two components, the TV Box price components and the software license. EBOM cost of the USB over IP solution is unknown at this time.

ExtremeUSB
Figure 4 outlines the ExtremeUSB Cat5 USB extension solution with a four port hub at the PC Box. This solution follows the Figure 2 architecture identically with the LEX and REX components shown below corresponding to the PC Box and TV Box respectively.


Figure 4: Embedded ExtremeUSB over Cat 5 with ITC 2001 ASIC Block Diagram

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