Hisense Reveals New 8K TV SoC Details
At CES 2022, we reported on Hisense’s upcoming TV line along with their Laser TVs. But they also disclosed a newly developed Hisense 8K TV SoC that supports advanced image processing features. We reached out to Bi Wood, R&D Director at Hisense USA, to learn more.
Hisense claims that the Hi-View HV8107 is a self-developed TV SoC offering many state-of-the-art features and capabilities. They are summarized in the graphic below.
First, note that the Hisense 8K TV SoC is powerful enough to process 8K content for display at 120 fps. That does not mean it can accept 8K/120p content but refresh the panel at 120 fps. Since 8K/60p content is the highest accepted frame rate, a Motion Estimation / Motion Compensation (MEMC) circuit must be used to increase the frame rate to 120 fps.
Hisense’s AI PQ Engine includes 576 Deep Neural Network (DNN) accelerator units to perform the AI object and scene detection using machine learning. Typically, machine learning requires training on millions of images to create a robust algorithm. Machine learning algorithms must break down objects or scenes. Wood did not know exactly how many classes of objects or scenes they have done machine learning on, but he did reveal that they currently use eight types of objects or scenes for the object resolution enhancement.
Scene detection needs the content type or genre recognition. This process includes major genres like movies, sports, or gaming, but sub-categories like anime, golf, night, or views.
3D SR and 2D SR (Super-Resolution) are crucial for 8K TVs because of the required resolution upscaling. According to the graphic provided by Wood, super-resolution processes three frames to reduce flickering and improve the texture and definition of the image.
FIR/IIR 3D NR refers to two different noise reduction techniques. The FIR mode addresses high-resolution content, while the IIR mode handles very noisy content. This enhancement works on still and moving images, as shown in the graphic below.
Finally, we asked about the color management capabilities and Hisense told us that their 3D LUT can make 7168 points for 3D LUT color management and 729 points for 3D LUT RGB management. For zone control, the SoC supports 26,880 zones (H224xV120).
The Hi-View HV8107 chip is the fifth-generation product designed by the Hisense team and is fabricated on a 22-nm process node. It features dual CPUs and a Neural processing unit that can reach 1.2 Tflops, supporting a 12-bit picture quality pipeline.
Hisense believes theirs compares favorably with SoC chips from other major 8K brands. TVs from both Hisense and Toshiba brands will use it in 2022. Of course, Wood emphasized continuous research into these features, so expect higher performance in the future.
According to a report on the CGTN website, the chip can also power professional video monitors so the output is loyal to the source. This is in addition to Hisense’s upcoming TV line. China Media Group is cooperating with Hisense to support the 8K broadcasting of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics/. The group promised to develop China’s own broadcast level 8K monitors based on Hisense technology. That statement piqued our interest. Hisense’s booth at CES 2022 demonstrated a live 8K camera connected to a 4K broadcast monitor. Is an 8K professional monitor in development? We will have to wait and see.
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