E-mark Chip Introduction

Today’s USB data cable are beginning to require chips. If you need to use a USB Type-C data cable to achieve efficient data transmission, high-definition video transmission, and supply powerful power to devices, you will inevitably require chip support,multiple High-speed interface protocols, including USB4, DisplayPort 1.4a TX, PCI Express and Thunderbolt 4, etc.,

The USB4 router IP builds an effective connection between all supported protocols through the chip. The USB4 cable needs an IC to ensure the quality of high-speed signal transmission, and the other is to store the relevant information of the cable, including whether it can support 3A to 5A current etc. Because the speed of signal transmission is faster now, the fastest single channel transmission can reach 20Gbps, and the wire should not be too short. In order to ensure the signal quality, chips with functions such as Re-timer and Re-driver are generally added. Re-timer is The function of recovering data, Re-driver enhances the attenuated and consumed signal, this type of IC can ensure the accurate and stable transmission of high-speed signals within a specified distance.

There is also a type of E-mark chip that we are talking about today, which supports USB PD protocol communication. By communicating with this chip, in addition to knowing the ID information of the cable, you can also know whether the supported current can exceed 3A. You can distinguish between cables with high current and cables below 3A. It can meet the use of high current and protect cables below 3A. In the era of USB 3.0, the maximum transmission speed is 5Gbps, and the load current will not exceed 3A, so the above ICs are not needed. With the upgrading of products in the future, More and more chips will be applied to products, so don’t misunderstand that the chips of USB4 products are just E-mark chips.

The USB interface (only Type C) got rid of the affiliation with USB and became a new specification that can be on par with the USB specification. After the USB was upgraded to version 3.1, the physical interfaces all adopt the Type C structure, and the actual 3.1 standard USB Type-C wire structure is not uniform, which caused a lot of chaos. Until 2019, the USB-IF standardized functions and electrification performance, USB-IF association has set a threshold. If a product wants to support 5A current, USB 3.0 or higher transmission speed and video output function, it needs to be equipped with an E-Marker chip(full name: Electronically Marked Cable). USB Type-C cable build-in E-Marker chip, DFP and UFP can use PD protocol to read the properties of the cable, including power transmission capability, data transmission capability, ID Waiting for information, In other words, if the Type-C data cable has an E-Marker chip (we call it an electronic label), E-Marker (Electronically Marked Cable) can also be simply understood as an electronic label for the Type-C cable. The set functional properties of the cable can be read through the E-Marker chip, such as power transmission, data transmission, video transmission and ID. Based on this, the output terminal can adjust the matching voltage/current or audio and video signals according to the connected devices such as mobile phones or monitors.

The first principle of using E-mark: If you want to provide a voltage exceeding 5V or a current exceeding 3A through the USB TYPE-C interface, then you must need a TYPE-C e-mark chip to implement the USB PD protocol.

The second principle of using E-mark: If your device uses 5V voltage, and the current does not exceed 3A. It depends on the power supply characteristics and data transmission characteristics of the device itself. If the device itself only supplies power to the outside, or only accepts power from the other party, and the power supply role and data transmission role are matched by default (that is, the power supply party is HOST, and the power consumer is Slave or device), then you don’t need a TYPE-C e-mark chip.

The third principle of using E-mark: These two principles are used to judge whether a TYPE-C chip is needed on the device. Another point that has attracted much attention is whether an E-MARKER chip is needed on the C-C transmission cable. This standard is whether the cable current will exceed 3A. If it does not exceed, you don’t need it. The USB A to USB C Cable, USB B to USB C cable depends on whether you need to implement the Battery Charging protocol. If you want to implement it, you can use LDR6013. The advantage is that it can realize both charging and Transfer data to avoid the problem that some adapters that do not comply with the Battery Charging protocol cannot charge Apple devices