AudioCodes Voice Over Frame Relay Chips Give FRAD Makers First Off-the-Shelf Solution; New Chips Expected to Fuel Explosive Market Growth as Barriers to Entry are Lowered.

CUPERTINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 27, 1997--Making frame relay network access equipment that can carry voice, fax and voiceband transmissions will now be as simple as adding a single, off-the-shelf chip as a result of two new products announced today by AudioCodes Ltd.

The AC4801A-C and AC4804A-C single- and quad-channel, low bit rate, voice/fax/data processors are the first products of their kind, and put an end to the high development costs typically required to add voiceband communications to frame relay access devices (FRADs) and switches.

Until now, the large investment of R&D effort, time, and money required to produce voice-enabled frame relay access devices (VFRAD) put these products beyond the reach of all but a handful of the larger equipment vendors.

"Frame relay networks, which were originally specified for handling bursty LAN traffic, impose stringent requirements on design of the delay-sensitive voice traffic algorithms and systems. Mustering the required expertise will take years for most equipment vendors," said Zeev Pritzker, AudioCodes director of marketing and sales. "Now, for the first time, a simple, off-the-shelf, black-box solution at low cost is within reach of every manufacturer."

AudioCodes' new AC4804A-C QuadVoFR processor simultaneously handles four full-duplex channels of analog or PCM voice. The voice inputs are compressed using one of the user selectable voice coding algorithms specified by the Frame Relay Forum in the current draft of the FRFTC Voice over Frame Relay Implementation Agreement.

Using a sophisticated silence compression scheme compliant with G.729 and G.723.1 standards, average bit rates as low as 3.5 kbps are supported while maintaining toll voice quality. Fax transmissions are handled automatically by means of demodulation of the analog fax signal to the original low rate data stream.

The compressed voice/fax bit stream is packetized and handed over to the VFRAD's host processor for encapsulation in the frame relay protocol and transmission to the remote VFRAD, where it is decompressed by the partner QuadVoFR device.

Available now, the matching single channel AC4801A-C VoFR device can interwork nctionality of the chips: the new functional ation Agreement, whose goal is to ensure interrred way to further reduce costs by combining vo the auspices of the Frame Relay Forum, the de for frame relay access and switch equipment g were designed to comply with existing de-facttion and generation, as well as ITU voice codec standards recommended for voice over frame relay: G.729 CS-ACELP, G.723.1 MP-MLQ/ACELP, G.726 ADPCM, G.727 E-ADPCM, and ice channel to well below $20. Both chips are snufacturer headquartered in Or-Yehuda, Israel, wre u sed by leading vend ors of frame relay, subworks.

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