ECN-Electronic Component News articles from August 2007

ECN-Electronic Component News archives from August 2007

Initiate efficiency.(Editor's View)
August 1, 2007... "The frog was wrong"--that's what I saw on a giant billboard when driving toward New York's Lincoln Tunnel last year. It turned out to be a Toyota advertisement, with fine print stating, "It is easy to be 'green' when you drive the new...

IP gateway products fuse ZigBee, Wi-Fi and cellular for "Drop-in Networking".(Leading Off)
August 1, 2007... Digi International introduced the ConnectPort X line of gateways that provide seamless connectivity of ZigBee, Wi-Fi, cellular and Ethernet traffic to centralized applications and databases. They also support GPS and 1 GB of local storage. The...

Development platform and production-ready module enable key deterministic industrial standards in COM Express.(Leading Off)
August 1, 2007... Freescale is introducing an all-in-one networking platform for industrial markets featuring Power Architecture technology and delivered in the COM Express form factor. The platform's MPC8360E PowerQUICC II Pro processor is meets or exceeds the...

Wire-to-Board 0.6 mm pitch insulation displacement connector said to be world's smallest.(Leading Off)
August 1, 2007... The XSR Series Wire-to-Board connector from JST Corp. is a 0.6 mm pitch insulation displacement (ID) connector for discrete wires. This connector has a mounting height of 1.45 mm and a depth of 3 mm. The twin U-slot along with a new design...

Energy harvesting wireless strain sensing modules.(Leading Off)
August 1, 2007... MicroStrain announced its energy harvesting wireless strain sensing modules, called ESG-LINK. The company asserts its sensing systems will operate indefinitely--without the need for batteries--by converting the component's cyclic strains into...

Digital load sensors with USB output.(Leading Off)
August 1, 2007... Loadstar Sensors, Inc. announced the iLoad Series of digital load/force sensors based on its patented capacitive sensing technology. These sensors combine the core load or force sensing function with integrated computing and communications...

Intelligent power modules for energy efficiency, reliability in home appliance motors.(Leading Off)
August 1, 2007... Infineon Technologies AG introduced a family of integrated intelligent power modules that contain nearly all of the semiconductor components required to drive electronically controlled variable-speed electric motors. The CiPoS (Control...

Transistors and solid state switches.(PRODUCT TECHNOLOGY REVIEW)
August 1, 2007... Avago Technologies expanded its solid state relay (MOSFET) family of opto-isolation products with the ASSR-301C/302C and ASSR-401C/402C. With input drive as low as 2 mA and fast switching speeds of The solid state relays provide low...

Kits for kids.(EMBEDDED SYSTEMS)
August 1, 2007... As a youngster I enjoyed wiring up circuits with knife switches, lamps, buzzers and large dry cells. While in high school I made frequent trips to surplus-electronics stores in New York City and ordered components from mail-order supply houses....

PLDs and CPLDs: decrease processor power consumption using a CPLD.(SEMICONDUCTOR HICHLIGHT)
August 1, 2007... One of the most critical factors in designing handheld, portable electronics today is reducing overall system power consumption. With increased consumer expectations, portable devices require longer battery life and higher performance. Even...

RoHS: one year later.(INDUSTRY FOCUS)
August 1, 2007... The industry's conversion from leaded (eutectic) to lead-free has been slow. The industry perception prior to July 2006 was a virtual overnight switch to lead-free. However, today many OEMs still have a "don't care, wait and see attitude" since...

DC/DC converter meet lead-free requirements.(INDUSTRY FOCUS)
August 1, 2007... Ericsson Power Modules introduced three PKD-E products: the PKD4218LE SI providing 1.2V at 20A, the PKD4218HE SI providing 1.5V at 14A, and the 3.3V at 15A-rated PKD4510E SI. The products are aimed at existing PKD customers seeking...

Serial-to-parallel converter with high voltage push-pull outputs.(INDUSTRY FOCUS)
August 1, 2007... Supertex introduced the HV610, a 32-channel, serial-to-parallel converter with high voltage, push-pull outputs. The IC is suited for driving high-speed printers and LCD displays. Its outputs can be individually controlled, set to high or low,...

Power management: to extend battery life, use two processors (not one).
August 1, 2007... When system designers must extend battery life, many believe one chip uses less power than two. The reasons seem straightforward: Chip-to-chip communications consume more power than on-chip communications, and two chips will inevitably have...

Green U.(efficiency Zone)
August 1, 2007... Green U If the world's industrial and information cultures are going Earth-friendly, then we'll need a new generation of trained technical professionals to be leaders. Universities are catching on to this demand by offering a variety of...

Power efficient processor comes to signal and imaging processing.(BOARDS & MODULES)
August 1, 2007... Mercury and P.A. Semi are collaborating to deploy P.A. Semi's dual-core PA6T-1682M PWRficient processor on the company's military and industrial systems for high-performance signal and image processing applications. The PWRficient processor is...

Clock, sync and gate distribution board.(BOARDS & MODULES)
August 1, 2007... Pentek, Inc. released its Model 6890 2.2 GHz clock, synch and gate distribution board for synchronizing multiple I/O modules. It facilitates sampling and timing for a range of multi-channel, high-speed data-acquisition, DSP and software-radio...

Ethernet switch with extensive configuration options via USB.(BOARDS & MODULES)
August 1, 2007... Harting introduced its sCon Ethernet switch, which provides the user with more than 100 different configurable options via a USB port. It is Plug and Play capable as standard or configurable to meet custom requirements. The sCon manager...

Energy efficient 1U industrial computer chassis.(BOARDS & MODULES)
August 1, 2007... ADLINK Technology introduced the RK-136, a 1U rackmount industrial chassis for use with half-size industrial cards which provide a 5.25" bay for a slim CD-ROM drive, a 3.5" bay for a slim FDD, and two internal 3.5" drive bays. The cooling...

x86 mainboard with specialized I/O add-in card.(BOARDS & MODULES)
August 1, 2007... VIA Technologies announced the VIA EPIA PX mainboard, the first commercial mainboard based on the company's Pico-ITX form factor measuring 10 cm X 7.2 cm. Powered by the 1 GHz VIA C7 processor and supporting up to 1 GB of DDR2 533 SO-DIMM...

Auxiliary switch for power industry applications.(ELECTROMECHANICAL/MECHANICAL DEVICES)
August 1, 2007... The Series 102 auxiliary switch from Electroswitch is designed for use in electrical utilities, and it offers unidirectional 90[degrees] indexing. It is available with up to 24 poles, making it suitable for a variety of power industry...

Stand-alone stepper drives.(ELECTROMECHANICAL/MECHANICAL DEVICES)
August 1, 2007... Applied Motion Products announced its STAC6-Si high performance stepper drives for 220V AC operation. These drives are programmable for stand-alone operation with Si Programmer Windows-based software with integrated tuning. A graphical...

Low voltage disconnect switch.(ELECTROMECHANICAL/MECHANICAL DEVICES)
August 1, 2007... Cole Hersee Co. introduced its low voltage disconnect (LVD) switch that eliminates dead batteries by automatically disconnecting non-critical loads from a battery when the battery falls below a predefined threshold. When the battery voltage is...

Right or left operating SMD detection switch.(ELECTROMECHANICAL/MECHANICAL DEVICES)
August 1, 2007... Omron Electronic Components LLC announces its D3SH series of ultra-small size, low profile SMD switches. Measuring just 3.4 mm X 3.0 mm X 0.9 mm and weighing 0.02g, the switch is used in presence/absence applications to detect location with an...

VME VXS backplane for military applications.(EMBEDDED SYSTEMS)
August 1, 2007... Carlo Gavazzi Computing Solutions' VITA 41 VME switched serial (VXS) switch fabric backplane for military and aerospace applications allows users to integrate a high-performance upgrade to the latest VITA standards while still supporting the...

Floating point coprocessor chip.(EMBEDDED SYSTEMS)
August 1, 2007... Micromega's uM-FPU V3.1 floating point coprocessor chip extends the feature set of the original uM-FPU V3 chip to include serial I/O support, NMEA sentence parsing, block transfers, additional matrix operations and string support. The serial...

Dual-LAN, dual-LVDS Mini-ITX mainboard.(EMBEDDED SYSTEMS)
August 1, 2007... VIA Technologies announced the VIA EPIA LT-Series Mini-ITX mainboard based on the VIA CX700 system media processor. Powered by the 1.5 GHz or fanless 1.0 GHz VIA C7 processor, the VIA EPIA LT has a maximum operating power consumption of ...

ISE with low memory requirements and new OS support.(EMBEDDED SYSTEMS)
August 1, 2007... Xilinx announced the latest release of its widely used design solution. Improvements in the ISE 9.2i release reduce memory requirements by an average of 27 percent while providing expanded support for Microsoft Windows Vista, XP x64, and Red...

Capacitance-to-digital converter enables touch-control sensitivity in portables.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Analog Devices' AD7147 capacitance-to-digital converter (CDC), an addition to the company's CapTouch controller family for consumer applications, provides accurate measurement and responsiveness, and features the addition of an active shield...

Negative charge pump achieves high efficiency for driving up to six white/RGB LEDs.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Maxim's MAX8647 a negative charge pump is a highly efficiency charge pump for powering LCD display backlights. The negative charge-pump architecture eliminates in-line resistance from battery to LEDs and delays mode switching from 1x to 1.5x...

L-MOS logic series with dual buffer logic gates.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Toshiba America Electronic Components expanded its family of low voltage operation, low power consumption LVP Series L-MOS (one gate Logic ICs) with five dual logic gates in two thin, compact six-pin packages. The devices feature high speed,...

Space-saving supply and voltage regulators.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Intersil announced the release of the ISL6422B and ISL6423B LNB supply and control voltage regulators. These energy efficient regulators use an [I.sup.2]C interface to improve system reliability by reporting diagnostics and protecting a...

16 Mb, 32 Mb Serial Flash memories.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Winbond Electronics announced the production-release of two members in its SpiFlash 25X family of Serial Flash memories. The W25X16 and W25X32 SpiFlash memories offer 16 Mb and 32 Mb densities in an eight-pin SOIC package. Using the company's...

Digital signal controllers for smart sensor applications.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Microchip Technology's dsPIC33FJ12GP digital signal controllers (DSCs) are suited for a new class of smart sensor applications. With 40 MIPS performance in package sizes as small as 6 mm X 6 mm, the processor can be moved closer to the...

Fully qualified replacement CPLDs.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... QP Semiconductor redesigned Atmel's discontinued ATV2500B high-speed CPLDs. The first offering is the BQ or quarter power version. The PLD array uses EPROM technology that allows reprogramability of the array. Features include a fully connected...

Single-chip inverter for BLDC motor drives.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. announced a single-chip inverter for drives of typically 90W to address BLDC motor drives, which provides for energy savings while simultaneously meeting the specific demands of the white good industry. The...

Low noise amplifier for ultrasound.(INTEGRATED CIRCUITS)
August 1, 2007... Supertex' MD3880 four-channel, low-noise amplifier (LNA) with a variable gain amplifier (VGA) features very low current (0.35 pA/sqrtHz) and voltage (0.74 nV/sqrtHz) noises and linear-in-dB continuous variable gain control. The MD3880 has fully...

Molded white LED assemblies for 7" TFT LCDs.(OPTOELECTRONICS & DISPLAYS)
August 1, 2007... Global Lighting Technologies' white LED backlight assembly for 7" TFT LCDs uses the company's MicroLens molded light guide technology to provide high brightness with fewer LEDs. These fully RoHS compliant LEDs are suited for applications such...

Expanded LED panel mount indicator offering.(OPTOELECTRONICS & DISPLAYS)
August 1, 2007... Dialight Corporation expanded its line of LED panel mount indicators with its 612 and 616 Series for easy front panel mounting in 12 mm (0.492") and 16 mm (0.642") holes and panel thicknesses of up to 6.3 mm (0.236"). The RoHS-compliant...

Bright sunlight visible RGB LEDs.(OPTOELECTRONICS & DISPLAYS)
August 1, 2007... LEDtronics introduces the RGB-1007-001, a low profile, four legs through-hole LED that offers full-spectrum red, green and blue LEDs (RGB LED). These discrete LEDs provide high performance and visibility in a compact size of 4.90 mm X 6.5 mm...

100-lumen LEDs.(OPTOELECTRONICS & DISPLAYS)
August 1, 2007... Cree, Inc. announces commercial availability of XLamp LEDs with minimum luminous flux of 100 lumens at 350 mA. They are available in volume with this same level of performance. They can deliver either 25 percent greater brightness with improved...

Backlight controllers for notebook computer LCD displays are ROHS-compliant and lead-free.(OPTOELECTRONICS & DISPLAYS)
August 1, 2007... Microsemi added two backlight controllers for notebook computers, additions to its portfolio of devices that power CCFLs in LCD displays. Designated the LX1693 and LX1697, the backlight controllers are optimized for the wide input voltage range...

Long-life resistive touch panels.(OPTOELECTRONICS & DISPLAYS)
August 1, 2007... Fujitsu Components America released production samples of its next-generation, resistive touch panels using an organic conductive polymer material. The custom touch panels are said to offer five times the durability and comparable optical...

Shielded compact ribbon I/O interconnect system.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... 3M Electronic Solutions Division introduced its brand shielded compact ribbon (SCR) I/O interconnect system that consists of an assortment of 10-pin shielded I/O connectors and accessories. Built around a robust ribbon style contact interface...

Interposers enable use of lead-free BGA devices in traditional tin/lead reflow profiles.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... BGA Interposers from Advanced Interconnections are a method for converting lead-free BGA device packages for use on boards processed with lower temperature, tin/lead solder profiles. Designed for RoHS exempt applications, these interposers...

14-slot shelf for dense computing applications.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... Asis announced the Perform Series 14-slot AdvancedTCA shelf designed to the space and cooling demands of dense computing environments. The shelf offers desirable computing density owing to its ability to fit three 14-slot, 12U shelves mounted...

Screwless PCB terminal blocks.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... OKW Electronics introduced its CSTBV Series of screwless PCB terminal blocks that are UL and VDE approved and feature a push-button actuator for fast wire connection and release without the need for fixing screws. The series is available in six...

Shielded nano connectors reduce EMI/noise.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... Omnetics announced its metal Bi-lobe nano-miniature connectors with sealed backshells and braided cable shielding to reduce crosstalk and EMI problems in high density electronic modules. The 25 mil pitch connectors are designed to MIL-DTL-32139...

Stacking interconnect system.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... ITT Electronic Components developed an interconnect system that eliminates up to five different proprietary power and signal cable connectors. The stacking connector features a single integrated power connection with a series of stackable...

AdvancedMC connectors.(PACKAGING & INTERCONNECTS)
August 1, 2007... Harting Technology Group introduced con:card+, a quality seal identifying a new generation of connectors for MicroTCA and AdvancedTCA systems with increased reliability. The core element of con:card+ connectors is the GuideSpring. The AMC...

TVSS module provides equipment integration capabilities.(PASSIVE & DISCRETE COMPONENTS)
August 1, 2007... Raycap has developed a 40 mm version of the Strikesorb module for integration inside OEM equipment, panelboards, cabinets, and switchgear equipment. Its fuseless design enables direct installation on busbars on the load side of a circuit...

Capacitors for hybrid and fuel cell-powered drives provide bus voltage ratings to 1,000 V DC.(PASSIVE & DISCRETE COMPONENTS)
August 1, 2007... Epcos offers power capacitor chips for alternate drive train management in hybrid- and fuel cell-powered drives. Development work on the HEV power train emphasizes electric drive efficiency. The capacitors provide bus voltage ratings to 1,000V...

WiMAX/WiFi diplexer.(PASSIVE & DISCRETE COMPONENTS)
August 1, 2007... Microlab/FXR announced the BK-26N diplexer to separate or combine all the cellular wireless frequency bands from the WiMAX and WiFi bands above 3 GHz. The low band extends from 380 MHz to 2,700 MHz, incorporating Tetra to the proposed LTE bands...

Chip resistors with wide resistance range in full range of sizes.(PASSIVE & DISCRETE COMPONENTS)
August 1, 2007... TT electronics IRC Advanced Film Division's LVC Series resistors are now available in 0402, 0603, 0805, 1206, 2010 and 2512 package sizes suitable for low current battery powered devices. Resistance values range from 3 m[ohm] to 1[ohm], with...

Copper on silicon passive device technology.(PASSIVE & DISCRETE COMPONENTS)
August 1, 2007... ON Semiconductor announced its HighQ copper (Cu) on silicon (Si) integrated passive device (IPD) manufacturing services. This 8" wafer technology is suitable for the production of passive devices such as baluns, couplers and filters that are...

AC/DC SMPS series provides 160W output in 2" x 4" with operational efficiences up to 90 percent.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... Digital Power's HD160 Series of high-density AC/DC switch-mode power supplies deliver up to 160W. The series provides operational efficiencies up to 90 percent with a power density exceeding 18 W/[in.sup.3]. These single-output power supplies...

AC/DC power modules offer power conversion to 5W.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... Synergistic Technology Solutions (STS) introduced a family of board mount AC/DC converters that provide regulated and fault-protected power up to 5W. The BlueCube power module family is available in two series, the LX3i (3W) and LX5i (5W). They...

Efficient, 4:1 wide input, 100W quarter-brick DC/DC converters.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... C & D Technology's UQQ family of converters with a wide 4:1 input range is suited for industrial, medical and telecom applications and is capable of supplying up to 100W of usable power. Available models are 3.3V/25A, 5V/20A, 12V/8A, 15V/7A and...

Optoelectronic LED power supply family expands.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... Osram Sylvania expanded its family of electronically stabilized 24V DC LED power supplies that handle a wide range of input voltages from 100V to 277V AC, enabling worldwide use on single-phase AC power lines. Recognized in the US and Canada,...

Universal linear replacement adapter line meets CEC requirements.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... Phihong developed the PLA Series universal input California Energy Commission (CEC)-compliant products which are said to be very close in cost to linear adapters while meeting the latest energy regulations. The adapter uses one primary control...

Surge protection optimizes RF performance.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... NexTek, Inc. announced its E-Class Series SurgeGuard lightning arrestors that are designed for optimizing RF performance at frequencies up to 6 GHz. The series provides bi-directional protection, and it passes DC without any performance...

Enclosed 15W AC/DC switching power supplies.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... Astrodyne announced its PV15 line of high density enclosed switching power supplies that provide 15W of output power. All models accept universal input from 90V AC to 264V AC, and five models are available that provide single outputs from 5V DC...

Intelligent power modules for energy efficiency, reliability in home appliance motors.(POWER SOURCES)
August 1, 2007... Infineon Technologies AG introduced a family of integrated intelligent power modules that contain nearly all of the semiconductor components required to drive electronically controlled variable-speed electric motors. The CiPoS (Control...

RoHS-compliant oxygen sensor is guaranteed leak-free.(SENSORS & ACTUATORS)
August 1, 2007... e2v's EC410 is a RoHS-compliant oxygen sensor and lead-free device is guaranteed leak free and has a longer life expectancy than comparable lead-based sensors, according to the company. The lightweight EC410 features low power consumption; is a...

Thin flexible film for mapping contact surface pressure distribution.(SENSORS & ACTUATORS)
August 1, 2007... Sensor Products' Pressurex thin flexible film allows for rapid and easy determination of compression, magnitude and distribution between two mating or contacting surfaces. The film is suitable for dozens of industrial applications and helps...

MEMS-based angular rate sensor.(SENSORS & ACTUATORS)
August 1, 2007... Systron Donner Automotive's MicroGyro self-contained inertial-rate sensing system includes a microscopic quartz MEMS double-ended tuning fork sensor, machined at the microscopic level of pure crystalline quartz for desirable rate sensing...

Electrically adjustable resistor family.(SENSORS & ACTUATORS)
August 1, 2007... Microbridge Technologies announced a family of low power, Low TC re-adjustable resistors designed to compensate and calibrate precision analog circuits. These rejustors can be used with off-the-shelf National Instruments hardware to calibrate a...

High temperature sensors measure up to 1,000[degrees]C.(SENSORS & ACTUATORS)
August 1, 2007... IST AG launched high temperature sensors with a measurement range from -200[degrees]C to 1,000[degrees]C. The drift stable thin film temperature element covers the requirements of applications in automotive and high temperature markets. ...

Simulator with robotic mechanism performs testing.(TEST & MEASUREMENT)
August 1, 2007... Teseq, Inc. announced its NSG 439, an ESD generator that comes with a robotic air discharge adapter accessory. It is used for the ESD testing of operating controls, peripheral devices and multi-way connectors affected by comprehensive product...

Power meter for start-up of ATE systems.(TEST & MEASUREMENT)
August 1, 2007... Agilent Technologies, Inc. introduced its N8262A P-Series LXI-compliant power meter. This compact power meter is 1U high, and it supports LAN-based automated measurements of peak, peak-to-average ratio and average power. Its small size and...

Probe cards for low leakage measurements.(TEST & MEASUREMENT)
August 1, 2007... Celadon Systems, Inc. announced its VersaTile probe cards with a -65[degrees]C to 300[degrees]C operating temperature range for low leakage measuring of off currents, and a way to increase test throughput during wafer level reliability tests...

2.4X spectrum analyzer.(TEST & MEASUREMENT)
August 1, 2007... MetaGeek announced its Wi-Spy 2.4X spectrum analyzer for resolving interference issues. With higher frequency resolution, amplitude resolution and amplitude range than previous models, it is easier to identify wireless signals that could be...

Kit illuminates ARM MCU and Keil tools.(Books & Kits)
August 1, 2007... Stellaris EKK-LM3S811 Evaluation Kit, Luminary Micro. $49. www.luminarymicro.com. This kit includes an LM3S811 evaluation board with display, a USB cable and a CD-ROM. You can quickly set up this board and use the supplied Keil tools to...

Spyder creates Code, kills bugs.(Books & Kits)
August 1, 2007... Spyder Discovery Kit for Freescale Microcontrollers (USBSPYDER08) Freescale Semiconductor. $29. www.freescale.com. Engineers will find this kit a useful way to learn about the Code Warrior tools and to get a handle on the 8-bit, 8-pin MCUs...

Isolate USB signals.(Books & Kits)
August 1, 2007... Seal/0-270U Isolated USB Hub with Sealatch, Sealevel Systems. $379. www.sealevel.com. Unlike most USB hubs, this unit provides optical isolation of USB signals for seven expansion ports, and each port can supply 500 mA to a downstream...