EDN Asia articles from September 2004

EDN Asia archives from September 2004

Flexible architectures need new design ideas.(ednasia.comment)
September 1, 2004... When mobile phones were originally designed, they ere exclusively a communication product. Later, they became a communication plus consumer electronic product. Now, they are evolving into a communication plus consumer electronic plus computing...

Single-chip 1394a link & PHY for audio/video data connectivity.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... Texas Instruments' cost-effective, integrated 1394a link-layer-controller and two-port PHY give designers of multi-media applications an off-the-shelf component that facilitates communication of compressed A/V data and digital audio according...

Good avalanche ruggedness for IH applications.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... Fairchild Semiconductor's I000V/60A IGBT delivers excellent switching and conduction characteristics as well as avalanche ruggedness in induction heating (IH) applications, including IH rice jars, induction cookers and microwave ovens....

MOSFET driver enables multiphase notebook PC supplies.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... Intersil's ISL6208 is a synchronous-buck converter MOSFET driver IC that provides higher efficiency than other drivers, by using a more efficient "diode emulation" mode during light-load conditions. The 30V driver can sink up to 4A, yet is...

Express technology extended for automated instrumentation and real-time systems.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... LabVIEW 7.1 is an upgrade to the family of LabVIEW graphical development products. It extends Express technology to automated instrumentation and real-time applications with Express VIs for NI modular instruments and NI-DAQmx, advanced...

MAX II CPLD family reduces cost and power consumption.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... Altera Corporation's MAX II device family is half the cost and consumes only one-tenth the power of previous MAX generations while maintaining the same instant-on, single-chip, non-volatile, and ease-of-use characteristics of the original MAX...

Smart card readers incorporate biometric electronics.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... Hong Kong-based Advanced Card Systems (ACS) enjoys worldwide recognition as one of the leaders in smart card readers and related products. In that innovation spirit, ACS has now introduced a new generation of smart card readers with integrated...

GPS chipset offers better performance.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... LocSense Technology, Inc., a GPS module and IC solution provider, has announced its LS4000 Correlation Engine which delivers a high level of performance with low power consumption and low cost. It is targeted at mobile computing platforms, such...

ASK/FSK receiver with integrated image rejection.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... Maxim Integrated Products' MAX1471 is a dual-channel receiver that can receive both ASK and FSK data simultaneously, eliminating the switching lag time between modes. Designed for low-cost systems where both encoding schemes are present, the...

Converter exceeds 1000 W/[in.sup.3], suits Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) applications.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... The latest member of Vicor's V-I Chip Bus Converter Module (BCM) family, the B048K480T30, provides 2,250 Vdc primary-to-secondary isolation with a unity transformation ratio (K = 1) over the input range of 38 to 55 Vdc. Rated for 300W and with...

Delta-Sigma ADCs for low cost multiplexed applications.(leading edge)
September 1, 2004... The LTC2439-1 is an 8-channel, differential input, low cost 16-bit ADC with a no latency delta-sigma architecture that allows single-cycle settling time. The digital filter always settles in one conversion cycle even after a change in...

Supply inductor also functions as a current-sense resistor.(leading edge)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... By guaranteeing a tight tolerance on the dc resistance of the newest members of the IHLP family of power inductors, Vishay lets you use the inductor as a current-sense resistor as well, thus eliminating the need for a separate resistor. The...

Higher performance for cable modems.(leading edge)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Broadcom Corporation has introduced its next generation single-chip cable modem solution, the BCM3349, an advanced DOCSIS 2.0-based cable modem chip that addresses the increasing demands of high-speed data, voice and gateway modem designs. ...

From the ashes: the next stage of EDA: Moore's Law is not dead, and the EDA industry is challenged with keeping it profitable. This task requires a change in focus from designing silicon structures to producing systems.(Electronic design automation)
September 1, 2004... AT A GLANCE * Advancements in process technology are challenging traditional ASIC-design methods. * Using clusters of application-processing units will shift the development burden to software. * ESL will become the fastest...

A new embedded architecture: bigger better boards: after several years of declining business activity, leading telecom-equipment manufacturers are backing a new, open-system architecture in the hope of returning their industry to profitability.(design feature)
September 1, 2004... AT A GLANCE A large board area, high availability, and high-speed interconnections make AdvancedTCA (Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture) a viable next-generation telecom platform. More than 100 major telecom providers and...

When, where, and WiMax: a realistic look at an emerging wireless-broadband technology.(design feature)
September 1, 2004... Certain circles in the tech industry have been buzzing lately about something called WiMax. People are saying that WiMax is the long-awaited "third pipe"--a wireless technology that will compete with DSL and cable in the last mile of broadband...

Flyback controller improves cross regulation for multiple output applications--Design Note 344.(Designs Notes)(Advertisement)
September 1, 2004... Introduction Flyback converters are often used in power supplies requiring low to medium output power at several output voltages. With a flyback, multiple outputs incur little additional cost or complexity--each additional output requires...

Sources and remedies of analog circuit noise: reducing system noise does not have to be frustrating, time consuming or expensive. Knowing what to do and when are key factors.(special report)
September 1, 2004... Analog design can appear to be more black magic than science when it comes to noise problems. A common ailment for a designer is to have the analog hardware portion of the circuit built only to find that somewhere a gremlin is generating enough...

Delta-sigma ADCs: high performance analog solutions from Linear Technology: automatic calibration of external components.(Analog to digital converters)(Advertisement)
September 1, 2004... The LTC[R] 2449 an 8kHz, 16-channel delta-sigma ADC, provides high resolution systems designers with a dramatic improvement in accuracy, precision and drift. The device reduces the cost and increases the performance of precision designs by...

Not many semiconductor makers will qualify to go to 90nm.(interview)(Interview)
September 1, 2004... The race towards 90nm node has begun in right earnest in the programmable logic segment, even as basic problems at this node are still being grappled with. Excerpts from an interview with Ben Lee, vice president and managing director, Altera,...

Transformerless dc/dc converter produces bipolar outputs.(design ideas)
September 1, 2004... The conventional way to produce dual (positive and negative) outputs from a single positive input is to use a transformer. Although such designs are relatively simple, the transformer inherently introduces the problem of size. It can be...

Isolated MOSFET driver has wide duty-cycle range.(design ideas)
September 1, 2004... The main application for the circuit in Figure 1 is for driving power MOSFETs with signals ranging in frequency from 1Hz to 300kHz and with duty cycles from 0 to 100%. You achieve this goal by using a coreless pc-board transformer. The...

Optoelectronic position control simplifies motor movements.(design ideas)
September 1, 2004... The optoelectronic technique for achieving position control provides an inexpensive, easy-to-design method of achieving simple, repeatable movement using fixed index points with linear- or rotary-motion components. The simple, basic design in...

Circuit provides ISFET-sensor bias.(design ideas)(ion-sensitive field-effect transistors)
September 1, 2004... ISFETs (ion-sensitive field-effect transistors) are useful for measuring the acidity of fluids. Accurate measurements require that the ISFET's bias conditions ([I.sub.D] and [V.sub.DS]) be held constant while the gate is exposed to the fluid...

White-LED driver provides 64-step logarithmic dimming.(design ideas)
September 1, 2004... The circuit of Figure 1 is designed for portable-power applications that require white LEDs with adjustable, logarithmic dimming levels. The circuit drives as many as four white LEDs from a 3.3V source and adjusts the total LED current from 1...

Reduce EMI by sweeping a power supply's frequency.(design ideas)(electromagnetic-interference)
September 1, 2004... Switching power supplies can be notorious noise generators. You should prevent this noise, which is conducted, radiated, or both, from returning to the input source, where it can potentially wreak havoc on other devices operating from the same...

Variable speed control pre-driver IC.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Pre-driver IC provides flexible variable speed control of single-phase brushless dc fans and blowers * Fully compatible with NTC thermistor, voltage and PWM input signals * Provides thermal control of single-phase motors up to 100W...

Altera's versatile embedded processor.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Second-generation soft-core embedded processor delivers over 200 DMIPS in performance * Unlimited combination of system configurations to meet performance and cost targets no need for ASIC for system-level designs * Consists of three...

"World's fastest" 5V full duplex transceiver.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Full duplex operation * One eighth fractional unit load for up to 256 nodes per bus * Balanced differential signaling, RS-485 and RS-422 standards compliant * 15kV ESD protected on all Tx and Rx bus pins * 7kV protection on...

Full featured, low-power RS-485 transceivers.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * 5V half-duplex RS-485 transceivers * With industry-standard SN75176 footprint and integrated receiver failsafe design * Eliminate need for external components * Provide rich feature set for applications such as industrial...

Rail-to-rail input/output instrumentation amp.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * 14 levels of programmable gain * 125dB CMRR independent of gain * Gain accuracy: 0.075% max, G = 1, 0.6% max, G = 64 to 1024 * Input offset voltage: 10uV max * Offset voltage drift: 0.05uV/[degrees]C max * Rail to rail...

Tri-port devices for multimedia handsets.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... The new tri-port family includes three members, two of which, the 70V525M and 70P525M, feature 3.0 and 1.8V core and I/O operation, respectively. The third family member, 70P5258M, supports 3.3/3.0/2.5 and 1.8V I/O voltages on the three ports...

4th-gen COFDM demodulator IC.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Meets international performance requirements including Nordig Unified, DTG and EICTA for DVB-T reception according to ETS 300 744 * Integrated microprocessor performs autonomous detection and operation of all possible DVB-T modes without...

Integrated analog and mixed-signal functions IC.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Combines five separate but distinct system functions in single 14-pin SOIC package, replacing need for multiple devices on system board * Device combines real-time clock (RTC), low-VDD reset, watchdog timer, battery-backed event counter,...

32-output constant-current sink-type LED driver.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * 32-output LED driver allowing current setting on 16-output basis * Output current from 10 to 100mA * On-chip 6-bit D/A converter enables program-controlled 64-stage current adjustment * Open/short detection functions added to...

TFT-LCD controller chip for next-gen flat displays.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Integrated with analog RGB VGA input and supports pixel frequencies of up to 165MHz * Supports input resolutions up to UXGA (1600x1200 pixels) and scales to fit panel resolutions up to SXGA (1280x1024 pixels) * Built-in...

Class-D audio power amps for 17 to 23" LCD TVs.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Two stereo class-D audio power amplifiers for 17 to 23 inch LCD TVs * 92% efficient when driving 16 [ohms] speakers * With four custom integrated gain settings that eliminate external resistors * With integrated auto recovery...

C5J "Esther" processor core.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * With faster front side bus (FSB) of up to 800MHz, SSE2/SSE3 multimedia instructions, and larger L2 cache * Povides two Secure Hash functions (SHA-1 and SHA-256) that assist in creation and verification of digital signatures through...

Narrowband RF transceiver.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * Meets requirements for 25kHz channel spacing and adjacent channel power of less than -37dBm * Full FCC/ETSI compliancy without SAW filter * With additional register settings offering enhanced operation modes, and unconditional...

DDR memory power design simplified.(ICs, SoCs & IP Cores)
September 1, 2004... * IC combines dc/dc switch-mode controller and linear dropout (LDO) regulator to enhance power performance * Reduces number of external components required to support all power management for DDR systems, such as Micron's DDR and DDR II...

High-precision resistor arrays.(Components)
September 1, 2004... The PRA 100, PRA 135 and PRA 182 are high-precision resistor arrays with a low combined relative error of less than 0.03%. The PRA arrays provide a tight TCR of 10 ppm/[degrees]C, TCR tracking of I ppm/[degrees]C, and a ratio tolerance as tight...

High-intensity SMD LED series.(Components)
September 1, 2004... * Can be driven with higher currents to enable twice the brightness of comparable LEDs in PLCC-2 package * Offered in PLCC-3 package with low 270k/W thermal resistance rating * Suite of six color options includes super red, red,...

Universal contact available in two way format.(Components)
September 1, 2004... * Two way version of surface mount Universal Contact * Delivers better benefits of miniaturization to broad range of telecommunications and industrial applications * Designed to overcome traditional interconnect constraints *...

HS Dock connectors in multiple formats.(Components)
September 1, 2004... * High-speed docking system * 1.50mm (.059") connectors available in multiple configurations * Feature four levels of mating to be used in hot pluggable applications * Compliant pin for PCB interface * Include low mating...

Power rocker switches deliver new functions.(Components)
September 1, 2004... * Multiple functionality includes SPDT and DPDT On-None-On; On-None-Off; On-Off-On; Mom-Off-Mom; and On-Off-Mom * Can be illuminated and marked * Come in white, red, amber and green * Available in single pole (CM) and double pole...

Emulation support for XC164CM.(EDA Tools and Design Services)
September 1, 2004... * Development tools offer powerful debugging and emulation tools for XC164CM * JProbeXC On-chip debug solution can be adapted to target JTAG port Connector with 2.54mm or 1.27mm pin-to-pin distance enables adaptation even where board...

Software tool for next-gen RFIC designs.(EDA Tools and Design Services)
September 1, 2004... * Easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI) supporting: System-level and circuit-level design methodologies Electrical and physical design, schematic capture, simulation/ analysis, and layout and verification Frequency- and...

ADVance MS product from verification arena.(EDA Tools and Design Services)
September 1, 2004... ADVance MS (ADMS) version 4.0 delivers full language support for SystemVerilog, SystemC VHDL, Verilog SPICE, VHDL-AMS, Verilog-AMS and C support for eight languages. It enables digital centric verification such as testbenches (directed testing...

Enhanced software development toolset.(EDA Tools and Design Services)
September 1, 2004... * Enhanced with next-generation Viper compiler technology * Enables significant increases in code efficiency * Supports both Renesas M16C and Renesas R8C/Tiny * Contains TASKING embedded development environment (EDE), C/C++/EC++...

Delay test for nanometer design.(EDA Tools and Design Services)
September 1, 2004... * Addition to Encounter Test ensures high quality-of-silicon (QoS) by detecting subtle IC defects such as resistive opens that can cause failures in end-product applications * Said to be "first and only tool" that uses actual standard...

Second-gen VisualSim.(EDA Tools and Design Services)
September 1, 2004... * Platform-independent, graphical and textual modeling software supports digital, embedded software, imaging, protocols, analog, control-systems and DSP designs * Introduces Virtual Resources--new modeling entry for accurate and quick...

Wiring and test of cabinets and assemblies.(Test & Measurement)
September 1, 2004... * Aimed at serial testing of control assemblies and electromechanical components, with emphasis on wiring harness testing * Number of test points per card is 8, 32 or 64 * 6000VDC or 5000VAC testing voltage (max) * Flexible number...

Handheld spectrum analyzer.(Test & Measurement)
September 1, 2004... * Expanded frequency range of handheld spectrum analyzer up to 6GHz * Suitable for all WLAN 802.11a applications as well as for general lab applications in higher frequency ranges * Combines best-of class technical values with...

Timer/counter/analyzer measuring tool.(Test & Measurement)
September 1, 2004... * 250k measurements/s to internal memory and 750k stored measurement results in internal memory * 2k measurements/s GPIB and USB measuring rate * With high resolution of 100ps (time), 12 digits/s (freq.), 0.001[degrees] (phase) *...

Additions to family of DWDM spectrum analyzers.(Test & Measurement)
September 1, 2004... * Latest additions to Acterna family of spectrum analyzers * Offer high-performance optical measurements over full wavelength range between 1250 and 1650nm at high test speed * For testing very dense wavelength division multiplexing...

Spectrum analyzer with max dynamic range.(Test & Measurement)
September 1, 2004... The new high-end model R&S FSU50 complements the Spectrum Analyzer Family R&S FSU from Rohde & Schwarz. It has a frequency range from 20Hz to 50GHz and is ideal for a wide range of applications such as microwave, space travel and military...

Cap-charging high voltage power supplies.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * Deliver 0 to 20kVDC and 0 to 25kVDC outputs in smallest volume possible * Available in 0 to 60W or 0 to 125W output * Have fast-rise, low-overshoot capacitor charging * Maximum [I.sub.out] down to 0V * Measures 47 [in.sup.3]...

40V synchronous rectification MOSFET.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * 40V N-channel HEXFET power MOSFET * Wide input voltage range of 36 to 75V * Achieves 95.2% efficiency at 150W full load * Delivers as much as 0.5% higher efficiency when compared to industry-standard 40V devices in same de/de C...

SOT-23 supervisor monitors six supplies.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * Ultra-low voltage reset: [V.sub.CC] = 0.5V guaranteed * Monitors six inputs simultaneously * Guaranteed threshold accuracy: [+ or -]1.5% of monitored voltage over temperature * Internal [V.sub.CC] autoselect * Power supply...

10V synchronous step-up dc/dc converter.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * Small solution size * >85% efficiency over wide load range * [V.sub.IN], range: 1.5 to 5.5V * 5V at 30mA from 3.3V input * 3.3V at 20mA from 2 AA cell input * Burst mode operation * Inrush current limiting *...

PWM controller meets IBA specs.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * MHz oscillator shrinks power transformer and filter components to save space and improve transient response * Less than 100ns propagation delay on current limit * Switching frequency see by single resistor * Device may be...

Multi-chip power IC family.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * Combines power MOSFET implemented in Infineon CoolMOS technology with new multi-featured fixed-frequency PWM control IC in single package * 650m[OMEGA] max on-state resistance (RDS (on)) * Gate voltage of 10V in DIP-8 package is about...

Dual 2-phase synchronous dc/dc controller.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... * Wide [V.sub.IN] range from 3 to 30V * Good modulation archilecture for low duty cycle operation * Phase-lockable fixed frequency from 330 to 750kHz * Programmable current limit without external current sense resistor *...

Multiphase PWM controller for dc/dc applications.(Power Components, Supplies and Devices)
September 1, 2004... The Endura ISL6564 is a four-phase synchronous-buck PWM controller with 6-bit VID (voltage identification) controller. With a switching frequency range up to 1.5MHz per phase, the device has dynamic VID technology for seamless on-the-fly VID...